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Chapter Five
Willow
At the garbage truck’s third stop, Diana slides out of our hiding place and motions for me to follow. I scoot to the edge of the shelf and hop down, my legs shaky now that the initial adrenaline rush has begun to fade.
As we sneak out from under the truck and past the turned backs of the garbage workers busy hooking the vehicle’s claw to a large bin in front of a scaffolded building, I’m suddenly feeling every one of the hours of sleep I missed last night.
But this isn’t the time to rest or let down our guard.
Half a block from the truck, I nod toward an alley beside a convenience store with bushels of brightly colored fall vegetables arranged out front. “We should change our appearance, make sure we look different than when we left the tower. I have extra clothes and hats in my backpack.”
Diana glances around the street, then nods. “Okay, sounds good, but I think we’re okay. At least for now. Even if they’ve tracked my phone already, they’ll be barking up the wrong tree.”
“What do you mean?” I ask as we move into the shadows of the alley and step behind a stack of wooden pallets for cover from the street.
“I tossed my cell into the truck headed uptown,” Diana says as she tugs off her red track jacket and reverses it, revealing plain black on the other side. “Maxim’s always giving me shit about being addicted to my phone. He won’t suspect I’ve chucked it until he’s holding it in his hand.”
“Clever,” I say as I exchange my pink cardigan for a dark jean jacket and wrap a gray scarf around my neck.
“I’m pretty good at sneaking around,” she says with a grin. She toes off her sneakers, quickly dragging down her pants and reversing them to the black side, as well, before slipping her shoes back on. “It’s one of my top three most marketable skills.”
I arch a brow. “Marketable, huh? Are you planning to be a spy when you grow up?”
“Maybe,” she says. “Or an art thief. I was addicted to heist movies when I was a kid, Maxim and I used to…” She trails off, the light fading from her eyes. “Whatever. Doesn’t matter. The Maxim I knew when I was a kid doesn’t live here anymore.”
I give her shoulder a gentle squeeze. “He’s still in there somewhere. And hopefully he’ll come back to you someday.”
Her forehead furrows as she shoots me an incredulous look. “How can you say that? How can you defend him, after what he did to you?”
“He did a bad thing,” I say, my chest going tight as all my conflicting emotions begin to swirl inside me again. “But he’s not all bad. Not many people are.”
“But…” She swallows, her throat working before she adds in a softer voice, “He basically raped you, Willow.”
I exhale with a shake of my head. “I told you, Diana, I… I don’t feel that way about it. I wanted to be with him. A lot.”
“But without the drugs you would have said no,” she maintains.
“Yes. Probably. But…maybe not,” I say, hurrying on when her frown deepens. “I’m not excusing what he did. I’m mad as hell and feel deeply, deeply betrayed. But I can’t say for sure what would have happened without the powder in my wine.” I sigh. “He’s my fated mate. I’m insanely drawn to him—was insanely drawn to him—and it’s just…” I flap my hands at my side. “It’s complicated.”
She crosses her arms over her chest. “But is it? Really?”
I sigh again and reach into my pack for a slouchy knit cap, holding it out to her. “Have a hat. And tuck your hair into the back of your jacket. It’s your most distinctive feature.”
She accepts the hat and plunks it down on her head, looking effortlessly beautiful, as always. “Fine, but I want to talk more about this later.” She stuffs her hair down her jacket and turns the collar up. “I wasn’t being flip. That was a serious question. A lot of the time, things seem pretty black and white to me. But I know they’re not. I know life and right and wrong and all that stuff gets more confusing as you get older.”
My lips curve up on one side. “You’re wise beyond your years, kid.”
She shrugs self-consciously. “I try to be. As the third child and a girl, I know most people think I shouldn’t worry about being called to lead, but I’ve always wanted to be ready. Just in case. I would never want anything to happen to Maxim, of course, even now, but…” She casts a wary glance toward the entrance to the alley. “Well, even Human Side, things can get violent on the streets for shifters. It’s not crazy to think Maxim might get caught in the crossfire someday and then I’ll have to step up.”
The thought is sobering.
And frightening.
I don’t want anything to happen to Maxim, either. That’s why I threatened him and accused him of being the Shadow King even though I have no proof that anything close to that is true.
My pack gift had nothing to say about Maxim’s part in the prophecy.
It hasn’t been very forthcoming about how this war for the crown shakes out, at all, but I know the next big decision—whatever that is—is mine to make. I have to decide what comes next for me and any child I might be carrying. My glowing eyes in the mirror early this morning left no doubt about that.
