Page 14 of Heroes & Hitmen (Windy City Wolfpack #1)

Miley

Tonight’s the night.

No matter how hard I try to stay distracted, that thought keeps scratching at the edges of my mind like a trapped animal, keeping me on edge.

First, it was weeks.

Then days.

Now, it’s just a matter of hours until I’m tethered to a stranger for the rest of my miserable goddamn life, and every time I think about it, the noose of anxiety suffocating my throat pulls a little tighter.

So, I’m packing.

Not because I know what I’ll need in my new home– I don’t .

Not because I think I’ll have any say in how much of my old life I get to bring with me– I won’t .

I’m packing because it’s the only thing I can think of to keep my hands and mind busy; a mundane activity that allows me to pretend I’m not slowly going insane.

My books were the first things I boxed up.

Educational texts for journalism classes I’ll never get to finish, romance novels with dog-eared pages I inherited from my sister Devin when she got paired off last year.

Recipe books full of desserts that never turned out like the pictures because I suck at baking.

It was never for lack of effort, and I always looked the part of a baker in the frilly pink apron Jordan got me as a gag gift.

The joke wound up being on her – I’d prance around the kitchen in it regularly just to mess with her .

I pack up my favorite coffee mug and the tiny espresso cup I thrifted from a place in Wrigleyville.

A little jar of sand from Oak Street beach.

A photo strip of me, Jordan, and Blake crammed into a photo booth at Navy Pier.

Trinkets and mementos, little things to serve as reminders that I was once a person , not a damn possession.

I move around my apartment practically on autopilot, packing my life away in cardboard boxes.

All the while, I keep glancing over at the ceramic pot on the windowsill, wondering what will happen to the plant I’ve somehow managed to keep alive since I moved in.

A housewarming gift from my sister Charlie that she predicted I’d kill within the first month.

Its green leaves are glossy from the sun and the care I’ve poured into it just to prove her wrong, but I have no idea how it’ll fare on the nine-hour journey to Detroit.

If I can even take it with me, that is.

Looking around my apartment, it somehow feels smaller with everything in boxes. Empty, like it’s already been stripped of life.

I wonder which of my younger sisters will move in here after I’m gone. Probably Drew– she turns eighteen at the end of the summer– but her time here won’t be long. She’s beautiful in a way that makes men leer whenever she walks by. Poor thing will probably be snatched up during her first perusal.

I suppose I should count myself lucky I made it as long as I did.

Three years of pseudo-freedom is better than none at all.

I press the flaps of a box down and reach for the roll of packing tape just as a dull thud sounds at the door, startling me out of my thoughts.

“Come in!” I call, glancing in that direction from my spot on the living room floor.

The door’s shoved open a second later, pushing a half-packed box out of the way as Jordan wedges herself through the gap with a grunt.

“Since when do you knock?” I tease, arching a brow.

“Since you turned your apartment into an obstacle course,” she mutters as she climbs over the box, kicking the door closed behind her.

“Why are you doing all this yourself?” she questions, glancing around at my mess as she wanders further inside.

“If it were me, I’d leave Alpha to pack all this up as a final fuck you . ”

“You and I both know he wouldn’t pack a thing,” I sigh, sealing the box with a strip of packing tape. “It’d be one of his henchmen. And the last thing I want is someone like Ross pawing through my underwear drawer.”

Jordan snorts a laugh. “He’d totally steal a pair to jerk off into.”

“Gross,” I groan, face screwing up in a grimace.

She flashes me a grin as she steps over to the couch, flopping down onto it like she owns the place. Or like it’s still mine. I can’t help but smile back at her, even though my chest feels like it’s being squeezed in a vise.

God, I’m going to miss her.

“Some sexy redhead dude was asking about you downstairs,” she remarks casually, twirling a dark strand of hair around her finger.

My heart stutters in my chest, eyes snapping up to meet hers. “Who?” I ask, feigning ignorance.

She gives me the world’s most dramatic eye roll, not buying my act for a second. “You tell me , sis,” she replies, narrowing her eyes suspiciously. “Been keeping secrets?”

“Hardly,” I mutter. Pushing to my feet, I pace over to the coffee table and swipe up the permanent marker, uncapping it as I return to the box I just packed and start labeling it neatly.

Jordan isn’t content to let the topic drop. “So, who is he?” she presses, eager for details.

I take my time labeling the box with large, swooping strokes of the marker. “Just a one-night stand,” I murmur absently.

“Wait,” she barks, sitting up straighter. “ That’s the guy from the bar?”

I pause, then nod once.

“The one with the sparky hands and the huge–”

“Shh!” I hiss, flinging the marker in my sister’s direction to shut her up.

She giggles as she catches it, shaking her head. “Damn, nice work, Miles. He’s hot as hell.”

“He’s also annoying as hell,” I say, but the words lack their usual bite.

She smirks. “Well, mister annoying as hell seemed real interested in which forest preserve you’re running at tonight.”

My stomach flips. “You didn’t tell him, did you?” I ask, trying and failing to keep the edge of panic out of my tone.

Jordan just shrugs. “Well sure, but he’s not gonna be there anyways. Said he’s assigned to Des Plaines for the run. ”

“You shouldn’t have done that,” I mutter, lips drawing into a frown.

She shrugs again. “Probably shouldn’t have given him your number, either.”

I narrow my eyes on her, pulse kicking up. “You didn’t…”

Right on cue, my phone pings from the coffee table, both of us whipping our heads around to stare at it.

