Page 6

Scarlett

Scarlett scrambled to put herself back together just in time to walk through the lobby. Kurt had tried to link with her, but she’d pushed him away, terrified he would see the bond she was trying so desperately to fight.

As the elevator climbed higher, she found Kurt’s concerned gaze. “Don’t tell anyone. He’ll never let me out of the building again.”

His jaw clenched with his brows fusing above his nose. “ I might never let you out of the building again.”

“Kurt, please,” she begged, blinking away the heat behind her eyes.

The elevator jolted to a stop, and the doors opened. Kurt took a deep breath in. “Fine.”

She headed to her ensuite bathroom, washing away the evidence of the ice cream she’d forced down on their walk back. A knock on the door made her flinch. When she stepped into her bedroom, Maximilian stood in her doorway.

“Feeling better?” He’d been the one to suggest that their father let her grab some ice cream around the corner. Just like Kurt, he understood the struggle to obey their father’s wishes.

“A little, thank you. Are you excited to visit the Night Star territory?” she asked, sitting on her bed and steering the conversation in another direction. Anything to keep him from getting suspicious.

“I am.”

“So, Dad is trying to talk them into allowing him to buy more property?”

“Essentially, but he and Alpha Brian have always gotten along well. I think he’s testing me since this is my development. He wants me to take the lead on everything that it concerns.”

Their father was preparing to give the pack to Maximilian, but not without making sure he could take on the outside businesses too. They had a few, such as nightclubs and a construction company. That one came in handy, considering they owned a lot of property around Brighton.

Generations ago, werewolves had been at war.

Packs had fought for territories, then to avenge their dead when those fights had turned to massacres.

At some point, the alphas had acknowledged that their kind was dying out.

They’d banded together and signed a peace agreement.

Now, if a pack wanted to buy land, they needed the majority of the alphas to agree.

It was often just a formality anyway, since most packs lived peacefully by each other’s sides.

“How are you feeling about taking over?” she asked.

“Fucking terrified,” her brother said with a nervous laugh. “But still excited.”

“Do you think you’re prepared?”

“As prepared as I can be. Dad has brought us great success. I just hope I can match it.”

“I don’t think he would just leave.”

“You sure about that?” he joked. “Maybe we should check his browser history for retirement vacation homes he’s failed to mention to us.”

That made her grin, the sun peeking through the storm clouding her mind. “I think you’re going to do wonderfully.”

“Well, thank you, little sister.” Then he tilted his head and studied her. “You know he’s just worried about you, right?”

“I know, and I know he loves me. It’s just starting to suffocate me.”

“I think he still sees you as his sweet little girl.”

Scarlett put on a mock pout, batting her lashes. “I’m not?”

“You’re still sweet, just not his little girl anymore. He just needs time to catch up to reality and see you as the beautiful young woman you’ve become.”

“Look at you, throwing out compliments left and right.”

He stood up with a cocky grin. “Don’t tell anyone, they might revoke my big brother card.” Then he leaned down and kissed her hair, leaving her with a warm, fuzzy feeling.

Scarlett knew that her family loved her, but part of her was well aware that they saw her as a fragile little girl.

She didn’t want to be, but her father doubled down.

He’d restricted her training, not wanting her figure to become too masculine.

He insisted that she be kept busy by “womanly tasks” as he liked to call them.

Cooking, housework, minding the pack’s children and elders was what had filled her days for many years now, especially after graduating high school.

She’d wanted to continue to university and while her father didn’t outright condemn the idea, he only agreed to online courses.

Scarlett hated them, and felt they’d been useless.

She sighed and closed her eyes only now realising she couldn’t feel her mates’ presence anymore.

She recalled the way the dark one had spoken to her, and the storm returned in her mind.

It was as if he’d enjoyed hurting her. She went to her closet in search of comfortable clothes, hoping a self-care night would ease the pain.

When her eyes fell on the sweater the gentle one had given her, she sighed and reached for it without even thinking.

She pulled it over her head, sending a waft of his cologne spiralling into the air.

With a deep breath, she filled her lungs with his scent, and she almost felt her heart start to mend.

Almost possessed, she reached for the phone.

