Enzo’s POVI couldn’t believe it. I hesitated in the doorway for a moment, staring at her, connecting the dots between the Scarlett I remembered and the girl stood before me. The room and the man in it were nothing to me, utterly and entirely irrelevant in that moment. In every moment. Because she was there.“Scarlett,” I breathed, taking a tiny, timid step into the room. Where did we stand now? Did she still think of me, like me, want me? It had been so long. Did she think I’d abandoned her? I’d made so many choices in the past few months, and suddenly every single one of them seemed wrong. Damn it all, I should’ve been here – And why was she blonde?Suddenly that mattered more than anything else. Her beautiful, long auburn hair was still beautiful – she could become a frog and I’d still find her more appealing than any other – but it wasn’t the hair I knew her to have. I wanted to get to know this version of her, to unpick everything that had happened between October and now. Then
Scarlett’s POVI held Enzo’s hand so tight it had to be hurting him, but he didn’t complain. I drifted out into the hall in a weird, dream-like state, waves of joy battering me on one side and a swirling whirlpool of guilt trying to drown me on the other. Marla was waiting outside. I stopped dead at the sight of her. Seeing Enzo again was one thing, but my old friend? She didn’t have a mate bond making what I’d done seem less heinous. She would be able to see me clearly, short hair and nose ring and oh, yeah, a little bit of murder and all.But her warm face broke into a broad grin when she saw me. “Scar!” she chirped, and then a second later I was wrapped in her strong arms. Dark curls of hair curtained my vision. “It’s really you. Thank God.”“It’s me,” I muttered, half frozen in shock. She must’ve been with Enzo in that alleyway, right? She had to know. So why was she hugging me?“Marls,” Enzo tutted, “give her some room to breathe.”“Sorry.” She ducked away, twiddling the end of
Enzo’s POV“Scar?” Panic. That was all I felt. It didn’t matter that seconds ago I’d been on the verge of tears, having realised that my Scarlett, my mate, had moved on from me, had made a life for herself here and left me behind. As her eyes rolled back and her whole body sagged, it only mattered that I had to protect her. I had to keep her safe. I couldn’t break my vow so immediately.I caught her, swinging her up into my arms bridal style. “Scar? Can you hear me?”Her head lolled backwards. Carefully, I tucked it up against my shoulder and held her close. My heart thundered in my chest at the feel of her. I closed my eyes against the fresh onslaught of tears. It had been so long.I’d missed her every day. Every damn day. And she’d been here, going to bloody night classes and working a job? I clenched my jaw. Even if she didn’t want me anymore, I couldn’t just leave her here on the street. I’d get her safe, be it just for tonight or until the Ryker threat was neutralised. If there
Scarlett’s POVThey were dead. Suze. Luna. Ollie. And it was all my fault.There was something in me. Something dark and scary. It swelled to a crescendo, beating out a rhythm in time with the thought of each of their names. Suze. Luna. Ollie. It grew and grew, a hurricane swirling around and around and around – Something dragged my arm up. It yanked my bones, forcing my muscles to follow. My fingers splayed of their own accord. Suze. Luna. Ollie. I knew distantly that I was sobbing, but the hot tears spilling down frozen cheeks didn’t feel like they belonged to me. I was a cold and callous being, controlled by the air whooshing through my veins. I was a marionette. My limbs were dragged into place by invisible strings. Air slammed out of my palm and into an unsuspecting lamp. It flew off the bedside table and smashed on the hardwood floor.Still being propelled by the same wind that had broken the lamp, I stood. My knees jerked. “Scar?” Enzo stood too, his hands hovering worriedl
Enzo’s POVWe boarded the earliest flight we could. I’d asked Scarlett if she wanted to say goodbye to her roommate and co-workers – and what a headfuck asking that had been – but her eyes had clouded with tears, like fog rolling in over the ocean, and she’d shaken her head, unable to voice the no that had surely been coming.This was all wrong. It was like doing a paint by numbers in unorthodox colours, making a mountain purple and the lake orange. It was the complete opposite of being black and white; nothing made sense, nothing was drawn out plainly to see, and there were no reasonable conclusions I could draw.Scarlett was asleep beside me, her head tipped back, her lips parted. With her eyes closed, at a quick glance she could have been anyone. Her nose ring glinted in the low light. The weirdest part was that I really liked the changes to her appearance – she looked badass – but I didn’t like that I didn’t know how or when they’d happened. The hair made sense if she was on the r
Scarlett’s POVThere wasn’t a big enough word to describe how downright odd it felt to be back at Moose Creek. Strange only skimmed the surface, and bizarre felt too fun, too flamboyant, too… kooky. Being back with Enzo should’ve been fun. Parts of it were – holding his hand still sent bolts of lightning tingling upwards from the point of contact, and his idle chatter about British television shows still made me laugh. There was something intrinsically different about us both, though, which I came to realise only truly once we’d made it back to his home.We’d both been thrown into the fire. It had forged me, but it had melted him.Of course, I was far from unbroken. But I felt stronger inside than I ever had before, my conviction to do the right thing by my human friends and my determination to not harm anyone with my wild new powers holding me steady. I knew what I wanted to do and what I needed to do. That was enough to keep me upright on the days when everything became too much.E
