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26

WREN

Guilt swept through me, dark and heavy like oil spreading across a crystalline ocean. Forcing Locke out was like kicking a puppy. And he only made it worse by being so damn understanding.

I sighed, plucking a grape from the tray and popping it into my mouth. The flavors of it exploded on my tongue. Even the food was better here.

As I looked around the room again, it made sense. It was clear the guys had plenty of money for the best of everything. But that did nothing to calm my wolf.

She paced back and forth, feeling trapped being in this room. And something else had her on edge. Something that was making her snap and snarl, despite the fact that she loved being surrounded by these males’ scents.

“All right,” I muttered. “I’m looking for a way out.”

I couldn’t stay here. Not anymore. It was too risky .

Pushing to my feet, I felt a slight twinge in my side. But it was already ten times better than when I’d woken up. I knew I’d be back to 100 percent by tonight.

Scanning the room, I moved on from the picture window I’d had no luck with. This time, I went for a skinny pane I wasn’t sure would open. My gaze ran along the seam until I came to a latch. I grinned until I saw the lock. It was one of those that was supposed to have a key in it, but this one was missing.

Damn, those wolves.

They might be taking care of me, but this was still a prison.

I lifted a hand to my hair, feeling around. My rubber band had come free at some point, but I sighed in relief when I found one of the bobby pins. Hiding things on my body that could be helpful in moments like these had become habit over the years.

Tugging the pin free, I bent it into a shape that I thought might do the trick and stretched up onto my tiptoes to place the hairpin into the lock. I maneuvered left, then right, trying to feel for the mechanisms. Just when it seemed like it might catch?—

“Going somewhere, Little Warrior?” Brix asked, his voice raspy.

I whirled, turning to see the lot of them standing inside the bedroom, Brix leading the way. I let out a huff of air. “Make a little noise when you enter a room, would you? It’s rude to sneak up on someone.”

“It’s rude to sneak out of someone’s home after they saved your life,” King shot back.

I scoffed. “I would’ve healed on my own.”

His eyes narrowed on me. “Not if the wound got infected.”

I let out a long sigh. “Thank you for taking care of me. But I need to get going.”

Puck moved forward, breaking free of the group. “When you say get going , why do I have a feeling you don’t just mean going back to your apartment?”

I winced. The truth was, I hated the idea of leaving. My wolf snarled and spat at the thought, grasping for the reins of control. I clamped down on her, not allowing the shift she so desperately wanted. I’d thought simply being in the vicinity of other wolves would help, but apparently, it wasn’t enough. Not even close. She was still edging into feral territory.

“There’s too much heat here. I need to keep moving,” I admitted. I left out the part about me not trusting Ender not to sell me out to the highest bidder. And Bastian’s cool million-dollar offer would be at the top of that list. I shuddered at the idea.

“You can’t,” Kingston clipped. “It’s not safe.”

“Let her go,” Ender muttered. “For all we know, she’s the one who tipped off the dark mages about our location.”

My jaw dropped. I wouldn’t even do that to him alone. Certainly not to the rest of the guys.

“Hey, shit for brains,” Puck shot back. “Remember the part where she stepped in front of a sword for me? Doubt she’d do that if she was working for the dark mages.”

Ender’s jaw worked back and forth as his eyes started to glow. “She could’ve done it to ingratiate herself to us.”

“Dude,” I muttered. “You might have nice beds around here, but that isn’t worth a sword to the gut.”

A smile stretched across Puck’s face. “You know, I have fifteen-hundred-thread-count sheets. I order them special from Italy. You might want to try those out before you bail.”

Kingston smacked him upside the head, and Ender glared. “Not the time, Puck.”

“Right. Thwarting runaway plans is more important,” Puck mumbled.

My gaze found Locke’s among them, the only one who hadn’t said a word. Like usual, he only held my stare for a single beat, maybe two, but in that brief moment, I saw the hurt there. Hurt that had guilt springing back to life inside me.

“I appreciate everything you guys have done,” I began. “It’s not that I don’t. I just—this is what’s safest for me. ”

“They know what you are,” Brix growled low. “The dark mages.”

My gaze shot to him. “They don’t. My scent shields didn’t falter in that battle.” Annoyance fluttered to the surface because this was a point of pride.

Brix prowled toward me, that panther-like grace in full effect. He stopped mere inches from me and inhaled deeply. His wolf flashed in his eyes, and I saw annoyance there. “They know you smelled wrong . And they know someone put up a shield to block their magic. How long do you think it will take for them to figure out it was you?”

My heart hammered against my ribs as the memory of the mage I’d fought flashed in my mind. “What. Are. You?” He’d known something was off about me.

“Is that the most you’ve ever heard Brix speak at once?” Puck whispered.

“Shut up,” Locke hissed.

I straightened my spine. “All the more reason for me to leave.”

“Birdie, they’ll already have people watching the entrances and exits to town,” Puck reasoned.

Hell.

I knew in my gut he was right. Knew leaving on my own right now would put me at risk. But so would staying. The dark mages would find me just as easily in my tiny apartment above Arcane.

My wolf raked her claws against her prison, demanding I free her to slay every one of those dark mages. But we would be no match for them.

“There’s only one answer.” King’s voice rang out, alpha vibes bleeding into his tone. “You’ll have to stay here.”