CHAPTER 6

“Oh, now you want to talk?” I turn away from him, fighting the mix of emotions that threaten to drag me under. “A little late for that.”

“Please,” he begs quietly. “Just hear me out.” 

Glancing back towards the glass doors, I make a split decision. “If my parents catch me out here with you…”

“Two seconds.” He takes another step forward. Pleading. “Please.” 

I sigh, glancing back toward the ballroom. “Tonight. After…all this. I’ll meet you in our usual spot at one.” 

Tristan doesn’t look happy. Mouth thinning, he gives me one last look before disappearing back inside. I watch him go, my heart dropping low in my stomach. I know he’ll probably want to talk more about my failed attempt to seduce him, and that’s something I just can’t deal with now. Or ever. 

A rustling sound pricks at my ears, drawing me away from the warmth and light of my home. Scanning the yard, I see nothing. But I can smell him.  Moonlight filters across the open space, highlighting each neatly trimmed shrub and tree. From here, I can’t see the walls that surround our property, but I know they’re there. As are the few dozen guards we employ to secure the perimeter. Fear pricks at my skin. It isn’t a Shifter out there, that much I know.

Whoever it is must know I’ve sensed them. They step from the bushes and onto the stone path that winds its way up to the back patio. For a split second, I almost think we’re being attacked. The Wyre stops just shy of the back steps, his hand at his waist as if to draw a weapon that isn’t there. 

“Oh.” I let out a small breath. “It’s you.” 

The Wyre guard from earlier studies me from the shadows, his expression closed off. “What are you doing out here?” His voice rumbles through me, sparking heat low in my stomach. 

I shake off the feeling, an excuse already on the tip of my tongue. Habit, I suppose. But then I pause. Eyes narrowing, I cross my arms. “I could ask you the same question. Why are you out here and not with your Alpha?” I demand. 

Now that it’s just the two of us, I study him more closely. His eyes are the same golden color as all Wyres, marking them as cursed. His skin is bronzed, even in the moonlight, as if he spends more time outdoors than anywhere else. His nose is slightly crooked along the edge as if it had been broken more than once. Thick lashes nearly brush his sharp cheekbones. Everything about him screams lethal; from the muscles that flex beneath his suit to the hard glint in his golden eyes. 

The guard glances towards the ballroom warily. “I don’t like these things.” 

The response is so honest that I’m not prepared for it. I bite back my surprise. “So you’re not out here staking out our defenses and planning how to murder us all in our sleep?” I ask. 

The guard’s lips twitch. “Is that what you’d like me to do?” 

“Not particularly.” My wolf spirit snarls in response, imagining exactly how we’d defend ourselves. 

The guard’s smile slips. Dark shadows pass over his face as he watches me carefully. “We’re not the worse things out there in the world, Princess.” 

I scoff. “You assume I know nothing of the world, then.”

“I assume nothing. I can practically smell your prejudice.” 

My eyes narrow. “We’re at war, Wyre.” 

“Were,” he corrects. “We were at war. At least, after tonight’s negotiations, we won’t be.” 

 A growl slips from my throat. “You’re an optimist.” 

“You don’t want this peace treaty,” he muses. There’s no threat to his voice, nothing to indicate how he feels about his observation. 

“Would you?” I reply. “If you were the one being sold off?” 

The guard is silent for so long, I almost start to think he won’t answer. “No,” he says finally, “probably not. But, regardless of what I’d want, it’s what’s best. For both of our people.” 

I snort in derision. “You sound like my father.” 

“Is that a compliment?” he asks, a crease forming between his brows. 

Turning, my skirts swish about my ankles. “Take that however you’d like,” I tell him over my shoulder. “I don’t really care.” 

His eyes follow me across the patio, a shadow hovering just at my back. I slip into the ballroom, back into the warmth and protection of my people, trying to shake the feeling of being watched. My eyes snag on the other Wyres, cornered between two pillars along the side. They look uncomfortable and out of place. Their golden eyes flash as they constantly scan the room. 

