LOGINAlex stares. Axel’s flesh and blood Alex, not some fake playing a prank, but the real Parker Princess. “How did you… How are you… You want to… huh?” My words can’t even mesh together and form a coherent sentence. Maybe I really did fail that English test. She comes fully into view, her lithe frame so different from her brother’s, but still the similarities between them are uncanny. I’m not sure if I want to pull her in or find the nearest kitchen knife to defend myself. “I said maybe I can help you,” she repeats, confirming I’m not mad. “If Clarissa will not take you to Nester, I will.” My knees nearly give way again. Talon gently pulls me behind him, his hazel eyes narrowed. “You’re Axel’s sister?” “Yes, and I want to help my brother’s friends.” Which only confuses me further. Maybe I’d have preferred it if she walked in here knife in hand. At least that’d have made sense. With a lurch, Clarissa jerks toward her, as if she’s going to hit Alex, but the other girl casts her a ha
I've fiddled with my mother’s ring more times in the last 2 days than I've done in 20 years.Everything is coming apart fast. I love fast. I crave it, but this is something else entirely.“You look awful,” Clarissa says beside me.“It's nice to see you too, Clary,” I lie. I can't genuinely remember the last time I felt happy or grateful to be in the same room as her.“I didn't mean it insultingly, Ryker. I mean you look awful, sick. Since our encounter with John, you’ve seemed so… pale.”I face her, surprised to see her assessing me sincerely.The truth is, I have felt a little off, like there’s a constant cold waving through me, but it's not like after my fight with John things just went back to normal. It's been a rough few days. When all this is over, I'm sure I'll be able to take a nap, grab a burger, and do anything to get my familiar glow back.I contemplate telling her the truth, and I decide on simply saying, “I've just been a little chilly.”She looks at me a moment longer, l
Olivia collapses in my arms. “What did you say to her?” I snap, glaring at Clarissa. She throws her hands up, “Why do you think I had something to do with it?” A slow throbbing starts in my head. I can't do this today, not with Clarissa, not with anyone. I carry Olivia to my room, laying her on my bed and sitting at the edge. I feel a little guilty that I'm grateful she’s passed out. At least, for now, I don't have to worry too much about the bet, and I can fix my mind on every other fucked up thing going on. I dial my dad again. And again. And again. I dial him till my phone screen blurs with frustrated tears. Where the hell could he be? As a final Hail Mary, I call the last person on earth who would want to talk to me right now After a few rings, Ricklan’s gruff voice deadpans, “Hunter?” I blow out a breath, running a hand through my hair. “Hey, Uncle Rick.” “I don't have time to talk to you,” he pauses, “unless this has something to do with Olivia?” I turn to her, look
After a torturous minute of silence, Clarissa pipes up, and for the first time in my life, I’m glad to hear her voice. “Before we die here of quiet, does anyone know how we’re going to get to Axel?” “Nope,” Ryker says defeatedly. “No clue,” Talon mutters quietly. Clarissa blinks at them. “Okay, so you two are useless.” She turns to Liana, tapping her head, “and I doubt you’ve got much going up there.” Liana turns as red as her hair. “I will kill you.” Clarissa ignores her and faces me. It’s odd to be stared at by her with curiosity, not hatred. “That leaves you, magic woman. Got any golden tricks up your sleeve?” For some reason, I’m oddly offended. I fold my hands and insist, “I’m not a magician.” “Whatever you say, Little Rose.” I perk up. “What the hell does that thing mean?” Clarissa rolls her wrist noncommittally. “Oh, I don’t know… something to do with roses being rare around here, blah blah blah. Nester calls all his lovers that.” I think bile nearly chokes me to dea
Talon doesn’t pick up my call. I dial his number again and again, growing more frustrated with each “sent to voicemail” message I receive. “Maybe he’s not by his phone right now,” Liana suggests over my shoulder. “He has to pick up. It’s urgent.” I leave out the fact I’m also desperate to hear his voice. When I’m dialing for the eighth time, Clarissa groans. “For the love of God, just call someone else. Ryker must be near his phone. He’s a social media addict. Call him.” Irritation nips my chest. “First off, their entire pack dynamic just changed. I highly doubt this is the time for Ryker to get involved in his social media addiction.” Clarissa crooks her brow. “And the second thing?” Saying my second reason is because I’m mad at him feels stupidly childish for the situation at hand. Plus, I don’t want Clarissa to think she has one over me, even now. With an aggravated sigh, I punch in Ryker’s number. The first ring doesn’t even finish before he picks up. “Olivia. Hello? Ar
Things have fallen apart before, but this is different… this feels like the height of how far things can truly shatter. I place a hand on my chest, as if by doing so I could reach through my ribcage and touch our new bond. I feel all of us thrumming there: Ryker, Axel, and Hunter… Hunter in a new way, a way I’ve never felt him before. And even though I can feel Axel, it’s no comfort to me when I can’t see him. “What were we thinking letting him leave?” Ryker says for the 50th time since Axel disappeared. But that’s the thing, I don’t think we were thinking at all. When him and Hunter were done fighting and he scrambled away, I thought surely he was going to clear his head, or get fresh air, anything that would have led to him coming back in an hour tops. But it’s been 12 hours and we haven’t heard a single word from our ex-alpha. “I’m going to call him,” Ryker declares, his finger already on the call button. I nod, but inside I have a hopeless feeling that he isn’t going to pic
I’m crying. I don’t even remember the last time I cried, but here I am: over a man's shoulder and wailing like a child. With Talon it was different; I shed a few tears for what he was going through, but this time it’s all selfish, all for myself. If I wasn’t so distressed, I would register that
I barge into Roanna’s office without knocking. Her dead-leaf pheromones instantly tickle my nostrils. I would cringe away if I wasn’t as pissed as I am. “Mr. Parker, you frightened me!” she cries. I slam my hand on her desk, knocking over some statues. “I’d like to see Olivia’s test.” Roanna’s
He knows. He knows, he knows, he knows…. He knows about Nester. He knows my mum tied us together. He knows Everest has been tracking my magic in him. I can’t believe I let that “you know you’ll be dead without me” line slip in class. It may have been about the stabbing but Axel is a prodigy-leve
I have to pretend everything is fine. Not like I made a deal with a devil. Not like I can feel myself breaking apart piece-by-piece. Not like everything since Olivia entered my life has turned upside down. But like I’m fine. The break passes too fast, almost like rest is running away from me.







