27 Chapter 27
“-the car would leave tonight, before midnight. Just a few miles east of the river crossing. Forest Springs is Nora’s father’s territory, so you’d be safe there until-”
My fingers curl into the soft fabric of my recovered pillow, digging in until my knuckles turn white. Forest Springs Pac
The neighboring territory ruled by Nora’s father.
I keep my face blank while Evan continues explaining their supposed escape plan, but inside, my stomach twists into knots dense enough to sink through the floor. In the end, Nora and Xander want me to go to her father’s pack.
Silly me, to ever think Nora and I could be on the same page for even a moment.
“Alpha Thornton will personally guarantee your protection,” Evan says, leaning forward with an earnestness that might be convincing if I didn’t know better. “It’s the perfect solution.”
The room suddenly feels smaller, the walls closing in as Evan’s voice drones on about routes and timing and security measures. Each word lands like another shovelful of dirt on my grave. “-Xander wanted to come himself, but he’s tied up with the transition meetings. The Lycans are demanding a lot from him as the new Alpha.”
Of course they are, Convenient excuse.
I trace a loose thread on my bedsheet, keeping my gaze down so Evan won’t see what’s in my eyes. This plan isn’t about keeping me safe. It’s about getting rid of me permanently. Nora’s intent is to make sure I’m forever miserable.
If it was about my safety, they’d send me to Sterling City.
Pill
“-and once the Lycans leave, probably in a few weeks, Xander will send for you and-”
A bitter laugh threatens to burst from my throat, but I swallow it down. The fantasy that Xander would “send for me” after the Lycans leave might be the most ridiculous part of this whole charade. Nora would sooner tear out her own heart than allow me back into Xander’s orbit, even at the edges.
“Violet?” Evan pauses, finally noticing my silence. “Are you listening?”
“It’s a lot to take in,” Evan says, mistaking my silence for consideration. “But we don’t have much time.”
“Nora’s put together a bag for you–clothes, some toiletries. Basic stuff to get you through the first few days until you’re settled.”
Clothes picked by Nora. I imagine scratchy fabrics, wrong sizes, colors meant to wash me out
cruelties
hidden in gestures of false kindness.
and make me look sickly. Little S
27 Chapter 27
I stare at Evan, something inside me finally snapping. The pretense of polite consideration evaporates, like water beneath the noon sun. “Do you actually believe any of this bullshit you’re spewing?”
My words are a brutal knife slicing through his plans. Evan blinks, taken aback by my sudden shift from passive listener to open skeptic.
“What? Violet, this isn’t-”
“This isn’t what? A convenient way to get rid of me? To hand me over to people who would hate me even more than the ones here do?”
Evan’s expression hardens. “Look, I wouldn’t be part of this if I thought you’d be in danger. I’m coming with you.”
“Excuse me?”
“I’m going with you to Forest Springs. To make sure you’re treated well.” He leans forward, earnestness radiating from him. “Xander wants me to make sure you’re okay. He specifically asked me to accompany you. If she wanted to hurt you, why would she send me along?”
I tilt my head back, staring at the ceiling with a humorless laugh. I lift my injured wrist, the one Asher had so carefully bandaged.
“Did you know? Nora’s the one who hurt this wrist this morning.”
Evan’s eyes widen slightly; I can see his expression out of the corner of my eye.
“She grabbed me in the hall and wouldn’t let go. Squeezed until I thought the bones would snap.” My voice drops to an icy whisper as I finally meet his gaze. “She did this in front of the Lycan Beta. She didn’t care
who saw.”
I lean forward, forcing Evan to maintain eye contact. “So tell me again why someone like Nora- someone who was willing to physically harm me in front of witnesses–would suddenly be so concerned with helping me? The human ex–girlfriend of her mate?”
www
The question hangs in the air between us. Evan shifts uncomfortably, his gaze dropping to my bandaged wrist. The certainty in his expression wavers.
“Maybe she…” he starts, then falters. His throat works as he swallows. “It’s still better than being prisoner to the Lycan King, isn’t it? You’ve seen it. He’s crazed for violence. He’ll kill moment he’s done with you.”
you the
My stomach twists. Yes, I know. It isn’t like I trust him, either. But it doesn’t mean I’m going to jump into a fire.