Scarlett looked at the saved numbers, worrying her bottom lip. Finally, she dialled one, hoping she made the right choice.

“Scarlett?”

She thanked Isis; it was the gentle one. “Yeah,” she whispered.

“Oh, Scarlett. I’m so sorry. He shouldn’t have spoken to you that way. He shouldn’t have approached you at all with one of your pack standing right there.”

She didn’t know what to say. Hearing his voice soothed the sting the other’s had left behind.

During the silence, she heard rustling on the other end of the line.

That sent her mind in a spiral. Where was he?

What was he doing? Was he in bed? Before her mind could wander into a place she didn’t care for, she decided to sit down.

Hidden in the closet, she dropped to the floor and leaned against her dresser.

“Did you get in trouble for being out?”

“No.”

“The hunt took us a little longer than expected, I’m sorry. We’re back now, so we can come by whenever you want us near again.”

Having them nearby did feel good. But was she really going to admit that? Scarlett paused, mulling over her choices. All she wanted was to keep hearing his voice. Admitting that, and asking him to keep talking felt too big of a step to take.

The gentle one sighed, though Scarlett could tell it wasn’t out of frustration with her.

“I know you’re still struggling with us being your mates and that’s okay.

We just want you to know that we won’t force any decisions on you.

Take all the time you need. And know whenever you’re ready to be with us, your new home is waiting for you. ”

“Where do you live?” The words were out before she could stop them.

“Two hours west of Brighton. We have a patch of land with a small lake and acres of space. We remodelled the house on it and—” he paused, stopping himself and rethinking his words. “One of us does carpentry so we have a shop for custom pieces.”

Scarlett didn’t need to ask to know it was the silent one. The less she knew, the less she would be able to picture herself in their lives. “Okay.”

“Too much, huh?” When she stayed quiet, he continued, “I didn’t mean to ramble. I just want you to know that when you’re ready, we won’t be strangers to you.”

“I don’t want to be yours.” It was a lie. And the low, rumbling chuckle that seemed to make her whole body tingle said that he knew as well.

“I know, love. You have our numbers, and you can always come down when you feel us close. We’ll find you.”

“Okay.” And with that, she hung up the phone.

Scarlett crawled into bed and drifted off to sleep, her dreams filled with a carpenter’s shop overlooking a sparkling lake.

Two weeks went by and though she felt them nearby, she didn’t go outside to meet them.

Sometimes their presence was less intense, which she’d come to learn meant someone had stayed behind.

They often appeared in the evenings and by the time she woke up, they’d be gone.

Part of her wanted to see them again, even for just a minute or two, but the way the dark one had acted made her think he didn’t deserve her attention. He’d hurt her and enjoyed it.

But tonight was different. Her bag was packed for a trip to her pack’s private land and she felt guilty leaving without telling them that she’d be gone. After all, they’d afforded her that courtesy.

She exited the elevator on the fifth floor, then took the stairs down to the fire exit. Propping the door open, she stepped out and crossed her arms over her chest. It didn’t take long before footsteps sounded down the alleyway. Their forms became clearer as they stepped out of the shadows.

“You made us wait, little princess,” the one with the dark eyes snarled.

Scarlett ignored him, instead keeping her focus on the other two. “I’m leaving. I’ll be back in a few days.”

“We assumed you would leave for the Wolfmoon. That’s what your pack calls it, right?” the gentle one asked.

Scarlett only nodded her affirmation.

“I’m sure you’re very excited for the trip.”

Scarlett nodded again, rubbing her arms to ward off the night chill. “I should go.” She turned to leave, gasping at the rough jerk on her wrist.

“Let. Go,” the gentle one growled.

His order was ignored, black eyes staring down at the charm bracelet she was wearing. “Who gave this to you?”

Silver flashed through the darkness, then the silent one had a knife to his friend’s throat. “You hurt her. I’ll hurt you.”

The moment the dark one’s fingers cleared her wrist, Scarlett scrambled through the door. She leaned against the cool metal, heart racing and wrist aching.

“Why the fuck did you have to do that? She came down to talk to us and you ruined it. Again!”

There were sounds of a struggle, then their footsteps faded.

