Chapter 2

The black armored SUV idled by the side door of the lab.

The driver-side window rolled halfway down. Lucas glanced my way.

"Three years. How is your wolf holding up?"

"Better. Roderick took care of her."

I opened the door and took the passenger seat.

An open bottle of nerve drops sat on the console.

"Your wolf is weak. The ride gets rough," Lucas said without looking at me. "Take two drops. It helps."

I stared at the glass vial, then took it in my palm.

"I had no choice back then," he added quietly. "Don't hate me for it."

Four years ago, Roderick's enforcers surrounded our pack lands. Lucas looked at me with soft eyes. "Go with him, Winslet. He will slaughter the entire pack if you say no. Once the dust settles, I swear I will come for you."

Four years had passed. Roderick's empire only grew larger. I understood why Lucas broke his promise.

I gave him a dry smile. "It's fine. It's in the past."

The SUV sped west, driving straight down into the underground garage of the Winston estate.

The heavy hydraulic gates sealed shut behind us. A shadow rushed out.

"Oh, my god, Winslet!"

Mom threw her arms around me. Tears filled her eyes.

But before I could speak, she yanked my hood down over my face. Her eyes darted across the empty concrete.

"Inside. Now. The patrol guards can't see you."

She gripped my wrist and dragged me down into the basement storage unit.

The chill down here was brutal. A long metal transport crate sat in the middle of the room. My father sat at a folding table nearby, accompanied by two men wearing black tactical masks.

"You're here."

My father never even glanced up. He kept swiping through his tablet.

"I read through the documents. Roderick made the exile contract airtight. It won't drag our family down."

A black shock collar sat on the table, rigged with neural suppression chips. Pack enforcers put them on rabid rogues.

"Put it on," my father said, nodding toward the metal. "Max out the voltage. Your scent has to stay dead. Checkpoints are crawling with border guards tonight. If anyone catches your scent, we are all dead."

I froze in my tracks.

Mom picked up the collar and forced it into my hands. She wiped her eyes. "Listen to your father, baby. It hurts, yes, but it has a built-in safety cutoff. It won't kill you."

Lucas stepped forward. He took the collar and moved behind me.

The cold metal snapped shut against my throat.

The electrical pulse bit deep into my skin. My inner wolf violently shuddered, whimpering in the dark of my mind.

"She can handle it," Lucas said. He tapped his tablet, his voice completely casual. "Her vitals are stable."

He spun the screen around and shoved a printed document into my hands.

Black ink on white paper: Winslet Winston, eldest daughter of the Winston pack. Severed mate bond due to Alpha pressure. Suffered mental collapse. Deceased.

"Once this goes out to the high council, they will drop the old charges," Lucas said. A tiny flicker of guilt showed in his eyes. "Your sacrifice matters, Winslet."

"He is right," my father said. He stood and patted my shoulder. "Your sister's betrothal to the Rocky Mountain pack is next week. Our family cannot afford a cast-off woman from an Alpha. It looks pathetic. You take a new name in Florida. Everyone wins."

I stood beneath the vent. The icy air bit through my shirt.

"Can I send encrypted messages once I reach the East Coast?" I asked.

My father scowled. "Are you insane? Everything leaves a digital footprint. You want to ruin your sister's future?"

I turned to Lucas. "My wolf never fully healed. There are no West Coast medical pods out there. What happens if the wolfsbane flares up?"

Lucas looked away. He picked up his glass. "Roderick gave you millions on that black card. Go hire an underground doctor."

I turned to my weeping mother. "What about holidays? Will any of you come visit me?"

Silence swallowed the room.

Mom stopped crying. She fidgeted with the hem of her jacket, looking anywhere but at me.

No one said a word.

I reached up, shoved my thumb under the metal latch, and ripped the collar off my throat.

The edges gouged my flesh. Blood trickled down my collarbone.

Lucas grabbed my wrist. "Stop being so childish, Winslet! It took us three whole days to work out this plan!"

Four years ago, on a storm-drenched night, he never raised a fist to save me.

Four years later, he drove an armored SUV across the city just to clasp a dog collar around my neck.

Everyone I ever loved stood in this room. Every single one of them threw me away without batting an eye.

"Right," I said, meeting his stare. A cold smile touched my lips. "You guys thought of everything. Let's go. Time is ticking."

I picked up the collar and snapped it back into place. Not a single tear left to shed.