As if they expect us to attack. 

Inwardly, I snort. If anything, they would be the ones to stage an attack. I’d only been half-kidding when I’d asked if the Wyre guard was taking stock of our defenses. It’s crossed my mind more than once since Mother announced the Bloody Prince was coming here. Father, of course, took precautions without making it seem as if we were doubling down simply because of their arrival, but I’d noticed more guards than usual the past few days. Many of the Shifter elite here tonight had even brought their own personal guards. I highly doubt that had been lost on the Wyres. 

They seem to notice everything, studying the Shifters around them just as suspiciously. If they were in their wolf forms, their hackles would be up. Which, thank Mother Nature, they’re not. A Wyre in wolf form is…uncontrollable. Their human minds are locked away. Most of the time, they don’t even remember what they did while in their other form. 

At least, that’s what I’ve been told. 

This is the first time I’ve ever seen a Wyre this close. Or ever. It’s not very Princess-like to go to the front lines just to see a monster in the flesh. 

The Bloody Prince is beside my father, listening intently as my father speaks. I can’t hear what they’re saying, but the Prince’s eyes flash toward me more than once. It doesn’t take a genius to tell what—or who—they’re discussing. Head raised, I make my way over to the table of champagne. Plucking a glass from the table, I take a sip. 

The bubbles slip down my throat, the welcoming buzz of alcohol steeling my nerves. Tonight, my Father and the Prince would meet to hash out the details of my future. Our future. I have half a mind to barge in just to protest, but I know I cannot. Father would skin me alive if I did and I’m not about to risk my life just to try and save it. 

There is no escaping my fate. 

I watch the Wyres carefully, studying their every move. If I’m going to live among them, I might as well start learning how to survive them. Their movements are graceful yet wild. As if they aren’t quite human but not entirely beast. Three of the six Wyres are female and each one is built like a warrior. Their well-defined arms flex each time they take a sip from their glasses. Their hair hangs down their backs, untamed and free. 

They seem just like us and yet…not. 

But I won’t be fooled. I can still sense their wolves lying just beneath the surface of their skin, begging to be released. The air around them pricks with power and darkness, with shadows and promises of chaos. I can almost smell blood in the air already. These creatures are not Shifters…

And I cannot afford to forget that. 

+++

I leave the celebration early. As soon as Mother is distracted with her guests, and Father and the Prince disappear into the salon, I slip out. The door is heavy as I push it open, glancing over my shoulder to make sure no one spots me. No one notices me. 

Except one. 

The Wyre guard’s eyes lock with mine. His expression never changes, carved from stone. I half expect him to go running to his Bloody Alpha and alert him that I’m escaping. Instead, he shifts, turning his back to me entirely. Breathing a sigh of relief, I let the doors shut behind me.

The butlers from before are gone, probably helping to clean up the mess or serve more champagne and wine to the guests. Which makes it a hell of a lot easier for me to sneak back up to my room. I’d told Tristan I’d meet him at one. It’s midnight now. 

I run to my room like Cinderella fleeing her prince. I guess, in a twisted way, I’m doing the same. I didn’t want to stay there when they had finally finished carving my fate into stone. I didn’t want to see the look on the Alpha’s face when he finally realizes just how much he owns me. 

My chest burns as I dart up the stairs to my room, the dress feeling too tight, too itchy, against my skin. The pins in my hair dig into my scalp, and my the lining of my heels bite into my ankles. I want nothing more than to rip this stupid dress off and transform, shedding my human skin to that of my wolf. But, surprisingly enough, a wolf escaping the mansion would draw a lot more attention than a disguised Princess. 

