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Scarlett

She spent the rest of the morning upstairs staring at her old phone.

Vince had been right: her service had been deactivated.

Since her father had made her share every password she’d ever had, she couldn’t access any of her accounts either.

Not that she had many. After all, social media was a big no-no, and she only had an email address for school.

Outside of the cash she’d saved over the years, she didn’t even have a bank account.

Terrified that he would somehow wipe the phone completely, she wrote down her contacts, even the ones from pack members she’d barely talked to.

It was as if she was desperately trying to hold onto something that was long lost. She couldn’t go back—ever.

She couldn’t even contact them, not unless she wanted them punished as well.

Once that task was done and she had nothing else to do, she slipped her feet back into her fluffy slippers and went downstairs.

The living room was empty, the porch and front doors open, letting a nice breeze flow through and rustle her hair.

When she heard voices, she followed them through the house and out to the porch.

When she took another step, she paused, waiting for someone to give her permission to continue.

It took her a moment to realise that she was no longer under her father’s control.

Scarlett filled her lungs with the clean, fresh air, exhaling slowly with each step.

It still felt wrong by the time she reached the bottom of the steps, but she assumed that if she walked towards their voices, she’d be fine. But what if they didn’t want her to be with them right now? Was this a test?

Scarlett’s thoughts clouded her mind until the inside of the shed came into view. It seemed to be a home gym. Mateo and Ezra were fighting on the soft mats that covered most of the floor. Mateo had Ezra in a chokehold while Ezra punched Mateo’s stomach so violently that bruises were sure to form.

“Fucker,” Ezra choked, succumbing to the lack of oxygen.

“Tap out if you wanna be a pussy,” Mateo laughed, tightening his grip. A moment later, Ezra’s body fell limp, but Mateo didn’t let him go, instead squeezing tighter. “If you wanna fake unconsciousness you need to get better at hiding your emotions.”

A chuckle from the back caught her attention. She looked over to see Vince stepping out of the shadows. Sweat dripped down his neck and onto his… naked chest. His brown hair hung in his face, sweat-drenched and tousled. The chocolate in his eyes seemed to melt as he looked at her.

The dull sound of a body dropping to the floor made her look back at Mateo and Ezra. With a satisfied smile, Mateo stood and grabbed a bottle of water, downing half of it in one go and throwing her a wink when he caught her staring. “It’s the only time we get some peace and quiet.”

“W-what?”

“Ezra’s mind is just as erratic as his behaviour and unfortunately, he’s an over-sharer. He doesn’t care that we can feel everything he does. The only time his mind shuts up, is when he’s passed out or miles away.”

Her gaze dropped back down to Ezra, who was slowly stirring to consciousness. It wasn’t long before his eyes fluttered open and a grin formed on his lips.

“And let’s be honest, he enjoys being choked.”

Ezra rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself to his knees. “Maybe next time our little rogue can be the one to shut me up.”

Scarlett’s throat tightened at the brutal reminder of how she gave up her pack for him.

She’d lost everything she’d ever known and everyone she’d ever loved only to be continuously taunted and insulted.

She spun on her heel and stormed off. Mateo called after her, but she ignored him and went back inside.

She slammed her bedroom door and let the tears fall.

Why had she thought this was a good idea?

Scarlett slid down the door until she sat at the foot of it.

From what Ezra had shown her—and what the other two had told her—this was the future she signed up for, and Ezra wasn’t going to budge.

Not one inch. She pulled her legs to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, resting her cheek on her knees.

She heard footsteps and then a knock before his commanding voice seeped through the door. “Open up.”

“Maybe you should try please,” Mateo said before she could say a thing.

“Please, little princess, open the door.”

“Drop the little,” Mateo urged like an annoyed parent.

“Please open the door, princess.”

“No,” Scarlett finally snapped.

“I tried.” Then there was a yelp as Scarlett assumed Ezra tried to walk away.

“Try harder ,” Mateo growled. “You hurt her, now apologise.”

“I was stating a fact.”

“And now you’re pouring salt into her fucking wounds.”

A sigh, then another knock. “Would you like me to apologise, princess?”

“You wouldn’t mean it if you did, so save it.”

“You’re right. I wouldn’t, but I would do it if it pleases you.”

“It wouldn’t.”

“The truth always hurts. But just because you’re rogue doesn’t mean you’re alone. You have us.”

“I shouldn’t have come here.”

“You and I both know you’re lying to yourself. You might not want to be here, but you didn’t have to save Vince. You chose to do that. You made that decision because you started to see your family’s true colours.”

The scariest part about everything Ezra said was that he was right. Even worse, he knew it.

“If you regret having come here, you may leave. You don’t have to be here.”

That was a lie. She had nowhere to go, very little savings, and no means to get anywhere.

“Think about it.”

There was a brief pause, then both sets of footsteps retreated and descended the stairs.

Scarlett cried until her head hurt. That was when she curled up under her blanket, wishing she had the courage to go downstairs and heat up her warming pad. She fell asleep, only waking up when her stomach began to consume her from the inside out—or so it felt.

Afraid of what was waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs, she braced herself and left the bedroom.

All three of them sat at the dining room table.

Ezra bent over a map while Mateo read something out loud.

Vince, quiet but sweet, had his nose in a worn-looking book.

