And just like that, Abby was gone.

FOURTEEN

Abby

“Lucas, you have to change his mind,” I said, as my brother’s truck sped down the highway toward Lexington. “Jace will listen to you.”

Lucas snorted. “No he won’t. Thanks to you, I’m on his shit-list too.” He glanced to the west, where the sun hung low on the horizon, half covered by dark clouds. The forecast called for snow, but I knew he was hoping for rain instead, because we weren’t good winter-weather drivers. We hadn’t had much practice in South Carolina. “What the hell were you thinking, Abby? You swore an oath! You can’t go around disobeying orders and questioning your Alpha’s authority just because you’re—”

“Don’t do that!” I snapped, slamming one hand down on his dashboard. “Do not assume that everything I do or say is because I’m some fragile kitten suffering from post-traumatic stress. I knew exactly what I was doing with Hargrove.”

I’d hoped to avoid killing him in front of Jace, to keep him as uninvolved as possible, and I’d kind of lost it for a minute when the whole thing sank in. But other than that, I’d been in control. Doing what had to be done, even if none of the rest of them understood that. And it hadn’t escaped my notice that everyone was upset about the fact that I’d killed Hargrove, but not about the fact that he was dead.

Lucas glanced at me with one brow raised. “I was actually going to say, ‘You can’t go around questioning your Alpha’s authority just because you’re sleeping with him.’ Which is really weird for me, by the way. It’s my brotherly duty to pound him into the ground, but I swore an oath to respect and obey him.”

“Have you ever noticed that the enforcer’s oath reads like an archaic marriage vow?” I said. Lucas glared at me and I shrugged. “Okay. Not the point. I’ll try to think about your comfort level the next time I decide to assert my sexual independence.”

“That’s all I’m asking. Except maybe that you never again use the phrase ‘sexual independence’ in front of your brother.”

The truth was that I didn’t want there to be a next time. I couldn’t imagine wanting anyone other than Jace to touch me. Ever. But things weren’t looking good for us, considering he was having me forcibly escorted from the territory the very day after we’d gotten together.

How to lose an Alpha in eighteen hours. My life was a romantic comedy waiting to happen.

Minus the romance.

“So, wait. What do you mean, you knew what you were doing with Hargrove?” Lucas gave me a skeptical glance as he mentally replayed my outburst. “You’re saying you intended to be covered in blood, on your way to the airport to comply with your own exile?”

“Well, no.” I sank back against my seat with a frown. “I only meant to get fired. I had no idea Jace would try to get rid of me entirely.”

“It’s not like you gave him any choice.” Lucas glanced at me with his copper-colored brows furrowed. “Please tell me you didn’t kill Hargrove just to get out of being an enforcer?”

“No! I killed him because he was a bad guy. He was part of the sick hunting club that mounted Leo’s head, slaughtered three of my friends, and would have killed my roommate if I hadn’t gotten to her in time. My only regret about Hargrove’s death is that it was quicker and easier than he deserved.”

“It was also completely unauthorized, but you could have played the PTSD card to keep your job. Or at least keep Jace in your corner. Why did you get yourself fired?”

“Because unlike some of my larger, more brutish coworkers, a girl my size has to be able to think on her feet.” To get herself hired, when having a job will get her where she needs to go, then get herself fired, when losing that job will free her up to go where she’s truly needed.

Only that last part hadn’t worked out so well.

“I don’t even know what that means. What’s going on, Abby?”

“Nothing.”

“You’re a terrible liar.”

“Then you’ll just have to respect my intent.” I twisted on the bench seat to face him, tugging at the shoulder strap of my seatbelt. “Lucas, I need a favor.”

“No.” His grip on the steering wheel tightened, and the plastic creaked beneath the added stress.

“You don’t even know what I—”

“I know you want to stay here, but Jace is right. You need to go home and let Dad work on your defense. They’re going to bring you up on charges, Abby. Do you even know how serious that is?”

“Of course I know!” The only thing keeping that understanding from reducing me to a puddle of tears and panic was the more urgent terror Hargrove had driven deep into me right before he’d died.

The charges that would be leveled against me were inevitable, but the Darren problem…that couldn’t wait.

“I’ll do or say whatever Dad says I should.” The scent of Hargrove’s drying blood was a constant reminder of how soon I’d have to face the consequences of a crime I’d had no choice but to commit. “I’m not trying to make this worse. I just… I need to be here right now.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Lucas’s foot got heavier, and I wondered if accelerator aggression was a trait all toms shared. “I feel like my little sister went to college and a hellcat came back in her place.”

He was very nearly right. Only, college hadn’t been the trigger.

“I don’t expect you to understand.” Because I couldn’t explain it to him. “But I really am trying to do the right thing.”

“Good.” Lucas put his right blinker on and swerved onto the off ramp, where a sign advertised food, fuel, and an outlet mall full of discount stores.

I recognized the mall. We were only a few miles from campus and less than half an hour from the airport. My time was running out, and the sun wasn’t sinking fast enough.

Lucas pulled into a parking spot near the back of the outlet mall’s parking lot. This close to Christmas, most of the lot was full, even with storm clouds rolling in. “Now you’re going to stay in the car, and I’m going to get you some clean clothes.” Because he could take off his blood-smeared jacket to look presentable, but I was splattered all the way down to my white boots. Which, Lucas had informed me, was why enforcers typically wore all black. “You still wear the same sizes?” he asked, and I nodded. In spite of summers spent training with Faythe, I hadn’t put on much muscle, and I hadn’t gained even an inch in height since high school. “Any requests?”