Chapter 2

When I got home, Mom took one look at me and set down her coffee.

“Audrey?”

She pressed her palm to my forehead.

“You’re burning up. What happened? Weren’t Everett and the boys taking you out for your birthday?”

“I’m ending the engagement.”

My throat hurt so badly that the words came out in a rasp.

Mom’s hand went still.

For a moment, she said nothing. Then she brushed my damp hair back.

“All right. We’ll get you out of this pack.”

She didn’t ask whether I was sure.

I nodded before I started crying.

I’d barely climbed into bed when Everett’s message arrived.

Where are you? We told you to wait. You could’ve at least said you were leaving.

My wolf caught a faint thread of concern beneath his irritation.

My chest ached. Before I could type a reply, a message appeared in the group chat.

In our group chat, Sadie was already apologizing.

I’m sorry, Audrey. I must’ve put down the wrong number for the reservation. Please don’t be mad.

Everett answered immediately.

You don’t need to apologize. If she had a problem, she should’ve said something instead of walking off.

Seriously, Miles added. It was one dinner.

Then Nolan.

Don’t let her ruin your night, Sadie.

I looked at the group’s name.

The Princess and Her Three Knights.

Once, there had only been four of us.

Everett had created it after they found me in the forest. He’d announced that every princess needed knights, and I had three.

Then Sadie came home to Blackthorn and joined the group chat.

Somewhere along the way, she became the princess.

During a game of truth or dare, I lost a round. Sadie dared me to change my nickname to The Maid.

“It’s just a joke,” she’d said.

Everett laughed. Miles reached for another drink. Nolan started the next round.

I waited for one of them to tell her to pick something else.

None of them did.

The nickname was still there.

My head throbbed. I tapped Leave Group, set down my phone, and closed my eyes.

That night, I dreamed of the forest.

I was little again, shivering beneath a tree, my throat raw from calling for help.

Then Everett was there, kneeling in the dirt. Miles wrapped his jacket around me while Nolan tried to open a granola bar with shaking hands.

“We won’t forget you again,” Everett promised.

“Ever,” Miles said.

Nolan pressed the food into my palm.

“We’ll keep you safe.”

For years, they had.

When other children called me defective, Everett fought them.

Miles stayed beside me during training so I wouldn’t be left without a partner.

Nolan learned to recognize my footsteps because my scent was so faint.

Then the dream shifted.

Sadie stood beside the training ring in the coat Everett used to wrap around me. Miles was adjusting her stance. Nolan held her bag.

She’d returned to Blackthorn with no family to claim her and nowhere to stay.

Soon Everett was saving her a seat at every gathering. Miles left training early to drive her home. Nolan spent his evenings helping her catch up on everything she’d missed.

Whenever I asked for time with them, someone said, “She needs us right now.”

In the dream, I reached for Everett.

He held me as gently as he always had, his familiar cedar scent making me feel safe.

Then he frowned.

“We didn’t mean to forget you. Sadie didn’t do it on purpose. Why can’t you just let it go?”

I woke with a gasp.

My pillow was wet.

For several minutes, I lay still, waiting for my breathing to settle.

Then I reached for my phone and booked a one-way flight to London.

Departure: two days away.

They’d added me back to the group.

My private messages were worse.

What was that supposed to prove? Miles demanded.

You can’t keep pulling this spoiled-princess crap, Nolan wrote. We’ve been friends too long for that.

Everett’s message came last.

Sadie cried all night. We had to stay with her. Just apologize so we can move on.

I muted them all.

By late morning, the fever had eased enough for me to leave the house.

At the pack administration building, a clerk slid my transfer application across the desk.

“Your mother sent the receiving pack’s approval. Sign here.”

I signed.

The clerk stamped the page and placed it in a folder.

That was it. One signature, and leaving became something more than a wish.

Outside, Sadie caught my arm.

“Audrey.”

I glanced at her staff badge.

When she’d first arrived, she’d asked me to help her find a job. I’d asked Mom to give her a position in the pack’s welfare office.

“Are you still mad at me?” she asked softly.

“No.”

I pulled my arm free.

Her eyes filled.

“I’m trying to make things right.”

Before I could answer, three voices called her name.

Everett reached us first. His shoulder knocked mine as he pushed past me.

“Sadie? What happened?”

She shook her head, tears slipping down her cheeks.

He turned on me.

“What did you say to her?”

“Seriously, Audrey?” Miles snapped.

Nolan stepped beside Sadie. “Enough.”

I was too tired for this.

I turned to leave.

Everett caught my wrist.

“Apologize.”

His fingers tightened, and I looked down at the hand that had once held mine through every frightening moment.

“For what?” I asked. “Did any of you even ask what happened?”

Everett’s expression hardened. “I don’t need to. Sadie doesn’t cry for no reason.”

“She’s our friend,” Miles said. “You don’t get to treat her like she’s beneath you.”

I looked at Nolan.

He avoided my eyes and turned to her.

“You shouldn’t have to work somewhere you feel uncomfortable.”

“There’s an opening in the patrol office,” Miles offered. “You could work with me.”

Everett cut in.

“She’ll work in my office.”

Sadie looked up at him.

“Really?”

“I need an aide for council business. I’ll teach you myself.”

Then he looked at me, still holding my wrist.

“Any objections?”

Once, I would’ve explained.

Instead, I pulled my hand free.

“Whatever makes you happy, Alpha.”