The flame spluttered into life on the end of the match. James wrinkled his nose at the smell. As the wolf approached with match in hand, Jess thrashed wildly. She called out James's name a few times and he teetered on the edge of the branch, almost ready to jump to her aid. The sound of Ella's heart knocking against her chest was too loud and James wanted to be deaf in that moment. He watched the flame get closer to Jess and held his breath. He told himself it wouldn't happen, that something would intervene. His moments hesitation was all it took for the flame to be dropped onto the bottom of the spike.

James flinched as Jess shrieked. Jean moaned and wailed, James could almost taste the salt of her tears in the air. Ella closed her eyes and shoved her bound hands against one ear. Orlando watched with a vacant look on his face.

James had expected the wolves to laugh or sneer, and one of them did, but Ella's father remained serious and stern.

"I hope he doesn't show." The sneering wolf laughed.

Ella's father surveyed the trees again. It was a wonder he couldn't spot James who was now shaking with rage.

He was going to skin the whole pack and use their fur to make himself a new rug.

"Call out to your lover." Ella didn't hear her father at first, she was right under Jean who was moaning like a ghost.

The man crouched in front of his daughter and touched the side of her face. "Call to him. Tell him to come and save you."

Orlando laughed. "You don't know James. He would never be stupid enough to come and try to save us."

James knew that Orlando had placed the emphasis on stupid for his benefit. Somehow the older vampire was aware that James was nearby. He was trying to tell him to leave them behind.

Ella's father pushed his dry lips together. "From what I hear he is the only brother who would be that stupid. Richard did nothing but complain about the runt."

James clamped his teeth together hard enough to make his jaw joint creak. He was not a runt anymore and he would show this smug dog that. He moved closer to the edge of the branch but he heard Robert's voice in his head. He remembered how his brother used to remind him, take a look at what you would be falling into before you decide to jump. He scanned the clearing again. A whole pack of wolves, nine of them, some of which must be pure-blooded, and a witch whose power James did not know the limits of.

When nothing came flying out of the trees to attack him, Ella's father motioned towards Ella again. "Scream for him. All we want is him."

James was proud to see the determined look on Ella's face as she pulled her lip between her teeth and didn't utter a sound.

Her father whirled on her. Snatching the matches from another wolf he lit one first try and stormed towards his daughter. She started to cry, loud explosive bursts of pleas and tears.

James's chest felt tight. Screw you Robert, he thought, its time to jump.

The branch snapped and hit the ground with a boom as he bounded off it and into the clearing. The impact of the branch on the forest floor drew everyone's attention to him. the match in the alphas hand flickered. Orlando swore softly.

James looked at Jess. She was hanging lifeless on the wooden post now, her screams silenced.

The alpha shook the match until the flame went out, then he straightened and regarded James.

"Are you going to draw a picture later?" James remarked.

The alpha didn't even crack a smile. "You wear his jacket, yet it doesn't quite fit you right." The pack sniggered and James narrowed his eyes at the alpha.

"You will learn to be afraid of me just like you were of him." James kept an eye on the alpha. If he moved a step forwards, James moved a step back.

"I am not the one who is afraid."

James felt like iron rods were holding his body up. He looked at Orlando and the other vampire mouthed something at him. It took three tries before James could work out that it was run.

James put his hands in his pockets. It was a risky move. It meant that if the wolves came at him his hands weren't ready for stopping them. But he needed to put on a show. He needed them to think that he wasn't scared, that he didn't give a damn what happened to the other vampires or to Ella. He needed them to think that they had nothing and that he knew something that they didn't.

"I didn't take wolves for the type to burn their children at the stake." James raised an eyebrow at the alpha and paced two steps to his left.

The wolf spun his body so that he was always facing James. despite what he may have claimed the alpha was no fool and knew that it was wise to be at least a bit scared of a vampire at all times.

"I do not want to harm her, only the vampire who corrupted her."

The man's calm demeanour was getting to James. Maybe if he got him to lose his cool, he would make a mistake and give James an opening to the others. He didn't know the man very well so he just opted for what he knew would have annoyed his own father.

"I corrupted her alright. Every day and night. In every room of the house."

The alpha snarled and James was pleased he had finally gotten some emotion out of him. then he threw the matches to one of his wolves. "We will see how funny you think you are leech when another one of your friends burns."

Panic built in James's throat and he felt sick. The wolf brought his hand down to the matches and struck one to life. He grinned at Orlando and started to walk his way. James didn't think, he just threw himself forward as fast as he could. The forest around him became a blur of green and brown. The wolf sniggering became the only sound he could hear. He willed his legs to take him faster. He came up within arms reach of the wolf.

