"Someone is following you," Elijah repeated with a stern expression on his face. "At first I thought it was Lucian—""Okay. But he's being weird," Ariah added. "Well, he's generally weird. But he told Hailey that—""Why did you think it was him?" I interrupted Ariah, not wanting her to tell Elijah what Luca had told me. "And why does it sound like you changed your mind?"Elijah's brows furrowed as he peered between me and Ariah. "What did he tell you?"Of course, he wasn't going to let this fly. I sighed. "He thinks you're up to something."Elijah released a snort. "Says him, of all people. He's up to something." I crossed my arms. "Yeah, I figured that much.""You need to be careful, Hails. Something's going on around school.""Like what?""I…" his voice trailed. The stern look morphed into concern. "I can't explain. But someone is watching you.""Who?" "I don't know.""How do you know someone is watching me?" I pressed.He placed a hand on each of my shoulders, moving closer. "I k
There’s nothing worse than getting stuck in detention on a Friday afternoon—especially if it wasn’t your fault. I twisted around in my seat to pin Luca Greene with a glare, promising all kinds of wrath on him. In exchange, he ruffled the obsidian rat nest on his head and grinned at me. The audacity! I bared my teeth and flipped him the bird. "Hailey Woods," Mrs. Whit barked. "You just earned yourself another Friday afternoon with me." I groaned and turned to face the front, catching a last glimpse of Luca's punch-me grin. I held on to either side of my wooden desk, mapped out in doodles. Most of them were my handiwork, such as cute animals and blossom designs etched in a ballpoint pen to pass the time. Tilting my head up, I offered the old woman a phony, sad look. A long chestnut curl fell into my face and tickled my nose. I blew it away, my facade giving way to a frown for a split second. With my fingers, I swept my hair back and resumed my misery act. With my large, honey brow
I found Mom in the kitchen slumped over the table, an empty bottle of whiskey in her hand. She kept mumbling to herself and stared glassy-eyed at the space in front of her. It was apparent she had more than just whiskey this time. A lump grew inside my throat, and I wondered how she would react to what I was about to tell her. That was if she even would react. I used to think my life was terrible. Uncaring parents, no friends, and I went day by day clinging to the hope that when I turned eighteen, I’d get to start a new, better life for myself, away from all this unfairness. It was all that kept me going. I clung firmly to my optimism, writing down my daily gratitude and convincing myself that there were people out there living off worse than I did. My perks were: I get to go to school. We had a roof over our heads, even if the atmosphere beneath it was dead as a graveyard. My parents never fought, even as broken as their relationship was. I had good grades. Good enough to get a s
Mom left me staring after her as she sped off in her car—alone on a paving spotted with old gum. I held a duffel in each hand, containing clothes, toiletries, and my most prized possessions. A photo album and a dolphin necklace my grandmother gave me before she died. I couldn’t believe Mom had done this to me. I reached down and withdrew the sunglasses from the side pocket of the duffel and perched it on my nose to hide my eyes. In a rushed attempt, I covered my face with a thick layer of foundation and powder in hopes of covering the worst of the veiny look. No doubt I looked like a ghost. I supposed it was better than people seeing me for what I really was. Fighting back the tears, I turned and began walking. The train station was dark and empty, except for an elderly man sitting by the ticket booth reading a newspaper below a flashlight. The coffee and souvenir shop was still open. Since I hadn’t had dinner yet, I headed for the coffee shop for some food. I ordered a hot dog an
“What’s your name?” I asked, stepping out from the motel’s lobby. “And how do I know you’re the real deal? Not some random guy who's trying to lead me into the woods and do something devious?” He reached for one of my duffel bags, taking the strap out of my hand and throwing it over his shoulder. “I’m Elijah. Elijah Ledger, but my friends and family call me Eli.” “Right. So, Elijah?” Elijah sighed, putting down the duffel beside his feet, and rolled up the sleeve of his navy shirt, revealing a geometric-like moon symbol with a print in the center that looked a lot like a wolf paw. “Happy?” A dark brow quirked. “Mine is a little different from everyone else’s marks, considering my dad is the alpha.” “Alpha, as in leader?” I enquired. “Yeah, pretty much.” “Not sure how this works, but he’s like a king to wolves?” Elija sputtered a laugh, shaking his head. “I guess you can say that.” “So.” I gave him a sideways look. “Why is the prince out looking for a peasant?” “I’m part of the
“Let go of me!” my voice bounced off the walls of the cavernous hallway. We were inside a cathedral-like building, where we appeared after wolf Elijah dragged me through the portal. When I turned to punch him, he was human again. Before my fist could land in his face, he grabbed hold of it. “You need to calm down.” “I told you I didn’t want to come here,” I shouted. “Take me back, now!” “So you could run in front of another truck?” “Anything is better than being here,” I cried out. “Please, just send me back. I won’t be a problem, just—” There was a long whistle and then laughter. “Another pup, Eli?” I turned to pin a mean glare at the boy who said it. Holy, living crap. He was a giant of a person. He towered double my size over me, peering down at us with an amused expression. “Let me guess, you got this one from the suburbs?” the boy asked. “A motel,” Elijah sighed. “It’s not what you think.” “Forgot to use your enchantment?” the boy smirked. “I did use it on her. She someh
“I still don’t understand how she could favor me.” I sat down on a comfy chair across from Mrs. Humphrey. “There’s literally nothing special about me. I suck at school. I never had friends...Luca marked me and now everyone thinks—” I paused, remembering where I was and in whose company I was in. I doubt they’d appreciate me referring to them as freaks. I peered at Elijah before my gaze settled back on Mrs. Humphrey. Elijah seemed decent. I have yet to decide how I felt about the high priestess. “People back home aren’t exactly fond of werewolves. Everyone used to tell me scary stories about your people.” Mrs. Humphrey sat forward in her seat. “Your people?” She arched her brow. “You mean, our people? You’re one of us, now, dear.” I breathed out a long sigh. “It all feels so surreal.” “I understand. I’ve been there myself.” She waved a hand toward Elijah. “Unlike him, who was born into this world, I was just like you. I grew up in a nice little neighborhood with very religious paren
“This is your room.” June turned her back to the cherry-red door decorated with postcards from across the world. A few faux sunflowers were stuck haphazardly in between. “You’ll be sharing it with another girl. Ariah Winter. I think you should get along quite well. She’s a bit shy, but a sweet girl, non-the-less.” I nodded, stepping toward the door. “I see you only brought this.” June pointed at my two duffel bags. “We have a store room filled with second-hand goodies for those who come over empty handed. You know, not everyone’s parent’s, especially those coming from human ones, are exactly keen on helping their young ones settle in and make their stay as comfortable as possible.” “Yeah, well…” What could I say? I was still having a hard time processing the fact that my mom did this to me. I wondered how Dad was going to react. I shook the thought from my head—not that he cared, anyway. “The point is.” June rested a hand on my arm. “You’re welcome to visit me and take a few things