CHAPTER 3: Collision in the Lobby

The glass doors of Miller Global swung open, admitting a gust of humid city air and three people who​ looked like they belonged in a medieval forest, not a billion-dollar lobby.

​Kaelen Vane walked in first. Even in a suit that clearly felt too tight for his massive frame, he radiated a raw, predatory power that made the human receptionists flinch. Behind him was his Beta, looking exhausted, and Elena, the woman who had taken my place. She was draped in expensive furs that looked ridiculous in the New York summer, her eyes darting around the marble lobby with a mixture of awe and jealousy.

​"I have a ten o'clock with the CEO," Kaelen growled at the security desk. His voice hadn't changed, it was still that deep, gravelly tone that used to make my heart skip beats. Now, it just made my skin crawl.

​"Name?" the guard asked, bored.

​"Kaelen Vane. Alpha of the" He caught himself, realizing he was in the human world. "Just Kaelen Vane."

​"Wait in the lounge, Mr. Vane. The CEO is finishing a call."

​As Kaelen turned toward the seating area, a flash of white-blonde hair darted across the lobby. It was Leo. He had escaped Marcus again, chasing a rogue tennis ball that had bounced toward the elevators.

​Leo crashed straight into Kaelen’s shins.

​Kaelen froze. His nostrils flared, his wolf-senses screaming. He looked down at the five-year-old boy who was currently clutching his expensive slacks. For a second, time stopped. Kaelen looked into Leo’s eyes, eyes that were a perfect, golden mirror of his own.

​"Sorry, mister!" Leo chirped, completely unafraid. He grabbed his ball and began to run back toward the lounge.

​"Wait!" Kaelen called out, his voice strangely cracked. He took a step toward the boy, his wolf pacing frantically in his mind. The scent on the child... it was faint, masked by the smell of city smog and expensive soap, but beneath it all was the unmistakable scent of Silverwood.

​"Leo! Get back here!" Marcus appeared, scooped the boy up, and disappeared into the private elevator bank before Kaelen could say another word.

​"Kaelen, what is it?" Elena asked, clutching his arm. "You look like you've seen a ghost."

​"That boy," Kaelen whispered, staring at the closed elevator doors. "His scent... it was familiar."

​"It’s a city, Kaelen. Everyone smells like garbage and perfume," Elena snapped. "Can we please just get the money and leave? This place makes me feel... small."

​Before Kaelen could argue, a chime echoed through the lobby. The VIP elevator opened.

​I stepped out.

​I didn't hide. I didn't turn away. I walked straight toward them, the rhythmic click-clack of my stilettos sounding like a countdown to their doom. I saw the moment Kaelen saw me.

​The color drained from his face. His jaw dropped, and he actually stumbled back a step. Elena’s hand flew to her throat, her eyes widening until I thought they might pop out of her head.

​"Good morning, Alpha Vane," I said, stopping exactly three feet in front of him. I let a cold, mocking smile play on my lips. "I believe you’re here to ask me for a favor."

​Kaelen’s voice was a strangled wreck. "Sierra? It... it can’t be. You’re dead. You died in the rogue lands."

​I tilted my head, my platinum hair catching the light. "Oh, the girl you rejected died that night, Kaelen. I’m the woman who bought your debt. Welcome to Manhattan. Try not to bleed on the carpet."