As soon as I’m in my rooms, I use my claws to slice through the horrid material. It pools around my ankles in strips, falling away from my skin. Stepping out of the clothes, I head to my closet, searching for the darkest, most comfortable clothing I have. I yank on a black sweatshirt, pulling on dark leggings beneath that. Slipping into my tennis shoes, I start plucking the pins from my hair, allowing my dark curls to fall around my shoulders before tying it into a ponytail. By the time I’ve finished, I only have a few minutes to meet Tristan in our little grove. 

With most of the attention turned toward the ballroom, it’s easy enough to slip out into the back garden. My ears strain to hear any sound of the guards that patrol our property…or a sneaky Wyre out for a midnight stroll. But I hear nothing but Tristan’s even breath just ahead.

He’s hidden by the trees, but I know he’s there. Even if I couldn’t hear him, I can sense him. His familiar presence draws me closer, pulling me in. Tentatively, I step through the trunks of the trees and into the grove. Here, the moonlight makes the pond surface glimmer in the dark like a thousand diamonds. Shadows stretch around me as Tristan turns, hearing me approach. 

“You actually came.” He sounds surprised. 

“I told you I would,” I reply, stopping just a few feet away. There’s a tension between us that wasn’t there before. Something that makes me hesitate. “I also told you that you have two seconds.” 

Determination flashes across his face. In two strides, he’s before me, taking my hands. His skin is hot against mine, burning through me like wildfire. 

“Run away with me.” 

I blink up at him, taken aback. “What?” 

“Run away,” he says, slower this time, “with me.” 

It takes me a few seconds to process his words. Snatching my hand from his, I take a step back. “Are you insane? I can’t just run away.” The words slip so easily from my lips and yet how many times have I thought about doing just that since I learned about this peace treaty? 

Still, thinking about it and doing it were two totally different things. 

Tristan towers over me, voice dipping. “Do you want to be married to that monster?” 

“No. Of course not. But—”

“But nothing. We can run away and you’ll never have to be with him.” Tristan takes my hand again, pulling me closer. I’m too shocked to protest, allowing a step or two before I force myself to stop. 

My hands flatten against his chest. I can feel his heart beating against his ribcage, like a bird trying to break free. My own heart is lodged in my throat, my mind blank with fear and surprise. 

“I can’t,” I whisper. 

He freezes and I can almost see him shutting away his emotions. “So, you really want to go then.” 

“No, I—”

“You can’t lie to me, Octavia,” he says desperately. “I’ve known you my whole life. You don’t want this.” 

“It doesn’t matter what I want,” I snap. Giving him a small push, I take another step back, putting space between us. I need to breathe. To think. “I can’t go because I don’t have that privilege.” 

He reaches for me again, not allowing me to escape. At his touch, I feel the fight leave me. His thumb brushes along my jaw, soft as a feather. Our chests press together, hearts beating as one. 

“Then let’s go with your first plan,” Tristan murmurs, dragging his lips along my shoulder. His blank hair brushes my cheek, the scent of him overpowering me. 

Fire licks between my thighs, pooling in my stomach like molten lava. A part of me begs to turn my head, to take his lips with my own just to see how he’d taste. To see how he would feel. But the other part of me knows I can’t. Father and the Alpha have probably already sealed the deal. Any move I make now to undo that would be a clear declaration of continuing the war. The Prince had seemed eager to end it all tonight, to stop the bloodshed and the fear. 

And I cannot be the one that destroys any chance my people have for peace. 

Pulling away, I cup his cheek in one palm. “I love you. You're my best friend. But we can’t. You were right before—about having your first time with someone you love. And, while I can’t have that, you can.” 

His jaw tenses beneath my hand as his fingers wrap around mine, pressing it against his skin. Before he can try to change my mind, I pull away. This time, he lets me go. 

My heart screams at me to turn back around, to stop walking, and go back to him. But I don’t. I let my mind go blank, shuttering my feelings away and throwing away the key. 

It isn’t until I’m back in my room that I finally let out a shaky, heartbreaking breath. 

Tonight, my freedom, my future, has been signed away. 

Tonight, I’ll lose everything.