Page 159 of Scavenger's Oath

The truck slows as it nears the old worn-down farmhouse.

Billy grins at me with chipped teeth. “We missed you, Ivy,” he says, as if this is some romantic reunion. “Father Bennett is gonna be real happy you came home.” He leans in closer, hisfoul breath hot against my face. “Y’know, he was real pissed when you ran. Said next time, he wouldn’t spoil you so much. Said you’d be an example.”

Jeb barks a laugh. “Told us to leave you marked this time. So you’d know running isn’t an option.”

A third voice comes from the cab of the pickup—Jack, always casual and cruel. “Said maybe we get to have you now. That you’re a wayward Eve. And you need to learn to appreciate what you had. You’ll be livin’ in your collar now,” he chuckles, spitting out the window.

Suddenly my daydreaming about rubbing my pregnancy in Bennet’s face isn’t so satisfying.I can’t let him find out.

My body shudders as reality hits me like a bucket of cold water, shocking me awake from my pleasant dream. My teeth chatter, terror hollowing me out as my hand slips protectively over my belly.

The truck skids to a stop next to the old farmhouse and Billy grabs my hair, yanking me upright as I scream in pain. Rust flakes crumble under my palms the way soil did this morning.

He leans down close to my face, his grin stretching wider. “Home sweethome, bitch.”

Chapter 52

Myles

I can still hear her scream.

It doesn’t matter how loud Phoenix is yelling, how hard I slam my fists into the wall, how fast my heart’s fucking pounding in my ears. It’s still there. In my head. Like she’s still screaming now, and I can hear it through the void she left in my chest.

We let this happen. We reinforced every side last week, but missed our patrols last night after we found out Ivy is knocked up.

Was it enough time for them to clear an entry point?

Now she’s gone. The laughter, the sun… it’s all gone. My chest feels like someone’s prying my ribs apart with cold fingers. The world is drowned in grey again. Ivy was the only thing that gave life its colour.

Thick clouds roll in, bathing her garden patch in shadow. Seeds are scattered over the soil, birds ripping at them as if it’s not a sacred site.

Turning away from the window, I smash my fist into the bastard we caught, splitting my knuckles.

Good.

I want pain. I need someone to blame. And he’s it.

We beat him into the road and then dragged him inside,tied him to a chair and beat him again. But he’s refused to talk.

I slam my fist into him again and again. But it’s my own ribs that ache, my heart shattering.

Every punch echoes with the thought of her state. Of the baby.Ourchild. I can’t even picture it without my ears ringing with her shriek.

“She ain’t yours,” the guy spits, blood mixing with saliva. “She chose to go back. You think she wanted to stay with freaks like you?” His words taunt me harder than his fists ever could.

I’m seeing red.She wouldn’t have chosen this. She chose me!

They didn’t just violently kidnap her—they stole the last thing in the world that might’ve been mine. And I feel like I’m imploding.

All my life, people either left or died. Ivy wasn’t supposed to. She chose to stay. And gave me something I never dared to hope for.A family… with a baby on the way.

I never even got to tell her how I really feel about it. That even if Zane and Phoenix are freaking out, I’m not.

She soothes the longing I’ve always felt. Her presence fills a void that made every breath ache. And her belly being filled with our baby, completes a part of me that I never knew was missing.

Now my throat’s clogged with the words. They sit there like shards of glass, cutting me open each time I swallow.

Phoenix is losing his mind and Zane… well, he might’ve already lost it.