5

Someone who had the POA in my name.

“Don’t kill the messenger.” Mattox rocked on his heels as I put the suitcase on the ground.

I opened the back of my Jeep with the key fob, groaning when I saw her suitcases already loaded in the trunk and taking up most of the space. “Fallon, we talked about this.”

My sister rolled her head back on the reclined seat to look at me as the overhead lights flicked on. Her bored expression told me exactly how this conversation would go. “You talked. I didn’t listen.”

I turned to growl at Mattox.

He put his hands in the air. “You can blame the rest of the pack. They’re worried. If you aren’t taking a team with you, at least take Fallon.”

“See? We voted.” The power seat hummed as she pressed the button, slowly moving it into the upright position. My annoying little sister checked her reflection in the visor mirror. “Let’s hit the road. We don’t want to be late for our debut on Mating Season.”

5

Aspen

My papa left the house before the sun came up, leaving a half pan of biscuits on the counter and a plate of cold bacon in the oven. His way of showing support for my impending doom even though he should have been home resting.

I couldn’t find it in me to be frustrated.

I stared blankly at the wall as I ate, still in shock from the turn of events. A part of me wanted to believe it was a bad dream and go back to bed, but I didn’t have time for that. Sunday was tomorrow. Today was my day off. I got ready and headed to work anyway.

Anxiety was still gnawing at my gut, sloshing around with my half-eaten breakfast, as I plastered a smile on my face and went through employee security at the prison. It was a strange morning. The guards seemed to be going out of their way to smile at me which was making the anxiety worse.

“No bag today?” Evan asked as I stepped through the scanner.

I’d been working here for two years and I never brought a bag because my wallet and keys fit in my pocket. It was less stuff I had to stow in the locker.

“No…” I said slowly.

“Oh, that’s right.” He nodded like this wasn’t the first time he’d spoken more than two words to me. “You eat lunch in the cafeteria. If you want to eat with us today, I’ve got an extra sandwich.”

Strange.

Very strange.

I took my keys from the bin, still smiling awkwardly. Was this how my life was going to be now? None of the guards bothered me since I was so low-ranking and I liked it that way. It was easier to blend into the background. Easier to plan my escape.

Was I some sort of celebrity?

I hadn’t stepped foot on the show and people were already looking at me differently. Maybe there would be perks to it though. Evan had offered me a free sandwich.

If it smells like him, I wouldn’t eat it. My wolf sniffed as I hurried past the guards and made my way down the hall.

I felt like I was walking through a fog, trying to maintain a sense of normality. I needed information. Fast. So I could feel more in control.

Thankfully, I had my own personal informant who just happened to be an inmate here and one of the coolest chicks I’d ever met.

*

Clara Klevean, convicted of second-degree murder, was already in the library. She wore the orange scrubs of a trustee which in her words ‘clashed horribly with her freckles and bright red hair.’ Clara was a petite little thing who barely came up to my shoulder when she was standing.

She was never standing.

The coyote shifter sat on top of the table near my locked office with her legs crossed under her, filling out the book logs for the return bin. She was alone, like usual. We didn’t have many females in this prison and coyotes mostly hunted solo or in small packs anyway. Which made her case of self-defense for killing her asshole human boyfriend that much harder to prove.

Shifters got the short end of the stick in human courts and coyotes weren’t exactly top of the food chain. Without money or pack leadership to back her defense, she was stuck here for at least twenty years unless she could get a review board to hear her appeal. One day, I planned to help her get out of here too.

“I was hoping you’d be here today.” I moved the rolling cart of returned books out of the way.

“Where else would I be?” Clara beamed a smile full of shiny white teeth in my direction.

“Fair point.” I took a seat on the chair beside the table that was bolted to the floor. “I need your help.”

“Who do we need to kill?” She spun around on her bottom so we were facing each other.

I looked at her orange jumpsuit pointedly. “Maybe not the best response if you want a chance at parole.”

“Unlike you, I will never leave this hell.” She pouted. “So, we’re not killing anyone?”

“I mean, unless I can fake my own death.” My eyes widened. “Wait. That’s a good idea. Can we do that?”

“My innocent wolf friend.” Clara flashed a smile again. “Of course we can fake your death. But why do you want to die?”

“Mating Season,” I groaned.

She took a deep breath like she always did when she started to– “That’s in like a month and a half. Why are you stressing out? Your wolf has held out this long. She’s not going to change her mind now. Unless. Is there someone new? How hot is he? He’s a wolf shifter I’m assuming. Yum, I like those bigger knots. Tell me all the dirty details and help a girl out. My spank bank is getting low.”

“Like you actually spank it? How does that… Never mind.” I shook my head to clear the image from my brain as she returned to her normal level of oxygen again. “No, I mean Mating Season. Capitalized. I need to know what I’m getting into.”

*