The moment they saw her, they stopped what they were doing.

“Counter,” Ezra said simply, looking back down at the map and marking something with a sticky note.

There, she found a set of keys, her new phone, and a stack of rolled-up cash.

After a moment, it clicked. Ezra meant what he said: she could leave if that was her wish.

This was his way of telling her that they would take care of her no matter what.

The keyring had a small pocketknife attached to it, and two keys.

Scarlett assumed those were to the house and a car.

They would let her go if she wanted, giving her the means to do so and the option to return.

But then her heart sank, her eyes unable to meet theirs as she spoke. “I can’t.”

“You can,” Ezra retorted though it was rather soft.

“I can’t—”

“You can,” Ezra repeated, more sternly this time. “If that isn’t enough money we have more.”

Three sets of eyes met hers, and Scarlett couldn’t help but melt for them. They weren’t upset with her, even though they thought she wanted to leave them. Her vision blurred over the embarrassment of her next confession. “I can’t drive.”

They fell silent for a moment as they stared at her in what clearly seemed disbelief.

“How old are you?” Ezra finally asked.

“Twenty-five.”

“Fuckers,” he growled.

“We’ll teach you,” Mateo promised. “But maybe you should eat first? You missed lunch.” Scarlett nodded and moved to the fridge. “Tomorrow’s my grocery shopping day. I was hoping you’d go with me.”

“I’ve never been.”

“There is a small farmer’s market not far from here.”

Scarlett looked over her shoulder—and couldn’t resist those hopeful puppy eyes. “I’ll come.”

“Thank you.”

She made herself a sandwich and sat at the island to eat.

From there, she could see what they were doing.

After a while she had figured out that they were trying to locate a lycan with the help of some old scripts and letters.

From what they read out loud, the texts were old fashioned and often tedious to understand.

When she’d finished her late lunch, Mateo looked up and indicated the pantry. “There are snacks.”

She shook her head, but then timidly asked, “Can I sit with you?”

“Of course.” Immediately Mateo emptied the chair next to him, setting the books there on the floor so quickly that he might as well have thrown them.

“What made you want to hunt lycans?”

“We found these books on our last hunt. Vince read them and lycans were mentioned here and there. Now we want to figure out where they might be.”

“So, it was a coincidence?”

“Pretty much.”

She leaned over the map that Ezra had been working on, seeing that he’d marked spots in the mountainous regions. She let her fingertips glide over Brighton before she ventured east to where her pack’s settlement was.

No, she reminded herself, not her pack anymore.

Further east was the lake region with Kirkwall, Lakeview and Duneburry. She’d never visited, but her father had taken a route through Kirkwall when he’d travelled northeast to visit the Dagger Wolves.

They’d marked the mountains that the Silverliners had claimed for themselves, but Ezra had added a small note.

Unlikely.

She moved north all the way to the ocean, past the Shadow and Blood Wolves—two packs that couldn’t hate each other more. The mountains east of the Blood Wolves and north of the Shadow Wolves were marked with an exclamation mark.

“Do you see anywhere you want to go, princess?”

Scarlett didn’t look up at Ezra. She only let her fingers trace the northern coastline over Penrith and then to the Silvermoon Pack’s borders. “I’ve never thought about it.”

“The world is your oyster.”

“Where exactly are we?”

Instead of answering, Ezra pulled at the necklace hiding under his shirt and then let it dangle over the map. Like a magnet, it stopped just west of Brighton, revealing her location. So, it worked: his magic truly was able to locate her.

Her finger traced south, over the River Pack’s territory to the coordinates Ezra’s pendant had revealed to her. “Why here?”

“The land was dirt cheap,” Mateo explained. “And the area was a fresh start to all of us.”

“Why was it so cheap?”

“I’m not sure you want to know.”

“Maybe it will give our little princess nightmares and she’ll crawl into bed with us.”

Scarlett chose not to address him. She looked up, her gaze drifting between the three men.

“The old farmer who used to live here was a serial killer.”

“I’m sure Ezra is overjoyed that the legacy lives on.” For some reason, Scarlett didn’t feel any particular way about it. After all, they killed for a living too. She pulled back and set her hands in her lap. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb your work.”

Mateo was quick to reassure her. “You haven’t. We enjoy your company.”

“But you’re working.”

“Doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy it.”

Scarlett leaned back, watching as they compiled a list of landmarks that they’d found in all the texts while making a list of possible vampire hideouts.

Closer to the evening Mateo separated from the table to start on dinner. “Want to help?” he asked, looking over his shoulder.

Scarlett’s feet tingled as she stood. She hadn’t realised how long she’d been sitting there watching them.

She took the knife and cutting board offered to her and started dicing the potatoes and onions—crying horribly when she attended the latter.

Mateo chuckled, wiping the tears away until he succumbed to the onion himself.

“Wimps,” Ezra mumbled from afar.

Mateo whipped his hand up and Scarlett assumed it was to toss an obscene gesture Ezra’s way—she couldn’t actually see. Once the onions were in the pan and the evil remnants in a sealed container, she washed her hands, watching Mateo.

He was a fantastic cook, and she was actually looking forward to their market visit. They ate dinner on the couches again and Vince cleared away the dishes. Exhausted, the only thing Scarlett could do was retreat to her room for bed.