Enzo’s POVShe didn’t have to tell me twice.I cradled her, a beautiful, precious thing, and felt the earth shatter around us as I pressed my lips to hers. Her shaky breaths warmed my face as I leant in, such a delicate part of her to be shared only with me. The gaping wound of my heart began to stitch itself back together at last as she wound her hands into my hair, tugged lightly, and swept her tongue into my mouth.Groaning, I nudged her back until she was flush with the fridge. Nails scraped over my scalp, making me shiver. “Scar,” I moaned, my throat thick with lust. “Enzo.” My name on her lips? She may as well have shot ecstasy straight into my veins. My dick twitched, growing hard against her hip. She sucked my lip into her mouth and bit down. “Fuck,” I whimpered, squeezing my eyes shut. “You’re perfect.”“So are you.” Her breaths were coming shorter and faster. Her trembling fingers trailed downwards, curving around the edge of my ear and tugging at my earlobe before going f
Scarlett’s POVThings between Enzo and I weren’t fixed, not exactly, but they were definitely patched up. We both knew where we stood, now. He hadn’t moved on from me, and, as it turned out, I hadn’t moved on from him. Not one damned bit. Being with him was electric – which was good, because I didn’t want to talk to anyone else. Not yet.We lay tangled on the bed, my head on his chest, his strong arms wrapped around me. “We’re okay, aren’t we?” he murmured, punctuating his words with a kiss to my temple.“Of course we are,” I breathed. “I hated thinking that you – that you…”His throat bobbed. “Yeah, I know. Me, too. I’m so sorry for getting angry.”“No, don’t be. I know how frustrating I can be.” I burrowed further into the hollow of his neck. “It’s just been a weird time. I still can’t believe any of it. A few months ago, I was Ryker’s slave. I couldn’t shift into a wolf; I was worse than an Omega. And now…”“Now?”“Now, I’ve found my mate – an Alpha, by the way, did you know?” I te
Bennett’s POVThings had taken a while to fall back into place after the battle. With the pack house left in ruins, Scarlett and Enzo had worked with his parents to rehome everyone that lived inside it while it was rebuilt. His mother and father had stayed close, lending their expertise as they got to grips with navigating life post-Ryker.They hadn’t been the only ones to stay, though. I’d asked to remain in Moose Creek. Enzo had accepted my cagey reasoning with narrowed eyes, but he would’ve said yes to just about anything with his mate’s hand on his arm. In truth, I didn’t know where else to go now. Everything in my life had been building up to this. Crafting prophecies for people to find, leaving breadcrumb trails, making messages, telling everyone just the right thing at exactly the right time – I’d never known a moment to myself. Now that was all I had. And I couldn’t See my way forward. Not anymore. I’d told nobody that Scarlett hadn’t been the only one to lose her powers t
Scarlett’s POVI opened my eyes.Sunlight blinded me. No – not sunlight. My own light, golden and magical, surrounded me. Held limp in its grip, it lifted me into the air.But I – I’d been dead. Hadn’t I?I remembered the feel of my life leaving me. I remembered losing my energy, my strength, feeling my body wilt beneath the weight of the magic tearing through my veins and rushing out through my palms. But now the wind was here, holding me, healing me, and I felt it dance across my skin, through my hair, as it pulled my arms out and pointed my legs down towards the ground. I remembered dying.But that wasn’t all I remembered. Vague, fuzzy shapes filtered into my mind, taking form as the light raised me higher and higher. I saw humans, knew their names, saw Adelaide, saw a city and a death and a chase, saw Bennett and a library and Enzo – My beautiful Enzo. How could I ever have forgotten all that we had shared?The memories poured in as my brain healed, the light coming from within
Bennett’s POVI was dying. Such a fact was two things: simple and irrefutable. To fight it was futile; to ignore it was idiocy. But I had done as I had been bid by the visions that had plagued me since birth. I had fought the prophecy and, I hoped, saved the world from the tyranny breeding at its wolven heart.It was hard, seeing the world in pathways and possibilities. Even now, as I lay upon the gleaming white floor of Moose Creek’s medical centre, sedative spilling through my veins and blood streaming from my chest, photos of the futures forking from this moment blinded me. I saw Scarlett stood amidst the dead, the only survivor in a war she’d never asked for. I saw her bent over her mate’s body, sobs wracking through her. Then I saw her fumble for the outstretched claws of a fallen werewolf and use them to slit her own throat.I squeezed my eyes shut at that one. It did nothing to halt the visions, of course, but it always made me feel as if I had some semblance of control over
