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Chapter 1
Willow
Run! Fucking run, Willow!
Move your fluffy ass!
I push harder, huffing up the ramp on the Brooklyn side of the Manhattan Bridge at something slightly faster than a jog, my lungs full of razorblades, wishing I could shift. But the scent of my wolf would draw the wrong kind of attention in this rough part of town.
A woman out for a jog at least has a shot at being ignored.
Silently, I vow that if I live through the night, I’ll get serious about exercising both sides of myself.
I’ll jog in my human form every morning and bike around the neighborhood every afternoon. And I’ll start shifting and running in the park with my dad on weekends.
We’ve both gained the Shit List Fifteen, a common occurrence in wolves on the outs with the Blood River pack Alpha. Wolves on the Shit List don’t get invited to wild woodland parties or Friday night dances or included in other calorie-burning pack events.
Shit List wolves are encouraged to stay in their homes, where they won’t be seen or heard, and think about what they’ve done and how fast they can make amends to the leader who literally holds their lives in his hands.
Victor Darius almost killed my father after my sister ran away. In the end, he settled for beating Dad to a bloody pulp and blacklisting him, ensuring no one in The Parallel would even think about retaining his services.
Dad hasn’t worked as a defense attorney in eight years.
All that schooling, all that passion for justice, all the good he could have done for his clients was flushed down the drain, all because my sister rejected her mate after their claiming ceremony.
Collum Darius was a violent, sadistic asshole, but he was also the Alpha’s nephew. No one rejects a member of Victor’s family and lives to tell about it. If Kelley hadn’t run as far and as fast as she did, Victor would have murdered my sister.
If she ever dares to come home, she’s a dead woman.
And now…so am I.
And that’s when I remember that I won’t ever shift with my dad again. I won’t ever hug my mom or tease them about how grossly in love they still are or sit on the couch with them on a rainy Saturday afternoon, watching old movies and dreaming about brighter days.
There won’t be any brighter days.
Not for our family.
My parents are already on a train to St. Louis and the misfit pack there, where they’ll spend the rest of their lives watching their backs, hoping Victor doesn’t try too hard to find them. And I’m on my way to the only person who might give me refuge and deign to save my life.
For a price…
Probably a terrible one.
Maxim Thorn isn’t known for doing favors for free. He isn’t known for having a heart, at all, but I have to try to convince him I’m worth saving. I couldn’t go with my parents. If I had, Victor absolutely would have tracked us all down and slit our throats himself.
He’s going to be insane when he realizes what I’ve done.
If I don’t get out of The Parallel soon, I won’t be leaving it at all. Ever. Not in one piece. Victor will rip me apart with his bare hands, slowly and meticulously, so I have plenty of time to reflect on my poor decision-making skills.
My throat tightens, but I’m panting too hard to start crying again.
Which is good. I don’t have time to cry. I have to get to Human Side before one of the Alpha’s servants goes to check on my Almost Mate and realizes Pax is tied up in his massive closet, bleeding from a head wound.
At least, I hope he’s still bleeding…
Pax deserves to bleed after the things he’s done.
Pax Darius is the Alpha’s son, the man that the moon and the stars in their infinite cosmic wisdom decreed was destined to be my mate.
