The tension on my wrists suddenly loosens, and even though I want to will my arms in front of me, the numbness in them only allows them to fall flat beside me. “In fact,” Trent’s mate walks around to where I can see her, “I’ve just helped you, fed, and watered you.” “You set this whole thing up,” I snap, “and when Trent finds me-” “He’s never going to find you,” she smiles, swinging the keys around one of her fingers as she speaks to me, “he won’t even look. Once he’s fully mine, I’ll let someone find you, and take you back to the Stones.” Both outcomes are things I don’t want. Trent will find me, of that I’m almost positive, but when he does, my life is over regardless. I’ll die by his hands, or he’ll lock me up until he needs to use me or bores of me again. “You’ll see,” I taunt her, smiling right back at her, wishing she’d rethink her stance on this. It could be so much simpler for both of us if she let me go now, and I would stay true to my word. “WE will, won’t we? Because
The light assaults my eyes as they fly open, blinking through the pain of it until I see her pacing at the far end of the room. She stops immediately as I sit up and rushes at the cage, colliding with it roughly, and making the metal bars shaking from the contact. “What the hell is so special about you? HUH?” She’s screaming at me, but her words aren’t reaching me. I’m not interested in what she has to say, just the way that she keeps grabbing onto the bars in between words. I watch the way her hair passes through them, angry with myself for how weak I feel, but then she rounds the cage. My fingers pass over the rough edge of the scar on my chest, and while I’m not sure when my hand got there, I am sure that if I’m strong enough to survive this long… I’m strong enough to survive her.Pain blasts across my skull as she reaches through and grabs a fistful of my hair, pulling the back of my head tight against the bars. My vision clouds as her fingers curl tight against my scalp and s
I'm not sure where I'm going, or what is out here under cover of the light, but every step coats my skin with the familiar heat of the sun, and every blink brings a little more clarity. Nothing but trees lie ahead of me, and with the full sunlight out, this is about to be the shortest hunt of her life. My feet dig into the dirt and moss below them, my legs carrying me through the open spaces as quickly as they can. I used to be fast. Faster than all the boys… faster than Donny… but not as fast as Brixton. His name echoing through my head brings a sense of freedom that has no place on this run. I was running for my life then too. I just didn't realize it, but now the stakes are higher. My chest rises and falls quickly as I beg for more oxygen to flood through me. With every step my knees threaten to give out, the exhaustion creeping in, and my hands ache from every rough branch I've gripped and propelled past. I’ve been running for what seems like an eternity when up ahead a small
The wolf tries to recover from its fall quickly but ends up limping its way back to solid ground. Every step it takes, it has to drag with it what looks like metal jaws. Sharp, metal teeth that are piercing into its hind leg, clasped around it and leaving behind a trail of blood. The longer Corbyn stands there casually looking at it, the more confused I grow. This should be ruining his plan… unless it’s not her… or unless him leaping over that exact spot was no accident. “Devlin,” he finally speaks in my direction, as if we're old friends who are casually passing each other by. "Did you set that?" I whisper so low that I’m not sure he’ll hear me, but an amused huff has my head swinging his way. His face gives nothing away as usual, and just as the corner of his mouth tips up, unnoticeable to anyone else, another three wolves descend from the tree line. Their heads are all low to the ground, growling with their teeth bared, as they approach with tentative steps until one looks
"She won't be fully healed in two days," Mary says cautiously. "She doesn't need to be," Corbyn lazily inputs from across the room as Trent licks at my shoulder more, "out." Mary leaves promptly, never so much as looking back at me, but she never did. "Two days?" Corbyn practically stares through me at my question. "Two days," Trent repeats, exchanging the robe I'm wearing for a dress, "until the full moon marks our marriage." My eyes lock into his, "But what about my birth-" "I'm not waiting another nine days," he brushes my hair over one shoulder, leaving his mark on display, "the pack won't stand for it." He presses a long slow kiss to my lips, seemingly over the roadblock that was his mate, "I have to tend to a few things, Corbyn will be with you." He turns to leave, but being left with Corbyn is a terrible idea. Trent hasn't left my side since he carried me from the forest yesterday, and it's a reaction I can't control when I reach out and grab his arm, pulling at him t
"I was just on my way to you," Gavin pauses in front of me, pushing the table with the vase out of the way roughly. "Why are you by yourself?" There's an edge to his voice, but as I look up at him, none of the anger shows through. His face is a blank slate, emotionless in the same manner Corbyn’s is. I could go back to being sweet, innocent, Devlin and apologize, but apologies will get me nowhere. It’s another test. His finger curls under my jaw, tipping it up as his thumb plants firmly against my chin. “Am I not free to walk around my own home?” “You should-” “Have a guard?” I ask, and the amusement breaks through his mask of indifference. While Trent got most of his looks from Gavin, he’s never had the truly removed way about him that makes it possible to be as cruel as he is. Trent, however, did inherit Gavin’s impatience that I can see thinning. “Trent left, I wanted to find him.” Gavin pulls a round ottoman from behind him, sitting directly in front of me. His rough
He stares down at me, caging me with his palms pressed flat to the wall on either side of me. Corbyn is confusing at the best of times, but right now, the last thing I need is to try to navigate what he’s after. “If you want to kill me, do it already.” I press against his chest and he allows the space for me to walk past him. “Switching Alpha’s now?” He asks casually as my hand hovers over the door handle. “You knew,” I say without turning and there’s a sour taste developing on my tongue, one laced in the knowledge that he’s known this whole time that Gavin killed my family on purpose. He grips my wrist, ignoring my statement, as he drags me into the small bathroom in the room, but thankfully it doesn’t come equipped with a tub. He pulls the hand towel from the hanging rod, getting it wet before dragging it along my skin where Gavin was. He heard… everything. “There was a woman who had an affair with the Alpha. She later died giving birth, despite there being no complication
~~~ Five Days Ago ~~~ The little jumps in his heartbeat tells me he’s awake, not that he’s letting on as he hangs from the chains in this room. Tactical. At least he hasn't lost all common sense. Pierce’s breathing gets longer, deeper, for one count… two… CLANG! When his attempt to break through the chains doesn’t go as planned, his eyes light up, finding mine immediately. I spoke too soon. There's no way he surveyed his surroundings in less than five seconds with enough evidence to act. “Feeling any less inclined to-” “WHERE… IS… SHE?!” His roar does nothing but make that part of me I repress come to the surface. It’s paying attention, but we don’t need the rogue piece of my father’s DNA right now. He subtly leans against the chains one way and another, his face giving nothing away as the silver burns his skin. He can check for weaknesses all he wants, but I prepared this room just for him. He has two cuffs on each wrist and foot, and a collar for added security. It w