Page 5

Chapter

Five

Jade’s heart was in her throat. She waited until she was the last one on the bus, peering out the big windows as she moved down the aisle toward the exit.

Evelyn hadn’t had time to tell her much about Alli, and Jade had never met a fallen angel, and up until this point she figured they were more myth than reality.

Her feet hit the pavement and she paused, looking around.

The station was ahead and since it was late, there weren’t a lot of people milling around.

A female waved as she rose from a bench. She was wearing a heavy metal T-shirt and shorts with wedge heels. Her blond hair was piled on her head in a way that looked both effortless and perfectly coiffed.

The smile on her face was stunning and made Jade think about the cherubs in ancient paintings.

“Are you Alli?” Jade asked as she walked toward her after taking one more look around to make sure no one was staring at her.

Even though she was pretty sure she hadn’t been followed as she’d made her way by bus from Michigan to Ohio, she couldn’t shake the feeling that her getaway had been too easy.

“I sure am, hon!” She hugged Jade and said, “Come on, let’s get to my car and get the hell out of here.”

As if she sensed Jade’s hesitation, she whispered, “There’s no one paying attention to either of us. And just let some asshole wolf try to mess with you. I’ve got a sword in my car.”

Her brows lifted. “A sword?”

“Yup. I’m pretty deadly hand to hand, but swords are a lot of fun to wield. I’ve got your back, hon. You’re definitely safe with me.”

Jade wanted to sag in relief. But she didn’t. She locked her knees and smiled. “Thank you.”

“You bet.”

Alli hooked her arm through Jade’s, leading her to the parking lot and a convertible with the top up. After settling inside, Alli turned on the engine and said, “It’s so freaking humid that putting the top down makes me sweat! I’m so thankful for air conditioning.”

“I’m a fan of it myself.”

Alli grinned as she pulled away from the parking spot and took a right out of the lot. “I’ve been around for a long time, and let me tell you that air conditioning is one of the better inventions of mankind.”

“How long is a long time?”

“A few hundred years. After the first hundred, you stop counting.”

“Wow. So you fell? What does that even entail?”

“Another angel chopped off my wings and I lost all my heavenly powers,” Alli said with a shrug. “Angels don’t recognize fallen angels as anything but immortal supernatural creatures. I was created and not born, so I don’t have a family. But the friends I’ve made along the way became family.”

“The chopped off wings part sounds awful, but it’s pretty cool you’ve made your own family,” she said.

“It was a long time ago,” Alli said. “So, changing the subject. Evelyn told me some things, but not everything. Mainly that she had a wolf who needed hiding and knew I was just the person to help out, since I helped Sadie. Did you know her well?”

“Not really. She’s older than me and we ran in different circles. But Evelyn was always really kind to me.”

“Then tell me the deets. I reached out to Alpha Cinder and she said I could bring you by any time after dinner tomorrow night, or we could push it back a few days if you want to decompress.”

Jade twisted her hands in her shirt as she stared out the window.

Suddenly things were moving even faster than before. She’d thought her life was in warp speed after meeting with Evelyn that morning, but after sitting on the bus all day and just generally worrying about everything, she had to meet with alphas of another wolf pack? What would happen?”

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, babe, I promise,” Alli said, giving Jade’s shoulder a gentle squeeze. “I wasn’t trying to rush you. You don’t have to meet with Adam and Cinder anytime soon, you can just hang with me until you get settled. It’s very safe where I live, and I’m an excellent roommate.”

Jade chuckled and tears slipped down her cheeks.

“Thanks, Alli. I just… it’s a lot, you know?

Yesterday I was grumbling about being punished unfairly by the alpha and I had a weird feeling that something was going to change.

Now I’m in another state in hiding and I don’t know if I should worry he’ll come after me or if he’ll just be glad I’m gone.

I didn’t even have a chance to pack anything from my place. ”

“I’d suggest Evelyn send your things here, but that would probably be a terrible idea.

She’d give me a heads-up if she heard someone was looking for you, so I wouldn’t worry about it.

She used a gift card to make the bus reservation for you, and while your alpha might think you were with the tigers because of Sadie, he would also realize that you would be under someone’s protection and wolfy alliance or not, I kind of doubt he’d come all this way to retrieve you. ”

“I’d like to believe that.”

“I get it. It’s okay to be concerned for your safety, but just don’t let it keep you from living your life.”

Jade let that roll around in her head. Then she sighed, and it felt like it bubbled up from somewhere deep inside her. “I never thought I’d get out of Ironwood.”

“But you made it. And Northern Ohio is great. Except for the winters, which suck, although I suppose Michigan winters aren’t a walk in the park either.”

“Definitely not.”

They talked about the town where Alli lived and her wild past, traveling all over the world and going on some crazy adventures.

When they reached the apartment complex, Alli let her into her place and said, “We can go shopping tomorrow if you’d like, or we can order whatever online.

I know you don’t have much money because you had to book out so fast, but I’ve got you covered.

You don’t live as long as I do without figuring out the stock market and also making friends with a psychic or two who can help you get a handle on finances. ”

“Handy.”

“For sure.”

Alli left her in the spare bedroom and told her to make herself at home.

She cleaned up and dressed in Sadie’s borrowed T-shirt and shorts and stretched out on the bed.

It was late and she was exhausted.

But for the first time, she felt a modicum of safety. She didn’t feel quite at home, but then again, she wasn’t sure she’d ever really felt at home anywhere.

Her dad hadn’t made her feel like she was at home in the house she grew up in, but he’d kept her safe, so there was that.

She rolled to her side and closed her eyes.

Her wolf sighed softly in her head, and she felt herself relax, muscle by muscle, inch by inch until she fell asleep.

As her thoughts drifted away into dreamlessness, her last thought was that maybe Ohio could really be home, and maybe, just maybe, Alpha Holloway would forget about her, and she could make a life for herself here.

Maybe.