Live to survive

TRINITY POV

I was still in shock.

Maria was the last person I’d expected to come for me.

I’d known her my entire life. She’d been one of the first maids my family ever hired, and even when my father was alive, she’d always been distant toward me.

After his death, though, she’d become even stricter than the other maids. If punishment was needed, she made sure I received the harshest kind.

I was terrified of her.

The last thing I’d expected was for her to cut me loose when she should’ve been preaching about duty. The moment the ropes fell away, she helped me to my feet.

“Maria.”

I caught her hand before she could pull away. Her stern gaze met mine. I swallowed hard.

“Elder Lawrence…” I whispered before shaking my head. “You’ll get into trouble.”

“So be it.”

She pulled her hand free and turned away without another explanation, scanning the room like someone might pop up suddenly.

“I don’t understand,” I murmured as we crept toward the door. “You hate me. Your loyalty is to Alpha Jericho…”

My words died in my throat as Maria spun to face me. She fixed me with a hard stare.

“If you think everything I did was out of hatred,” she said quietly, “then it worked.”

I frowned. I had no idea what she meant. Before I could ask, she turned back toward the door. Then I heard it. Footsteps. It was slow, measured and followed by the unmistakable tap of a cane.

Elder Lawrence.

Panic clawed at my chest. I stumbled backward into the corner of the room, my heart pounding.

We were doomed.

If he discovered I’d escaped my restraints—and that Maria had helped me—he wouldn’t just punish me.

He’d punish her too.

I shuddered to think what Alpha Jericho would do to either of us.

“Maria,” I pleaded. “You need to leave.”

Maria barely reacted. She pressed an ear against the door, listened for a moment, then straightened.

Without a word, she pulled off her cloak and tossed it to me.

“Put it on.”

“What?” I whispered, frowning.

She reached into the pocket of her apron, pulled out a small vial filled with black liquid, uncorked it, and held it out.

“Drink it.”

I stared at the vial before slowly shaking my head. My hand instinctively drifted to my stomach.

The baby.

It should’ve been the last thing on my mind. Yet somehow, it wasn’t.

“I can’t,” I whispered.

“I know,” Maria said gently. “It won’t hurt it. It’s only concealing your scent along with the cloak.”

Heat flooded my face as I looked up at her in surprise. How did she know?

“My cousin is a witch doctor,” Maria went on. “She gave this to me. It’s meant to conceal you, not harm you.”

I was still hesitating when the lock clicked.

“Quick!” Maria urged.

I didn’t need to be told twice. I snatched the vial from her hand and swallowed its contents in one gulp before slipping her cloak on.

Elder Lawrence stepped inside.

I pressed myself against the wall, holding my breath. The first place he looked was the chair where I’d been tied. Then his gaze shifted to Maria, confusion flashing across his face.

I wondered if he could see me. But I trusted Maria. He couldn’t.

“Where is she?” Elder Lawrence suddenly growled, making me flinch.

His voice echoed through the room, sending chills crawling over my skin.

“Where is my breeder?” he demanded.

“I have no idea, sir,” Maria replied calmly. “I came here as instructed to deliver the vial, but when I arrived, she was gone.”

The vial.

Oh no.

I wrapped my arms around my stomach and stared at Maria in disbelief.

Was…

Was it poisoned?

“What do you mean you have no idea?” he barked. “She was in this room. I left her here!”

He tilted his head back and drew in a long, deep breath. Maria shifted slightly, catching my eye for the briefest moment.

I started to tremble.

Even though Elder Lawrence was old, he was still an experienced elder.

Long before my father rose to power, he’d once been a delta to the former alphas.

He stalked toward Maria. “I can smell her all over you.”

“Can you?” she asked, meeting his gaze.

Fear tightened my chest. He was her superior. She shouldn’t have looked him in the eye. He could easily take it as a challenge.

Instead, he reached out, grabbed the back of her neck, and planted a lingering kiss on her lips.

My gut churned.

It only got worse when Maria leaned into it, playing along. That was the last thing I’d expected.

I watched in horrified silence as they put on the revolting display, complete with exaggerated kissing sounds that seemed to drag on forever.

Finally, they pulled apart. They remained standing close enough that I wanted to gag.

“I hope you’re telling me the truth, Maria,” Elder Lawrence said. “I hope you truly have no idea where that girl ran off to. Because when I find her, I won’t hesitate to kill whoever cut her loose… and remind them exactly what happens to people who think they’re clever enough to outsmart me.”

Maria shrugged, saying nothing.

Elder Lawrence leaned closer, his lips curling into a cruel smile. “And let’s hope she has more fight in her than Roland did.”

I stilled.

My father?

What was he talking about?

My heart thumped wildly against my ribs as I strained to hear every word.

Maria’s face turned deathly pale. “You swore we’d never speak of that again.”

Elder Lawrence let out a low chuckle. “Why? The dead can’t hear us.”

“Enough, Lawrence.” Maria snarled through gritted teeth. “You won’t hurt Trinity.”

“Watch me do it when I get my hands around her fat little neck,” Elder Lawrence shot back.

A chill crept down my spine.

His expression darkened. “Not even the Moon Goddess will save that spoiled little brat.”

With one last glare, he turned on his heel and stormed out. The moment the front door slammed shut, Maria rushed to me.

“Come.”

She yanked me out of the corner without another word, and together we slipped out of the house.

We ran.

Branches clawed at my skin as we sprinted through the woods. We didn’t stop until we reached a small clearing. I doubled over, gasping for breath. Every muscle in my body screamed in protest.

Maria reached into her apron and held out a small red leather pouch. “Take this, Trinity.”

I frowned but accepted it.

“It’s your mother’s jewelry.” She said.

I opened the pouch. Diamond rings. Gold necklaces. Emerald earrings. Pieces I had watched my father buy for her over the years.

“Maria…” My eyes widened. “Mother will lose her mind if she finds out these are gone.”

Maria answered dryly. “She’ll survive.”

I immediately pushed the pouch back toward her. “I can’t take this. I don’t even understand why you’re helping me.”

Maria folded my fingers over the pouch. “You need to survive, Trinity.”

Questions swirled through my mind.

Why was Maria risking her life for me?

What had Elder Lawrence meant about my father?

Before I could ask, a voice rang through the forest.

“I’ve got their scent!”

They found us.

“This way!”

Footsteps pounded across the forest floor, drawing closer.

Maria shoved the pouch firmly into my hands. “Go.”

“I… I can’t leave you.”

“You have to.”

“No.” I shook my head frantically. “Elder Lawrence will kill you if he finds out you helped me.”

“Then don’t let my sacrifice be for nothing.” She murmured, giving me one hard shove. “Live, Trinity.”

“I—”

“Live!”

Before I could stop her, Maria sprinted in the opposite direction. Seconds later, a scream ripped through the forest.

Everything inside me went frozen.

“Maria…” I whimpered, tears blurring my vision as I turned in circles.

Every path looked the same. I’d never left Evercrest before. I had no idea which way led out. The voices grew louder.

“They’re over there!”

“Spread out!”

My pulse pounded in my throat. Maria’s scream still echoed in my head. I clenched the pouch against my chest and ran.

I ran without knowing where I was going. I ran because stopping meant dying. Because staying meant becoming Elder Lawrence’s breeder and the pack’s punching bag.

Because Maria had given up everything to buy me this chance.

I didn’t dare look back.

Not even once.