Enzo’s POVI hated watching Scarlett use her air magic. Well – to be honest, it wasn’t the magic part that I hated so much. That bit was actually kind of cool: watching her hands glow and her face break into a grin as she commanded the winter wind to coil up her arms and billow through her hair. She was beautiful like that, full of confidence and pride. I was proud of her, too. Her determination alone was enough to bring me to my knees and pledge myself to her, all over again.It was what came after that made me so upset. I couldn’t bear watching her collapse every time; seeing it ate away at me, but I knew that not being with her while she grappled with her newfound powers would only hurt more. The more she used her magic, the more intense her fainting spells became. “Scar!” I raced out into the clearing, blood pounding through my veins, heart thundering in my chest. I couldn’t feel any of her pain when she collapsed, but seeing her slack face and unseeing eyes told me all I needed
Scarlett’s POV“You’re acting weird,” I remarked casually, reaching for the jam. Glancing over at Enzo, I added, “weirder than your normal, dorky self, that is.”He huffed and rolled his eyes. “Thanks. I think.”I smiled wryly. “You’re welcome. But no, seriously – what’s up?”He dropped his toast and scratched at his jaw. A crumb stuck to his stubble. My smile grew. “This Ryker business. It’s like a cloud looming over us, you know? I was just starting to feel like things were going smoothly for us.”“Yeah.” I smoothed the jam over my buttery toast. God, eating like this was still such a luxury to me. My layers of butter and jam were easily twice as thick as Enzo’s, and I went back to add a little more. “But we’re ready for whatever happens.”“It’s not that. It’s – well, what if Bennett’s right?”“Is that why you’ve been staring at the ceiling at night?” I put down my knife and levelled my gaze at him.“The first time I could’ve sworn I saw a snake up there.”“A snake. In your bedroom.
Enzo’s POVI felt permanently on edge after Bennett’s latest intrusive message. It became impossible to distract myself, because every time I opened a book in the library or ran past a tree at training, I expected to see the words ‘I told you so’ inked or carved there. He’d effectively managed to infiltrate our lives – and my blooming paranoia wasn’t even the worst problem Scar and I had to deal with.So much for our peaceful paradise. Even now, with Scarlett’s head resting sleepily on my chest and the first rays of dawn spilling in through the open curtains, my brow was furrowed and stress pounded at my temples. Lifting a hand, I pressed my fingertips into my temples and started to rub. Hard.Scar lifted her head, her eyelids still closed, her lashes forming a dark crescent over her freckled skin. “Whassmatter?”Despite it all, I huffed out a laugh. “In English, please?”She yawned widely and snuggled back in. “What. Is. The.” She paused, yawning again, before she finished. “Matter?”
Scarlett’s POV“So,” I said, leaning forward on Enzo’s bed, frowning at the television, “he’s an alien?”“Yeah.” Enzo rubbed my knee, but his gaze didn’t once falter from the screen. “From the planet Gallifrey. And he travels around in a blue box that he stole…”“No, go on.” My lips twitched. “And the plastic?”“Is alive.” He grinned and, at last, turned to face me. “I’m sorry. We don’t have to watch it.”“No, I’m enjoying it. I’m confused, but happy.”“Well, that’s all I can ask.” He kissed my cheek. “I’m glad you’re happy.”“Me, too. Your parents are so nice.”They really were. We’d chatted easily, amicably, once I’d settled into myself – and got past the fact that Enzo had snickered at me for saying ‘Most welcome.’ Geno and Resme were warm people in a warm home, and with the mulled wine sinking into my flesh I’d found that our conversations had flowed as easily as drink into my cup.And, if I’d caught them sharing sad, almost pitying, looks whenever my past came up, no matter how q
Enzo’s POVScarlett was keeping something from me. I was sure of it.Since we’d got back from my parents, she’d been… tense. There wasn’t anything specific that I could pinpoint, just a vague feeling of wrongness. Her smiles seemed false, forced somehow, even when I knew her laughter was genuine. The mate bond fizzed between us, rather than glowing as it usually did. But I trusted her, and it wasn’t like I was being entirely honest either, so I let it slide. She’d tell me whatever it was when she was ready – I just hoped that moment didn’t come too late.In the meantime, I had plenty else to keep my mind occupied. Ryker’s tyranny was seemingly unstoppable, and my pack were getting increasingly rowdy, demanding that I do something to keep us safe.I didn’t want Ryker or Bennett coming here. I’d lost myself in the last few months, but I was ready to be a defender of my people again. A protector.So I’d gathered everyone in the pack house’s meeting room. Everyone except for Scarlett, wh
Scarlett’s POVMy breath stilled in my lungs. The world compressed around me. I never should have kept this from Enzo. Never.Because now he was looking at me like he didn’t know me, and my heart was being torn clean out of my chest. I couldn’t even move to hold the fractured pieces of it together; I was frozen to the spot in every way possible, save for the blood pounding loudly against my temples. “You – you asked him to come?” His voice was caught somewhere between a breath of disbelief and the same growl he’d spoken to Bennett in. “We talked about this, Scar. He could be working for Alpha Ryker!”“That’s a risk we have to take. What choice do we have otherwise? Do we just keep coming up with plans that may or may not work? Do we hide out here until Ryker comes for me again? At least this way, I’ll go down fighting–”“You shouldn’t be going down at all!”I stood up. My hands trembled, so I clenched them into fists at my sides. Fake blood dripped down my chest; suddenly angry, I g
Enzo’s POVScarlett wrinkled her nose as she waved a hand down at her bloodied front. “I’m going to have a shower. Then I guess we’d better call a meeting with him.”It was like before, I thought, like when she’d suggested an Omega show Bennett to one of our guest rooms. A double punch – she’d not only taken the lead and made that suggestion, but she’d said our guest rooms, too. Not mine. Not Moose Creek’s. Ours.I could feel my brow furrowing slightly, but I couldn’t seem to smooth my features out. I just kept staring at her, jarred. For a wolf without a wolf, who had been an Omega less than a year ago, Scarlett seemed to have a real knack for leadership. Hell, I hated that she’d called Bennett and not told me about it – but she’d taken charge and made a huge decision that would affect not only our pack, but wolves in all four of the Realms.Proud of her as I was, awed as I felt, it didn’t change the fact that she’d gone behind my back on this. Even if I didn’t fucking hate Bennett a
Scarlett’s POVI kept pacing, needing to move to be able to think clearly. “Okay, but if he does attack another Wolven Realm first,” I pointed out, “he’ll have a bigger army when he reaches the Canadian Realm. Right?”Bennett bit his lip before saying, “Yes.”“You’ve made it quite clear that you know what’s coming. You managed to leave messages everywhere for us to find; if you could manage that, you should be able to tell us, plainly, what we need to do.”He grinned. “There we go. It only took a few weeks.” He eyed me pointedly. “This was the best outcome, by the way. You always left me in Adelaide. Well – there were a couple of potential futures where you didn’t, but they ended… badly.”I huffed. “You wanted me to leave.” It wasn’t a question.“I did. Nobody can persuade anyone to do anything; you had to grow to trust yourself, and your powers, on your own.”Suddenly I was back in the alleyway, hearing the squeal of tyres straining to stop, the creak of footsteps inching down the tr