Enzo’s POV I blinked into a sudden burst of gossamer sunlight. “Scarlett,” I rasped, choking up blood. All of me hurt, save for my heart. That was lighter than it had ever been. She was okay. She was a vision in the dying light, her auburn hair with its blonde ends glimmering softly, like the shimmering surface of a ruffled lake; her beautiful blue-green eyes wide, shining with unshed tears; her stance strong and proud and powerful, even as she fell apart at the sorry sight of me. “Fuck,” she whispered, her eyes filling. “Enzo. Oh, God…” “I’m okay,” I grunted. It was a lie. A dying man’s lie to make the love of his life feel better. Blood streamed from my neck; my body felt numb from my face down. The pain was gone, but my feeling was gone with it too. I was outside now, and I’d definitely been inside the last time I’d been conscious. Had my body been trampled beneath the paws of hundreds of Ryker’s wolves? In the heat of battle, it was just as likely that my own pack had buried m
Scarlett’s POVI stared numbly at the doorway. Emila stood at its centre, hands on hips, her expression all furrowed brows and wide eyes. “Scarlett!” she gasped. “What are you doing?”I met her gaze unflinchingly. “He doesn’t need to be in an induced coma,” I said boldly. I’d never felt so damned bold in all my life. “Does he, Medic?” I spat.She held her hands up and walked towards me slowly. “I’m not sure what’s got into you, or why you’re doing this, but please, Scarlett, step away from my patient. He needs to rest to heal.”Doubt started to creep in. I clutched the sedation tube, letting it dangle from my fingers. I’d been so sure…What if I was wrong? Had I just signed Bennett’s death certificate?Gritting my teeth, I held still. He’d woken up before when I’d used my magic to keep the sedation at bay. And he’d told me to stop her – had he meant Emila all along? He had to know what she planned to do to him. My resolve firm once more, I looked back up at her.She smiled weakly, app
Enzo’s POVWe were pushed back further and further. I was the last one standing in the doorway, using my huge wolven body to block out the attacking army. Though we were fighting a losing battle, I was proud of my wolves. We’d kept Ryker’s pets at bay far longer than I’d thought we’d ever had any hope of doing. The sun was dipping lower in the sky, brushing the tips of the massacred pine trees, burnishing their bottle-green needles a deep, glittering gold.It also shone on the pools of blood. The ground was soaked in it, rivulets running down the slight hillock upon which the pack house stood. Bodies of wolves broke its streams; my wolves, Ryker’s wolves. They were clawed and bitten, missing limbs, missing chunks of fur and flesh. Such violence would stain the land here forever.But worse still than the gore and the sightless eyes of my fallen warriors was the gnawing worry about my mate. I hadn’t seen Scar since she’d run into the crowd. Unable to mindlink her, I was left drowning in
Scarlett’s POVI ducked through the wolves, narrowly avoiding the swiping, slashing claws. Nobody seemed to notice me as I ran – they were focused on the other wolves with teeth bared and blood soaked into their muzzles. I brushed under the bellies of those in Enzo’s pack, using them to protect me from the enemy wolves.Then I was pushed forward by a surge of movement from behind. Arms wheeling, I stumbled through the front line of our warriors and fell, head first, into the tangle of Ryker’s wolves.“Fuck,” I gasped, smacking into warm, bloodied fur. I bounced off its firm, muscled body, and rolled until I hit paws. Then I scrambled to my feet – Only to be clawed down my face. I bit back a scream, pressing my palms to the wound. Blood streamed between my fingers, pouring over my eye. I squeezed it shut. My head throbbed; each pulse shook me, the cut burning and stinging. Barely able to see, I ran, my back bowed, zig-zagging through the writhing mass of wolven bodies.Running through
Enzo’s POVI shoved down my terror as the wolves swelled around us, a writhing, unforgiving tide. Like a stone upon the shore I stood firm, knowing I must withstand its force. My terror was not for me, and neither was my determination. It was for her – my mate, the beautiful woman sat upon my wolven back – and for my pack members. They had not chosen this fate, no more than Scar or I had. This was our only chance to make it right.Scarlett knotted her fingers in my fur. She leant forward and whispered, “I’ve got you.”Then the enemy was upon us.I surged forward, meeting them rather than allowing them to breach our front line. My Beta and Gamma lunged with me, our movements so well practised we barely had to think of them. I had to adjust my balance more with Scar on my back, but it was instinct, raw and as natural as breathing, to keep her secure atop me.My jaw locked around a grey wolf’s neck. I clamped down, pulled back, tore flesh from bone. The wolf fell to the ground, dead. Blo
Scarlett’s POV“Pretty much,” said Isaak, his gaze downcast. He shuffled his weight from foot to foot. “I’m sorry.”“Why did they target your sister?” I asked, leaning closer to the cell bars. He shrugged. “She’s the only family I have left. They knew I’d do anything for her, I guess. Even…”I nodded. “Even this.” But then my eyes narrowed. “How did they know you well enough to target her?”Isaak’s cheeks flushed. He started picking at his cuticles and refused to meet my eyes. “They have scouts too,” he said. I felt convinced it was a lie. Before I could push the matter, though, Enzo grabbed my arm.“Hey,” I said, trying to pry his fingers off. They were white knuckled. My belly hollowed out. “What is it?”“Marla just mindlinked me,” he whispered, glancing furtively at Isaak. Understanding immediately, I towed him out of the cells and up into a nook at the top of the stairs. My back was pressed flat against the wall; Enzo huddled close, biting his lip as he looked around anxiously.O