Chapter 1
Mila
My face throbbed as Ron snored like a freight train beside me. Keeping my breathing slow and steady, I risked a glance at him, half his body cloaked in shadows and the other half bathed in moonlight slipping through the blinds. His chest rose and fell in an even pattern.
I swallowed and dragged the comforter down my body, eyes never leaving his face, slack with sleep. Unlike mine, it wasn’t bruised and swollen. He slept like a babe while I couldn’t rest if I tried.
No, I had to get out of this house before the next time…
I won’t think about that.
I had family–brothers–who would look after me. I didn’t have to stay here and endure this shit.
Cool air swept across my skin, and the bed creaked as I shifted my weight. I moved cautiously, like an acrobat walking a tightrope until my feet touched the ground, then I sprung into action, flying toward the closet where I’d packed a bag while Ron took his shower. I snatched it up, quickly checking the burner phone I’d stashed in there was fully charged.
A relieved breath escaped me. It was good.
My fingers trembled only slightly as I texted a number I knew by heart.
Rowan’s response came immediately.
Address, now. Take only what you need. No electronics. I’ll handle the rest.
Tears burned my eyes and a tremulous smile curled my lips.
Home.
Family.
Things Ron tried to keep me from while he controlled my every moment. But no more.
I was going home.
Chase
“Alright,” I stared down at the checklist in my hand, “we’ve got food, water, ammo, and–”
My head jerked up when Rowan came bowling past me, a backpack slung over one shoulder and the strap to a rifle over the other. I shared a look with Jax, his blonde brows lifted to his hairline. We whirled on our eldest twin.
“Where the fuck you’re going? No working when it’s almost–”
“Mila texted me. She needs us.”
I pointed at the gun. “She needs that too?”
In my periphery, Jax rose, a growl bubbling up his throat. “Who hurt her? And I know you weren’t going without us.”
I rolled my eyes.
Fucking idiots.
“Look, whatever it is–”
“Her boyfriend put his hands on her,” Rowan snapped, eyes flashing gold. “He’s human–tearable. So, either I take this,” he lifts the rifle, “or I rip him apart with my claws. You pick, Chase.”
Shit.
I’d known he was a little protective of our step-sister, Mila, but dammit! Things were different–we were different, ever since the night we got bitten.
And having her around here… it would be a recipe for disaster.
“Rowan,” I started again, but he gnashed his teeth at me, the canines having grown a little sharper than human.
“No. I’m going. Jax, you can come as long as you don’t get in my way.” He speared me with a look, the tips of his ears elongating. “But I am bringing her back here, where we can keep her safe. You got a problem with that,” his upper lip peeled off his teeth, “find somewhere else to den until she has a new place of her own.” He stalked out the door without another word and Jax shot me an apologetic look before trotting after him.
“Jesus Christ,” I mumbled, plopping down on the sofa behind me.
We were supposed to be preparing for hibernating and everything that entailed…like unplanned ruts.
We didn’t need to be near anyone else when that happened. Our hands got us through the roughest of it.
Mila being here…wouldn’t be good for any of us.
Rowan
My back pressed into the seat cushions as my hands clenched tight around the steering wheel. Jax sat in the passenger seat, scanning our surroundings through the windshield.
“You sure this the right place? What if he’s keeping her from coming down?”
A muscle ticked in my jaw. I didn’t want to think about that.
“Then we go up there and break the fucking door down,” I hiss between gritted teeth.
High above us, the moon bathed the hood of the car and dark roads, slick with leftover rain. My knee jumped impatiently, and my skin prickled under Jax’s gaze.
“You think Chase got a point? What if we go into rut while she’s around?”
“We’ll lock ourselves up,” I replied automatically. “Chase and his damn lists,” I muttered, leaning back. “He’s sure to have chains and rope on one of them.”
Jax snorted, amusement filling the sound. “You’re right about that. I’m not sure he could get out of bed if it wasn’t on a list.”
We shared a chuckle, but it died the minute the door to Mila’s apartment building swung open and she stepped out into the night. I launched myself from the car.
Her brown eyes shot to mine. She ran to me and I caught her in my arms, lifting her off her feet and twirling her around. I buried my nose in her neck and my beast purred in my head, her scent flooding my senses.
“Rowan,” she rasped, arms tight around my neck. I didn’t let her down, holding just as snug.
“I’m right here–Jax, too. Chase is back at the cabin. Come on.” Slowly–reluctantly–I let her feet touch the ground, but I couldn’t release her, not yet. “Let me see.” I brushed the backs of my fingers along her cheek, and she winced. Her brown skin had turned a mottled purple, and light swelling had started beneath one eye.
We should kill him. They’d say he died by an animal attack.
The beast prowled back and forth in my head, bloodlust sweeping through me.
But I couldn’t.
Chase had one thing right.
He needed to bunker down for winter.
Get away from civilization.
I sighed, my hand dropping to my side.
Eventually, we’d need to tell Mila the truth, too.
And I wasn’t ready for the day she stopped looking at me like her hero.
