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“I need to get my mom,” I stated firmly, my voice cutting through the quiet of our office, my gaze hovering on my mom’s picture.

My heart squeezed at the thought of her being there all these years.

Suddenly, I saw her walking through Central Park with me, a steaming cup of coffee in hand as she listened attentively.

We used to do a coffee catch-up every few weeks, even when I’d been at Harvard.

There hadn’t been a month in which I hadn’t had her comforting, loving presence in my life until she was just…

gone. To think of all those moments Magnus had stolen from me had my burning hatred toward him soaring higher.

“We agreed we’re not ready to attack Blackthorn Corporation yet,” Emily cautioned.

I nodded. “I know, but I can reposition myself in New York and Blackthorn until we are,” I said confidently, already formulating a wild plan.

My mother’s alive.

My heart hurried with relief and hope for the first time in years.

“There is a banquet on at Blackthorn Villa, hosted by Magnus himself,” Matthew said.

An image of Blackthorn Villa flashed through my head, its grand hall decorated in white linen and dozens of bouquets of flowers. Then, the totem-marked wolves attacking, my father’s wolf fighting, and my mom on the floor, blood seeping through her pale dress.

“That’s tomorrow!” Emily exclaimed, looking skeptical. “You don’t have to go so soon. There’ll be other events.”

I shook my head, squeezing my hands into fists.

“I can’t wait now that I know he has her.

” My gaze crept back to the monitor, every ache that I’d been feeling since losing my mom resurfacing, leaving me feeling more fragile than I had in a long time.

But I did what I always did—I focused on covering the rising tide of emotion with the fire of vengeance, always flickering within me.

“I can’t let this opportunity slip away. I need to go tomorrow,” I said, feeling a newfound urgency ignite.

Matthew nodded, his expression a mixture of determination and concern. “We’ve got your back. We’ll figure this out. ”

As my heart raced with anxious excitement, a sliver of doubt crept in. “Will you two be okay with Betty while I’m gone?”

“Of course,” Emily replied, her voice steady and reassuring. “She’s used to spending a night or two with us. It’ll be fine.”

Em was right. Every few weeks, when I had a big client meeting, I left her with them. Both Emily and Matthew had rooms here in the villa. They had apartments in Philadelphia, too, but split their time between the city and here.

“You can count on us,” Matthew reassured me, watching me with his kind, blue stare and looking as if he wanted to say more.

I smiled. “I know I can. Thank you both,” I said, picking up my chai tea to prevent Matt from hugging me. If he did, I didn’t think I’d be able to hold myself together.

But I knew Betty was in the best of hands. My two colleagues and best friends were pros at grey-market dealings and running my business empire but also at feeding time, bedtime, and everything else in between.

I took a deep breath, trying to calm the fluttering in my chest. Before I could overthink it, we fell to concocting a plan.

After an afternoon of planning, I had a harder job to do.

I sat with Betty on the living room floor, surrounded by her colorful toys.

She looked up at me, her big blue eyes so like mine and my mom’s that I felt again how important it was to go to New York and save the woman who meant the world to me and who I wanted my own daughter to have the chance to know.

“Sweetheart, I need to talk to you about something important,” I said softly, brushing a black strand away from her forehead. The light kiss I planted there felt more significant than I intended, tinged with a gentle sadness. This was the first time I’d be leaving her for an extended period.

“Tomorrow, I’m going to go away for a little while,” I explained carefully. “But you’re going to stay here with Auntie Em and Uncle Matt. I know you’ll be a good girl for them, won’t you?”

Her brow knitted in confusion, and my heart squeezed. She nodded slowly. “How long, Mommy?”

“I’m not sure, but I promise to call you whenever I can,” I reassured her, hoping to soften my sudden absence. “And when I come back, we’ll do something special!”

Her bright blue eyes lit up, and she shrieked, “We go see Swan Lake!”

I laughed, instantly promising, “Yes, we can go see Swan Lake again when I get back.”

As she wrapped her tiny arms around me, I let out a shaky breath.

I kept seeing the way my mom had pushed me out of those doors at Blackthorn Villa, risking her life for mine.

If there was a chance that I could bring her back and share the precious life I’d built for Betty with her, it was worth the risk I was taking.

Later, when Betty was fast asleep in bed, I packed for tomorrow’s trip. I planned to drive to New York early tomorrow morning, then check into a hotel and dress for the evening.