Jordan holds up her hands, eyes wide. “I swear I didn’t!”

I’m quick to snatch up my phone, swiping open the screen. I frown as I read the message that just came in.

“It’s not him,” I murmur, passing the phone over to Jordan.

She takes it from my hand, brows pinching together as she reads the text message. “Request denied?” she asks, looking up at me in confusion. “What were you trying to do?”

“Meet with Elias ahead of the ceremony tonight,” I admit, disappointment sinking in my gut. “Thought we could have coffee or something, get to know each other before we commit to forever. Take some of the pressure off.”

“And he said no,” Jordan grumbles.

I heave a sigh, wrapping my arms around myself. “Guess he’s too busy.”

“Or Alpha didn’t even tell him,” she scoffs bitterly, tossing her dark hair over a shoulder and flopping back against the couch cushions. “God forbid anything goes wrong before the ceremony tonight to screw up whatever deal he made.”

She’s right. Of course she’s right. But it still stings, the idea that Elias couldn’t be bothered– or wasn’t permitted– to take a half an hour to have an actual conversation with the girl he’s about to claim for life.

My phone vibrates again in Jordan’s hand and she glances down at the screen. “They want you to leave your bag in the hall,” she reads aloud, passing it back over to me.

I skim the message, instructing me to pack a small overnight bag that’ll be delivered to the guest apartment Elias is staying in. I’ll be spending the night with him here in the Tower, then heading back to Detroit with him in the morning. Fantastic.

I re-read the message, eyes glazing over, then toss my phone back onto the coffee table where it lands with a thud.

“Maybe it won’t be so bad once your wolves are bonded,” Jordan suggests, toying with the frayed edge of her t-shirt sleeve. “And he could have a big dick.”

I snort a laugh, rolling my eyes. “I don’t want to think about his dick right now.”

“Fine, we can discuss it on the way there tonight,” she says, pushing up from the couch. “Should we meet here or at Blake’s?”

“Actually, I think I’m gonna drive myself.”

She goes still, her entire demeanor changing as she stares at me unblinkingly. “You’re making a break for it,” she breathes.

I meet her eyes, jaw tightening. “No.”

Jordan doesn’t look convinced, a mischievous smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. “If you’re gonna try something, you’d better loop me in so I can cover your ass,” she says sternly, pointing a finger at me.

“I’m not running,” I sigh, scrubbing a hand over my face. “I just… I want to control one last thing. Who knows if I’ll ever get to drive again.”

Tension thickens the air between us as Jordan nods slowly, throat bobbing with a harsh swallow. “Fair enough." She glances over at the plant on my windowsill, throwing a thumb toward it. “You taking your plant?”

“Not sure,” I murmur, thankful for the change in subject.

“I’d offer to take care of it for you, but…” she trails off with a wince. “That might be a death sentence.”

I give her a weak smile. “Yeah, you’d forget to water it and blame the sun.”

She shrugs unapologetically.

I glance back at the plant, its glossy green leaves still reaching for the last light of day. My feet move on their own accord, carrying me across the room to drag my fingers gently across the largest leaf. “Maybe I’ll leave it here,” I murmur thoughtfully. “Just in case.”

Jordan arches a brow. “In case what?”

I hesitate, rolling my lower lip between my teeth. “In case I come back.”

The words settle like dust in the air– quiet, heavy, and more vulnerable than I intended them to be. They hang there between us, full of a quiet defiance I hadn’t realized was still alive inside me.

Jordan doesn’t press, but something shifts in her expression– an unspoken understanding .

Maybe I’m not done yet. Maybe I’m not as powerless as they want me to believe.

Before either of us can break the silence, my phone buzzes again on the coffee table, both of us turning to look at it simultaneously. I stride back over to pick it up, unlocking the screen to read the new message.

“Tell me it’s Elias with a dick pic,” Jordan remarks cheekily.

I can’t respond. I’m frozen, all the air whooshing from my lungs as I stare at the words on the screen.

Unknown

Are you really gonna let them leash you without even putting up a fight?

Jordan’s footsteps sound behind me as she approaches, leaning in to read over my shoulder. “It’s him, isn’t it?” she asks with breathy excitement. “Mister annoying as hell.”

I keep staring at the message, reading it over and over, thumb hovering above the keyboard.

I don’t recognize the number, but I know it’s Ares. Who else would challenge Alpha’s authority but that crazy ass man with magnetic eyes and a death wish?

I shake my head with a grunt, shoving my phone into the back pocket of my jeans. “Doesn’t matter.”

“You sure?” Jordan teases, poking me in the ribs.

I shove her away with a laugh, but it dies quick. We both fall silent, standing there staring at each other, trying to ignore the elephant in the room– that this is goodbye. Maybe not forever, but enough of a forever that it hurts.

“You’re gonna be okay,” she says finally, her voice soft.

“Yeah,” I agree, even though we both know it’s a lie.

Jordan wraps her arms around me without warning, squeezing tight. “I love you, you know.”

I bury my face in her shoulder, hugging her back just as hard. “Love you too, sis.”

We hold onto each other for a long moment, then she pulls back from the embrace, giving me a pointed look. “If you’re gonna do something reckless tonight, don’t do it alone.”

“I won’t,” I promise, voice low.

She holds my gaze, unblinking.

She knows I’m lying .

I’ve never been reckless, but something’s waking up inside me– hot, sharp, and impossible to ignore.

Maybe it’s courage.

Maybe it’s madness.

Either way, it’s demanding to be set free, like a wild thing that can no longer be caged.