Taking her time and a few deep breaths, she made her way back upstairs. As she stepped into the elevator, her father’s mind pressed against hers. After a pause to collect her thoughts—and push away those of her mates—she opened up to him.

‘Come to my office.’

‘Yes, Father.’

The mind link was a tricky thing. It was a connection one shared with their pack, allowing them to communicate even over distances.

The only downside was that it didn’t stop at pack communication.

If not properly taught, things could be shared that someone would rather keep hidden—such as a bond to three hunters.

Scarlett took a detour to the eighth floor, buying herself more time.

Her father’s office was only located with two others: Jake’s, his beta, and Felix, their lead warrior.

She knocked and feeling her father’s mind pull at hers, Scarlett’s features softened to a look her father knew all too well: schoolgirl innocence.

She found herself in the midst of what seemed to be an intense meeting.

Her father was present, of course, along with Jake and her brother.

“You called for me,” she said, unable to suppress the worry that turned her stomach.

“I did,” her father stated, indicating the empty chair in front of his desk. She took the seat and folded her hands in her lap. “I was informed that a local paper is publishing an article about you tomorrow and was able to obtain a copy.”

He smacked a paper onto the table, flipping it around so she could read the headline.

DARK SECRETS UNRAVELLING ABOUT THE MOONLIGHT FAMILY

She skimmed the words on the page, and her stomach tightened.

The article was all about how she was never seen in public.

They mentioned her father locking her up in the “Rapunzel Tower.” She was kept like a bird in a golden cage.

Naturally, there were speculations as to why.

The nicer ones were saying she was sick and too weak for her father’s social life, while others speculated she was just dumb and ugly.

“We believe that the Magnolia family is behind this,” her father continued. “They might be trying to sabotage our new development.”

Since Maximilian’s successful trip to the Night Stars territory had gained her father the last vote he needed to purchase new land, they’d started the process of making public announcements. The Magnolia family was a rivalling business—who also happened to be hunters.

Maximilian sat beside her and took her hand in his. “They’re just trying to get under our skin. We just wanted you to know this article is out there.”

Scarlett nodded, though she wondered what that would mean for her. Would this be the kick in the pants her father needed to loosen the reins? Or would it just add another lock onto her freedom? She looked up at him, who studied her closely. “Will it sabotage your launch?”

“We don’t believe so. All publicity is good publicity.”

Scarlett bobbed her head slowly and looked back down at the article, glad they hadn’t added a picture.

“We will be more careful about your… outings,” her father continued. “Maximilian will no longer be going anywhere with you. The resemblance will be too obvious.”

“Because you don’t want them to know what I look like?” And though she hated it her father was right. No one could ever deny the two of them being siblings. The brown hair, the grey eyes, some even said they’d both inherited their mother’s soft features and smile.

“I don’t want a target on your back. The next few weeks will be the most crucial so you will stay here.”

She snapped her head up, tears filling her eyes before she could stop them. “What about the Wolfmoon?”

“No more trips out beyond that.”

A knot tied in her stomach, but she bowed her head and submitted anyway. She knew there was no reasoning with him. If she attempted to fight him, he would only punish her more, taking her little trips away entirely. The conversation was clearly over, so she rose from her seat and left.

Maximilian joined her outside the elevator. “He means well, Scarlett”

“Of course he does.” Though her tone would indicate that Scarlett didn’t quite agree.

Her brother sighed and rested his arms around her shoulders, pulling her close as they stepped into the elevator. “Please don’t do anything stupid.”

Like meeting three hunters in a blind spot of the building's security?

“I won’t.” She sighed and tried to lighten her tone. “There go my chances to go to the next mate meet up.”

“I don’t think those things work. I’ve been to half a dozen and still haven’t found mine.”

Over the past few years, unmated young wolves had started to meet outside of their packs’ territories to find their one and only. It was also an excuse to party without having their families—and alphas—breathing down their necks.

“You’re a difficult case,” Scarlett teased.

Maximilian crunched his nose, feigning offense. “Damn, why so mean?”

She punched his bicep and grinned up at him, pushing away the thought that she’d miss him once her secret came out.