Something clawed into his back, knocking him onto the ground. The thing on top of him was too warm and something sharp cut into his muscles. He tried to ignore the blinding pain as he stretched his arm forward towards Orlando. If he looked along his arm, he was just inches from him. He could touch the flame on the match with his fingertips. He vaguely registered that he could smell blood, hollow vampire blood.

Orlando smiled gently at him then snarled at the wolf. Jean was screaming again, and Ella was begging her father to let him go.

"Kill him! Orlando do something!" James could hardly breathe because of the weight on his back but he fought for each breath so he could scream at his friend.

The wolf got up to Orlando and waved the match in his face.

Orlando grit his teeth and pulled his hands forwards. There was a suction sound as the wooden stake clung to his skin then suddenly let go. Blood fountained onto the wolf's face and Orlando's head. Before the wolf could react, Orlando caught his head between his hands, twisted, and broke his neck. Jean stopped screaming and James just thanked god that vampires could recover from such an injury. His relief was short lived as the match that the wolf had been holding fell onto the grass and spat fire around where it landed. Orlando's feet were still stuck to the post, and he had lost a lot of blood. Yet he fought to pull his feet free.

A drop of saliva fell onto James's ear and he shivered. Wolves were disgusting creatures.

The wolf on top of him growled and dug its nails in deeper. James would have cried out but there was no air left inside him. He was grateful for that. At least if he was going to die he wouldn't give the alpha the satisfaction of hearing him scream.

Suddenly there was a huge crash and the weight on top of him was gone. James lifted his head in time to see another wolf roll into the trees, wrestling the alpha. They shattered anything that got in their way and James was finding it hard to hear the growl of the fire over them.

He put his hands under himself and slowly rose up. He felt lightheaded and the sun was making him itch. He needed blood. One the pack members, not a pureblood so stuck as a human, saw James get to his feet. His eyes went wide and with wooden stake in hand he rushed the vampire. His steps were clumsy as wolves usually are and James had little trouble in moving and throwing him off balance. He stepped to the side and thrust his leg up, catching the young wolf in the chest. At the same time, he had brought his hand around and knocked into the front of the boy's throat with it. Once the wolf was clutching both of his injuries and gasping, James took his chance and bit into his neck.

The blood was like days old tea and he resisted the urge to gag. He could feel his muscles knitting back together and filling with power.

Dropping the body, he noticed that the fire was spreading fast. He cringed from it. He could see Jean hanging from her post, still unconscious and surrounded by wolves. He took a step towards them, then noticed that the witch was by their side. She smiled at him, as if goading him into attacking. James desperately wanted to show her he wasn't scared. He would peel that smug smile right off her face.

A whimper pierced the air along with a resounding snap. James turned to see the alpha dragging the limp form of the wolf who had attacked him out of the trees. Although James had never seen Ella in her wolf form before, her scent told him it was her. He strained his ears and could still hear her heart.

The alpha spat her out and roared at James. James knew a challenge when he saw one. The only problem was Ella. He didn't want to fight the wolf with her injured and in the middle of it all. Not to mention he could feel the human members of the pack coming up behind him, most likely with their witch in tow. The fire was eating up the trees around them and getting stronger by the second. The smell of charred vampire flesh served as a harsh reminded of what the fire was capable of.

James knew that if it was a one on one fight, he would be able to take the alpha down. Unfortunately, the alpha wasn't going to play fair.

That was when Orlando came out of the shelter of the trees. His body was bloody and his eyes painfully red, but he still managed to muster enough strength to knock the alpha to the ground. His wounds bled into the wolf's fur. He hadn't had a chance to get blood and heal. Ordinarily, Orlando would have been strong enough to end the wolf with one tight bear hug, but he was injured and weak.

The attack gave James half a second to think. He thought of Jean, who was unconscious and unable to help herself. She was hanging behind him, at the mercy of the wolves. They would burn her alive like they had done to her sister. But the witch was that way and James hadn't had enough experience with witches before to know how to handle her.

He thought of Orlando, who would need his help to finish the alpha. But if they managed to kill the wolf then they would have to fight the witch and the rest of the pack, bloody and weak.

He looked at Ella, injured and slowly reverting to human form. If he left her behind then her father would do god knows what to her. All because they had met.

"Run!" The piercing cry was hardly Orlando's voice anymore. It was strangled and hoarse. James felt that tightness in his chest again, but he was out of time to think. The alpha was shaking Orlando off while his witch muttered a spell behind James. No doubt it was a spell to make the alpha stronger so he could best the vampire clinging to his back. James felt sweat run down the side of his face as he ran towards Orlando and the flames. He got close enough to see some of the white still left in his eyes before he stooped, grabbed Ella and made a break for the forest.