Chapter 2: Into the Shadows

*Seraphina*

“If you’re done with your laps, we still have business to discuss.”

I barely registered James’ labored breathing as he caught up down the block I’d run. I remained frozen, rooted to the spot for what felt like both an eternity and a split second as I watched them long after they disappeared inside the store. Neither Eric nor his new girlfriend seemed to notice me at all. It took me a few seconds to register that James was even beside me.

“Miss Lovelace, this can all be really simple. You’re an ex-convict. You have a criminal record now, and you didn’t obtain the degree you started. Your options are limited, and I strongly advise you to take this offer,” he said, once again pulling out the checkbook. “The only requirement is that you stay far away from Mr. Rutherford and never breathe a word of what happened between you two to anyone.”

“How could he do this to me?”

I hated the way my voice sounded —small, vulnerable, unsteady. I hated how I felt the same way. James breathed out a sigh again, as though he was about to expound some common sense that I should know without him having to tell me.

“Eric Rutherford is more than just your ex-boyfriend, Seraphina. He’s a business magnate, one who’s now at the head of a very promising corporate empire. And his fiancee is the daughter of an Alpha, an heiress.” He raised a hand toward the storefront as though pointing them out, even though they were long gone. As though they made all the sense in the world together, and what Eric and I had wasn’t even worth considering. “You can’t seriously expect him to choose a broke jailbird over his fated mate, can you?”

The words “fated mate” left a hollow feeling in the pit of my stomach, the feeling of bile searing up my throat, and for a second, I thought I was actually going to puke.

He’d told me once, years ago, that I was his mate and that it didn’t matter that the moon goddess didn’t recognize our bond. He’d told me that all that mattered was that we loved and cared for each other, that we’d be there for each other. That was why I’d been stupid enough to throw my life away along with my degree and internship. All because he told me it didn’t matter that I was nothing more than a business intern and student while he’d been my direct supervisor. No, what we had was special.

Or so the lie went.

Barbs began to form around the cracks in my heart, and I felt the urge to lash out.

“Hmm,” I said, anger brimming beneath the surface. “Interesting how it wasn’t his so-called ‘fated mate’ who had to go to prison for his crimes. I find that very interesting.”

James’ green eyes narrowed to slits. He grabbed my elbow.

“You seem to find too many things interesting. The deal is that you never so much as hint as to what’s happened, understand?” he hissed.

“Yeah, I understand. I understand that Eric is a coward who couldn’t face going to prison for something he did. And he fooled me into thinking he loved me just so I would take the fall for his embezzlement!” I spat.

James looked as though he was considering striking me but seemed to think better of it. But there was a flash of something dangerous in his eyes, a call of anger that could summon the beast within his bones and cause him to shift. It was something I’d witnessed so many times in prison alone. A call that always rings hollow within me, no matter the extent of my anger.

But in place of a wolf, all I had was my mouth and my ability to run the fine line between a bit of trouble and a lot of it without getting myself too hurt. And I wanted to make Eric feel even a shred of the pain he had put me through. If I didn’t own enough of his heart to do that myself, I suppose the next best thing was hurting what he loved most—his money.

“Now, I think we can try this again,” James said, running a hand through his still-perfectly styled hair. “I’ll ask you again, Miss Lovelace. How much would it take you to honor the deal?”

I didn’t have to think too hard this time. I knew just how important Eric’s reputation was to him —he’d been willing to pretend to be an entirely different person with me just to ensure it would remain intact. And I also know that I was the only person other than Eric and James to know the truth about the fraud Eric had committed, embezzling public funds to buy capital for his company.

It made sense now. He wanted to set himself up as a perfect candidate for the heiress he’d been planning on marrying. All while lying to me about how this would be a test of our love, a way of protecting both the company and our future. The rage I felt at myself made me restless, tempted to see how angry I could make him through James. I had nothing to lose after all, no home to go back to or career to protect. I had nothing at all.

“Five million,” I said, deadpan.

James stuttered, his eloquence lost for once. But when he managed to regain his composure, he looked more angry than I had seen him yet.

“You’re trying to extort us, are you?” he questioned, and the threat lacing his words was so blatant that it would’ve raised the hair on the back of my neck if I cared at all. “Listen here, sweetheart. I don’t expect you to know who I am, but I don’t have the kind of track record that you want to be part of. I don’t allow myself or my clients to be blackmailed.”

“I thought your client was willing to be generous with me,” I said airily, surprisingly not even the least bit afraid. “And I am the reason he’s walking free after all.”

“If you don’t comply within reason, then I can guarantee that you won’t like the alternative,” he said smoothly.

“I thought I only had one real option,” I said glibly.

His grip on my elbow tightened, and I bit my lip to keep from crying out.

“That was me being civil. I can assure you, there are lesser choices,” he said.

“Doesn’t sound like you’re giving me any,” I said, wrenching my arm free from him. He let me go, albeit reluctantly. “You can threaten me all you want. It’s five million or nothing.”