That night, I tossed and turned, finding it hard to sleep as I went over the plan.

Early in the morning, I looked in on Betty, both relieved and disappointed she wasn’t awake.

Part of me knew it would be easier for Em and Matt if I was already gone, but the other part already missed her and wanted to soak up every last moment.

I settled on planting a light kiss on her forehead before quietly leaving.

Matthew had already brought one of the cars round to the front. The SUV was exactly what I’d planned to take. It wasn’t too conspicuous or one that wouldn’t make Magnus ask too many questions.

As I reached the living room, the bookcase door opened, and Matthew came out. “Tell her I want New York pizza when she comes back!” Emily called out.

“Noted,” I called into Em’s lair with a smile, knowing that was her version of goodbye.

Both Em and Matt had lived in New York in the past, too, and I knew they would launch into the ordinary argument later about which pizzeria was the best now that the topic had been brought up.

I stifled the pang at the thought of leaving them and my little Swanling.

Outside, I thought I’d successfully avoided falling apart, but just before I opened the car door, Matthew pulled me into a hug. Emily wasn’t good at the touchy-feely shit, as she liked to say, hence staying in the office.

“Lina, we’re only a call away if you need to talk about anything,” Matt assured me as he hugged me. “You’re not alone, okay?”

I felt those cracks in my chest again, the ones I’d been trying so hard to shore up.

I nodded. “I know. Thanks, Matt.” Both he and Em knew everything about my past with Stephen, too, and I knew from the look in his kind eyes that Matt was referring to the heartache he knew I was about to walk into once again.

I had entrusted them both with my daughter as well as all the secrets of my heart.

They weren’t just my friends; they were my family.

With my mind sharpened by purpose, I settled in for the drive to New York. It was a four-hour journey, and I only stopped once for coffee and gas. As I crossed the Hudson, the skyscrapers of Manhattan were dazzling in the afternoon sunshine, and it finally hit me—I was home.

I spent the afternoon getting ready in my hotel room before driving out to the Hamptons. When I arrived at the opulent Blackthorn Villa, trepidation, along with the sea breeze, washed over me.

I moved past the throng of other shifters, my heart pounding with every breath, and grateful that with my lavender evening gown, strappy heels, and my long glossy locks, I blended into the throng.

In a moment, I was walking into the hall, the very one where I thought until yesterday both my parents had died. My gaze strayed to the polished floor where my father had fallen—the wood shiny as if the attack had never happened.

I shook my head, forcing my thoughts away from the past. I had to be here.

Now. I took in a deep breath of salty air as I stepped through the open door onto the terrace, where more party guests mingled.

Familiar faces of the shifter elite filled the terrace, their laughter mingling with the clinking of glasses.

I felt his presence before I saw him—that unmistakable frisson of energy that had once arrested me on a dark, downtown street. My skin prickled with awareness, and this time, as I inhaled, the definite scent of spice and earthiness infiltrated my lungs.

Stephen .

He was there, standing on the terrace, exuding confidence. I could hardly breathe as I caught sight of him. My heart fluttered against my will, both thrilling and terrifying. My wolf surged up, instantly awake at his scent, too.

He strode toward me. The one stolen night we’d shared before reality intervened waltzed unbidden through my thoughts. The ache of an unfulfilled connection resonated through me, reminding me of a moment when I had thought he was the solution to all my problems.

Forcing my breath to steady, I felt the weight of my plans pressing against my chest and forced a calm over my body.

My revenge was in motion, and I wouldn’t allow Stephen to get in the way.

And I sure as hell wouldn’t allow him to stop me from saving my mother.

Tonight marked the beginning of a dangerous dance, one that required all my attention.

“Hello, Darlin’,” he greeted, his voice a low rumble.

The greeting could have been used by any host welcoming his visitor, but the way Stephen uttered ‘Darlin’ drew my thoughts back to the memory of our bodies intertwined, and a shiver of memory, heat, and wanting rushed through me.

“You in a hurry, Darlin’?” he’d asked as I’d bucked my hips up to meet him, telling him I needed him with a deep longing that I’d only ever experienced once in my life.

His bright green eyes seemed imbued with the same intensity they’d had in that moment.

“Stephen,” I said, plastering on a strained smile. The tumultuous emotions within me threatened to spill over, but I couldn’t show he’d gotten under my skin. So instead, I said, “It’s been too long.”

He studied me for a moment, his gaze searing into mine like he was searching for all the secrets I had to hide.