جميع فصول : الفصل -الفصل 40

ELLARIA.I refused to get in his car.The words were out of my mouth before Arren could even suggest it. "I'm not riding with you."He looked at me with a tight expression, something I couldn’t figure out crossing over his features. "Why?""Caden will take me." I kept my voice steady even though my hands were shaking. "You can lead the way. We'll follow."Arren's jaw tightened but he didn't argue. It was unlike him.He just stared at me for a long moment like he was trying to figure out his options. I held his gaze and didn't back down.Finally he nodded once. "That’s fine."He turned and walked toward his vehicle without another word.I watched him go and felt something twist in my chest.Four years. Four years since I'd last seen him and now I was agreeing to get in a car and follow him back to the place I'd run from.What was I doing?Caden's hand found my elbow gently. "You sure about this?"I looked up at him. He was watching me with concern written all over his face and I wan

ARREN. She was serious. I could see it in her face. In the way she was standing there with her chin up and her hands steady at her sides. She would walk out of here right now and let my pack burn if I didn’t agree to her terms. My throat tightened. “You’re asking me to let you take my son and disappear,” I said quietly. “To never see him again. To pretend he doesn’t exist.” “I’m asking you to stay away from us.” Her voice didn’t waver. “There’s a difference.” I wanted to tell her there wasn’t much of one. That what she was asking would kill me slowly over years. But I didn’t have the right to say any of that out loud. Not after what I’d done. “That’s my condition,” she said when I didn’t respond. “Take it or leave it.” I looked at her and tried to find words that wouldn’t sound like I was bargaining for something I’d already lost the right to have. “I made a lot of mistakes four years ago.” My hands curled into fists at my sides. “I accused you of things that weren’t true. I

ELLARIA.The restaurant looked abandoned from the outside.Half the windows were dark and there were only a handful of people moving around inside. Everyone wore masks over their noses and mouths. They kept their distance from each other in ways that felt practiced.I sat in Caden's car and watched them through the window."It's strange," I said. "Seeing people out at all."Caden's hands were relaxed on the steering wheel. "They're trying to hold onto normal. Even when normal doesn't exist anymore."I understood that.I'd spent four years trying to hold onto pieces of a life I'd built from nothing while pretending the past didn't exist.And now I was back in the place I'd run from and nothing about it felt normal at all."There she is," Caden said.I looked up and saw Mirela walking toward the restaurant entrance. She was wearing a mask too but I'd recognize the way she walked anywhere.My chest went tight."I'll be back," I said.Caden nodded. "Take your time."I got out of the car a

ELLARIA. The house was quiet when I woke up. Sunlight filtered through the curtains and I lay there for a moment just listening. Voices drifted in through the window. It felt strange being here. Stranger still being in a house Arren had arranged for us. I pushed the thought away and got out of bed. Tatum was still asleep in the room next to mine. I checked on him quickly and found him curled up under the blankets with his face pressed into the pillow. My chest went soft watching him. I pulled the door closed and headed back to my room to get ready. I changed quickly and pulled my hair back. My hands moved on autopilot while my brain kept snagging on the same thing. When I came back to the living room, Caden was standing near the window with his phone pressed to his ear. His voice was low and clipped as he spoke to whoever was on the other end. Pack business from the sound of it. He glanced up when I walked in and held up one finger. I waited. "Handle it," he said into t

ARREN.The sun had already started to set by the time I reached her house.I parked a distance away, pulling the car under a line of trees where the shadows covered most of it. I turned the engine off and stayed still, my eyes fixed on the house in front of me.The place looked quiet.Light showed through the windows, but there was no movement outside. The driveway was empty.I leaned back slightly in my seat, watching.Time passed, but I did not keep track of it.Then headlights appeared at the end of the street.I straightened without thinking.The car moved closer, and I recognized it immediately.Caden.My jaw tightened as he turned into the driveway.The engine cut, and both doors opened.Ellaria stepped out first.Everything in me went still.She closed the door behind her and walked around the car without rushing. Her posture looked relaxed, and there was no hesitation in the way she moved.Caden stepped out after her.They spoke for a moment. I could not hear the words, but I