He looked like he wanted to say something else when his phone interrupted the conversation, and he answered it. Whatever conversation happened on the other end of the line seemed to put a lid on his simmering anger, and he eventually nodded as he hung up.

“I can see that we’re not going to come to any sort of agreement right now. I urge you to reconsider and find me when you change your mind,” he said, and even though, on paper, what he said should be neutral, it was clear that it was still a threat.

“Don’t bet on it,” I said before stalking off to nowhere in particular, leaving a seething James on the sidewalk.

I didn’t know where I was going. I didn’t really have anywhere to go. I had nothing on me, except the phone I’d been given back upon my release. It had been three years, and during my time at Star Lake Correctional, I hadn’t ever received a single visitor. Not even Eric.

With him, all I’d had were the odd phone calls here and there, and now I could only assume those were meant to placate. Keep my docile, walking in line. I felt so stupid. I didn’t even know who I could call because, for all that time locked up, Eric had been the only one on my mind. But it was worth a shot. I went through my old contact list, trying to think up who the safest bets would be.

I called them one by one, and one by one, they shut me down. I couldn’t blame them. Like James said, I was a broke jailbird, someone with no money or house to their name, who owned a criminal record but not even a degree. Very few people would want to be associated with someone like that.

I kept walking, going from block to block, hoping against hope that someone would be a good Samaritan and offer me a boon. Then my eyes snagged on a name I hadn’t seen in a long time, longer than my three-year stint.

Caroline.

She had been my best friend once, since way before I went to work for Eric. We’d practically grown up together in the Welfare Institution, both orphans and desperate for a family. And that was what we’d been to each other at one point in time —practically sisters. But I hadn’t even spoken to her since I got into college. I’d taken that friendship for granted, and if I couldn’t blame the others for not wanting to speak to me now, I definitely couldn’t blame Caroline for doing the same.

But I tried anyway because, once again, I had absolutely nothing to lose, not even my pride.

With a deep breath, I called her number. Time seemed to stand still, and even though I was not really expecting much, there was still a spike of nerves as the phone rang in my ear.

“Sera?”

At the sound of her voice, suddenly once again so familiar and nostalgic to me, tears pricked my eyes.

“Carrie?” I asked, the old nickname I had for her rolling off my tongue as though I’d never forgotten it.

***

As I trudged my way to the address Caroline had given me, every step I took felt a little lighter than the one before it. She’d been surprisingly kind to me, still as sweet as I remember. She knew I’d been to prison but not the reason as to why. Instead of judging me, she’d given me her address and offered me a place to stay. It took everything within me not to break down right there on the phone, but I’d managed to keep it together somewhat until she’d hung up.

But when I saw her waiting for me outside her apartment block, something in me immediately disarmed. When she saw me, she immediately rushed over, saying nothing but putting her arms around me, and that was when I caved in.

I cried silently, letting myself be held for the first time in three years.

I explained everything to her, and she listened, chipping in with nothing but a few choice words here and there for Eric.

“I can’t believe that bastard set you up like that,” she said, sounding indignant on my behalf. “Sera, you can stay here for as long as you need to get back on your feet.”

“I can’t expect that of you. You have no obligation to me, not after the way I just flaked on you after high school,” I said, still ashamed of myself.

She shook her head, putting a hand on my knee. “Don’t worry about that. We were friends at one point. It doesn’t matter what’s happened since then.”

“I’ll get a job,” I offered uselessly, knowing full well that it wouldn’t be that simple with my record and lack of qualifications. “I’ll contribute. I promise.”

She made sounds of agreement, but it was obvious we both knew that was much easier said than done. She got up, taking my empty cup of coffee with her back to the kitchen. “I’m still waitressing at The Crown. I’m not exactly a higher-up, but I could see what I can get you there.”

The effort warmed my heart. I remembered how Caroline always dreamed of opening her own restaurant one day. She had the talent for it, too. But I doubted whether an upper-class restaurant like The Crown would be okay with an ex-con working even as a janitor.

“I’d appreciate that,” I told her, meaning every word.

Unfortunately for me, my doubts came true. Three days later, The Crown was the first of several places to reject me based on my whereabouts for the past three years. On the fourth day, I was so exhausted from trying to scout out job openings, that I made my way back to Carrie’s in a daze.

I was trying hard not to feel discouraged when I noticed I was being tailed.

To ensure I was not being hyper-paranoid, I zigzagged my way through crowded areas, took elaborate detours, and tried to lose them as subtly as possible. But by the time I was forced to take an alleyway turn-off to get to the apartment, it became evident that the two men really were following me.

My senses went on high alert, suddenly focused on not visibly panicking while trying to think of any way to ensure I didn’t lead them back to my friend. As I wracked my brain for a solution, I spotted the backdoor of what must be a bar at the end of the alleyway. I quickened my step, noticing that the men did as well.

I prayed against the odds that the door was unlocked, and by the goddess, it was.

Thanking her in every language I knew, I slipped inside.