CHAPTER 4: A Bitter Ride

There was a framed photograph sitting next to the small lamp. It was a picture of me and Caomh from three years ago. We were standing by the lake, laughing, his arm wrapped tightly around my waist. The memory felt like a knife twisting slowly in my gut. I grabbed the frame and slammed it face down on the wood. The glass cracked with a sharp snap.

"He isn't worth the tears, you know," Cullen said quietly.

I whipped around, my fingers digging tightly into the edges of the nightstand. "You don't know anything about him. Or me."

"I know he is a weak Alpha," Cullen said, his tone entirely matter-of-fact. "I know he let a scheming girl and a few fake tears convince him to discard the best healer and the strongest female in his territory. I know he humiliated you in front of your own people because he lacked the spine to investigate her claims. And I know you are trying very hard not to scream."

My breath hitched. I clamped my mouth shut, terrified that if I opened it, the scream he just described would tear out of my throat.

"I don't need your pity, Arden," I whispered, my voice raw and broken.

"I don't do pity," Cullen replied. He pushed off the doorframe and took a single step into the room. The sheer power radiating from him made the small cabin feel incredibly tiny. "I do strategy. And right now, your strategy is flawed. You walk out into those woods tonight, you die. I will not watch a strong wolf throw her life away because of a stupid boy's mistake."

"So what do you suggest I do?" I asked, a bitter, sarcastic edge bleeding into my words. "Ask to sleep in your guest room?"

Cullen’s lips twitched. It wasn't quite a smile, but the hard lines of his face softened just a fraction.

"My SUV is parked a half-mile down the eastern dirt road, just past the boundary line," he said. "Get your bag. I am offering you a ride out of this miserable territory."

I stared at him, my mind spinning. The Alpha of the Arden pack did not act as a taxi service for rogue wolves. There was always a price. The packs had rivaled each other for decades. My people had taught me to fear the Arden wolves, painting them as ruthless, cold-blooded killers. Yet, here he was, offering me an escape when my own fated mate had thrown me to the wolves.

"Why?" I asked, narrowing my eyes. "What do you get out of this?"

"Right now? I get to ensure Caomh Colson doesn't get the satisfaction of hearing you died in the cold," Cullen said smoothly. He checked a heavy steel watch on his left wrist. "You have two minutes before I leave you here to freeze. Make a choice, Meghann."

He turned his back on me and walked off the porch, stepping out into the pouring rain without looking back.

I looked at my packed canvas bag. I looked at the cracked photograph on the nightstand. The Silver Moon pack had made their choice. Caomh had made his choice. I owed them nothing.

I zipped the duffel bag closed, slung the heavy strap over my shoulder, and walked out the door. I didn't bother turning off the light. I didn't bother locking it. I simply stepped off the porch and let the darkness swallow the only home I had ever known.

I followed Cullen's broad silhouette down the muddy, winding path. The rain masked the sound of our footsteps. My chest burned with every breath, my lungs working overtime to fight off the bone-deep chill of the storm and the lingering sickness of the severed bond.

By the time we reached the eastern boundary, I was completely soaked to the bone, my teeth chattering uncontrollably.

A sleek, pitch-black SUV sat idling on the dirt road, its headlights cutting through the heavy sheets of rain. The engine purred with a low, expensive hum. The tinted windows hid the interior, making the vehicle look like a massive, dangerous beast waiting in the dark.

Cullen walked to the passenger side and opened the heavy door for me.

I hesitated, standing in the mud. Water dripped from my eyelashes, blurring my vision. "If I get in this car, I am officially a traitor to my bloodline."

"Your bloodline betrayed you first," Cullen stated softly. "Get in the car, Meghann."

I took a deep breath, the cold air burning my lungs, and climbed up into the passenger seat. The interior was warm, smelling strongly of rich leather and Cullen's crisp pine scent. I dropped my wet bag onto the floorboards by my boots, shivering violently as the vehicle's heater blasted warm air over my frozen skin.

Cullen shut my door, cutting off the sound of the raging storm outside. A few seconds later, he climbed into the driver's seat, bringing a fresh wave of rain and cold air with him before pulling the door shut.

I rubbed my trembling hands together, staring out the windshield at the dark, winding road ahead. "Just drop me at the edge of the neutral zone by the human highway. I can catch a bus from there."

Cullen didn't answer. He shifted the SUV into drive. His large hands gripped the leather steering wheel, his knuckles pale in the dim light of the dashboard.

As he pressed the gas pedal, my eyes caught a glimpse of a thick manila folder resting between the center console and his seat. The edge of the top paper stuck out, bearing a highly classified wax seal. It was the crest of the Silver Moon elders.

My heart skipped a beat. My healer training kicked in, my eyes scanning the text visible on the edge of the paper. It looked like medical records.

Before I could ask him what he was doing with classified files from my pack, a sharp, heavy click echoed through the quiet interior.

I jerked my head up. The small orange light on the door panel illuminated.

He had just locked the doors.

"What are you doing?" I asked, my voice rising in sudden panic. I pulled on the door handle, but it held firm. "Unlock the door, Arden."

Cullen accelerated, the powerful engine roaring as we tore down the dirt road, leaving the Silver Moon territory far behind us in the rearview mirror. He didn't look at me. His silver eyes remained fixed on the dark road ahead, his jaw set in a hard, uncompromising line.

"We aren't going to the neutral zone, Meghann," Cullen said, his voice dropping into a low, commanding register that sent a fresh shiver down my spine. "You are coming with me."