SallyAfter my little chat with Evelyn, I’m storming up the stairs to my room. My head is spinning, and my emotions are all over the place: hurt, confused, and burning. I need to calm the fuck down, and there are only two things that can help me right now: a bottle of strong tequila combined with an old episode of Grey’s Anatomy playing on my TV.I speed up my pace but stop in my tracks when the bathroom door swings out in front of me. Ashton comes out of the room, newly showered, with only a dark blue towel wrapped around his narrow waist.He stands there, his wet hair sticking to his forehead while droplets of water trail down his well-sculpted chest. My heart instantly begins to race as memories of our past flood back despite my best efforts to keep them at bay.“Sally,” he says quietly. There’s a different kind of weight to the way he says my name this time around. It carries a sense of familiarity, longing, and perhaps regret.I swallow hard, shaping my face into a reassuring smi
SallyPainful tears run down my face as Ashton’s confession plays on repeat inside my head: “I’m still in love with you, Sally.”I thought hearing those words would make me happy, but instead, all I feel is sadness.How could he say those words so easily and expect me to take him back? After everything he put me through?! I also don’t believe he was ever in love with me. Because if he loved me, then why did he leave me? How could he let such horrible things happen to me?TAP TAP TAPDespite my sadness, I turn around to glare over my shoulder at Ryan. He is standing on my balcony, and I roll my eyes. Can’t a girl be miserable in peace?!“Go away, Ryan,” I say and pick up another tissue to blow my nose with. There is a little pile in front of me. Disgusting, I know, but I’m too lazy to fetch the bin.“But you’re sad...” I can hear the pout in Ryan’s voice, and I almost crumble. Almost. “How could I just leave you?”“I don’t want you to see me like this.” I’m not lying. My eyes are puff
SallyThe next morning, I wake up in an empty bed. There is no sign of Ryan, but I’m not sad about that. He must have decided to leave before the guard shift, and instead of compelling the new guards, I guess he just went home.KNOCK KNOCKI look at my door with an arched eyebrow. “Yes?”“It’s me,” Ashton says, sounding awkward. An image of him staring down at the floor crosses my mind. “I was wondering if you...if you wanted to come and train with the young werewolves this morning?”I turn to stone. Out of all the things he could say to me, this isn’t what I expected. I’m the pack’s Omega, and I can’t shape-shift. Therefore, I’ve never been allowed to train with the other wolves. Ashton’s father himself said it would be a waste of time to let me practice combat. So why is Ashton giving me the option now? Does he think this will somehow win me over?Regardless of what my ex-mate is up to, I’m not about to turn down his offer. Even if I can’t shape-shift, I might be able to pick up on
SallyIt’s dark when Lara and I arrive at Eric’s house, and I’m actually shocked at how many people there are. But I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. The Claw pack controls a massive territory, so these parties are one of the only ways for everyone to get together outside of training.“Are you excited?” Lara asks.I give her a shy smile. “I actually am.”I don’t tell her this is my first time being invited to a party. I’m sure she can already guess since I’m not exactly popular as the pack’s weak, little Omega.“I don’t know what we should do first!” Lara looks around excitedly. “What do you wanna do?”I’m as lost as she is. The air is filled with the smell of hot dogs grilling, music is blaring from hidden speakers, and the occasional splash from people jumping into the massive swimming pool hits my ears.“Ooh, I have an idea,” Lara grins. “We should find some guys to flirt with so that they will team up with us for the chicken fight tournament later.”“The chicken fight tournamen
SallyI find myself humming a tune softly to myself. “Well... I must admit, I have quite the fondness for ice cream, especially when there’s a whole year’s supply at stake,” I try to lighten the mood with a joke, but it falls flat even to my own ears. Ashton responds with a casual shrug, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.“Well then, it looks like we can’t afford to lose,” he remarks.As I glance up at him, a wave of nervousness washes over me. It’s almost ridiculous how strongly it affects me. I mentally scold myself and wish I could physically smack some sense into myself, maybe with a baseball bat to the face. My heart really needs to calm down—Ashton is my ex, for crying out loud.“Let’s go this way,” I say, taking the lead towards the pool.Ashton snickers quietly behind me, likely because he’s been here countless times before. He doesn’t comment on that, though, and silently follows my lead. I can feel his gaze fixed on my back, and I wonder if he is trying t
SallyThe further I walk away from the party and the loud music, the easier it gets to breathe. I have no desire to be around Ashton or Lara since I have no idea if she is a real friend or if Ashton told her to befriend me.Lydia and Andie, however, are talking to me out of their own free will...well, Andie is really shy, while her sister, Lydia, is very bubbly and energetic. She hasn’t stopped talking about clothes this entire time and only falls silent when the guy leading us hushes her.“Shh!” He turns around and grins, meeting everyone’s eyes before whispering in a spooky tone, “We are here.”He steps aside, revealing a hidden entrance that’s covered with overgrown vines and shrubs. It looks like an old metal door, rusted at the corners, nearly camouflaged amongst the flora. His hand reaches out to noisily push it open, and we are greeted by musty air that makes some people cough.People wave with their hands in front of their faces while I take a step forward. There’s a set of na
SallyAs I stare up at the vampiric woman, I’m hit with both a sense of dread and admiration. She is truly a sight to behold, beautiful and perfect, with blonde hair and a face that looks like it could belong in a magazine.What truly haunts me, however, is her uncanny resemblance to Ryan. They both possess an unsettling level of perfection, and I silently gasp.Could this be his mother?!“So thirsty...” The woman croaks. “Why are there only werewolves here? I want real food…human blood… you’re all useless to me…but I suppose it’s still fun to watch you die.”She releases a wicked chuckle before her body contorts and cracks as she lunges at her next victim: a helpless guy who can do nothing but scream in terror.“N-no, please!”He tries to fight back, but her supernatural strength pushes him against the cold brick wall, her fangs sinking into his neck for a fresh feeding.There is nothing he can do.He might be a werewolf, but his desperate struggles do nothing, and his screams are si
SallyAs I struggle to breathe, I notice something odd—something is running through the forest at an incredible speed. It runs faster and faster until I hear it snarl like a werewolf. Then, without a trace of hesitation, it jumps at the woman and tackles her to the ground, forcing her to release me.Gasping, I clutch my throat, coughing and sputtering for air. My vision gradually returns as I watch the figure wrestle with the vampire woman. It’s a werewolf, but not just any werewolf—it’s Ryan.“My, oh, my, isn’t this perfect?!” The vampire woman laughs wickedly as she easily kicks Ryan into a nearby tree. “Mother and son reunited. Have you missed me, Ryan?”The malicious glee in her voice is terrifying, yet she doesn’t even bat an eye when Ryan grits his teeth and lunges at her again. His strikes are vicious, claws extended like deadly knives, but she is far too strong. Her laughter echoes through the night as she dodges and parries each of his attempts to harm her.“Shame,” she says.