L
Evan’s eyes suddenly narrow, and he takes an aggressive step forward. The shift in his attitude sends a shiver through my body. “It can’t be… Do you actually believe what he said? About you being ‘his’?”
12:50
<
27 Chapter 27
+136
The memory of Asher’s voice echoes in my head–his furious declaration in front of the entire pack. The way Fenris had materialized beside him, as if summoned by his rage,
“No. Of course not.”
But then I think about my strange meal with him and how he bandaged my wrist so tenderly. Heat creeps up my neck.
Evan’s nostrils flare slightly. “If there’s something between you and the Lycan King that you’re not telling us…”
“There’s nothing,” I snap. I don’t need more rumors. Everyone’s confused enough as it is.
“Then why are you hesitating?” Evan presses. “If there’s nothing, why not come with me tonight? Get away from all this?”
I study his face, searching for answers. Does he really think he’s helping me? And why is he so damn stubborn about this? Evan has never liked me.
“You didn’t answer my question,” I say quietly. “Why would Nora want to help me?”
He sighs, running a hand through his hair. “Xander is concerned about you. He feels guilty. Nora knows that, and she wants him focused on the transition, on becoming the Alpha the pack needs right now. As long as you’re around…”
“I’m a distraction,” I finish for him.
“You’re a complication,” he corrects. “And with the Lycans breathing down everyone’s necks, complications are dangerous.”
“And if I refuse to go
I ask, though I already know the answer.
Evan’s expression turns grim. “Then we can’t protect you from whatever happens next. The Lycan King has claimed you as his, but nobody knows why. What if he’s just playing with his food?”
I’m not going to eat you, he’d said, like that was supposed to ease all my fears. The thought of it is laughable now.
My fingers trace the edge of the bandage Asher wrapped around my wrist. His touch had been surprisingly gentle for someone so feared, but he’s unstable. Strange. Unreadable.
I can’t stay here, but I’m not going to go along with Nora’s plan.
“I’ll go, but not to Forest Springs. You need to take me to Sterling City.” Evan’s brow furrows. “Sterling City? Why would you want to go there?” “Because I’m human, Evan. That’s where I should have been all along.” “The humans abandoned you,” Evan says, his voice hard. “We took you in.”
+136
27 Chapter 27
A humorless laugh escapes me. “Really? Because the Lycan King seems to think differently. He practically accused Alpha of kidnapping me from human society.”
“Alpha Keller would never-” Evan’s face flushes red. “He wouldn’t kidnap a human child.”
My hands drag roughly over my face as I groan in frustration. “Look, I don’t care what you believe. Sterling City is the only place I’m going, with or without your help.”
He shifts his weight, uncertainty flickering across his features. The silence stretches between us until he finally speaks. “Fine. I’ll come with you to Sterling City.”
What? No. “I don’t need you.”
“Xander asked me to keep you safe.” Evan’s jaw sets stubbornly. “I gave him my word.”
I roll my eyes toward the ceiling. The man’s incapable of thinking for himself. It’s always about Xander.
Having Evan along will complicate things, but fighting him on this will only waste time I don’t have. “Fine.”
Sterling City is big enough. Once we’re there, losing Evan in a crowd shouldn’t be too difficult. Evan frowns at me, as if my quick agreement leaves him suspicious. Hopefully he gets over it. “Okay. Remember, the succession ceremony starts at midnight. Everyone will be focused on Xander taking his place as Alpha and re–bonding the pack members. Every Lycan will be there- they have to witness the transfer of power.”
I tilt my head. “What happens if they catch us?”
Evan’s expression darkens. “We can’t get caught.”
So, death. It’s what I thought, but it’s still unsettling to think about it. “Okay”
e planning settles in my
T
The weight of what chest like lead. If the Lycan King finds out… The image of Alpha’s broken body flashes through my mind.
A strange part of me feels as if I’m betraying my family by escaping, but I shake it off. “You should go before someone notices you’ve been here too long.”
Evan nods, but hesitates at the door. “Violet… just be ready, okay? I’ll get here as soon as I can.”
The door clicks shut behind him, leaving me alone with my thundering heart and a thousand doubts.
