“You know you’re playing with fire.”

Nikki’s words, spoken in that singsong voice she’d adopted, hit me like a bolt of lightning, cutting through my fog of sleep. I woke in a cold sweat, tangled in the bedsheets. Nikki stood at the end of my bed. I sat bolt upright and pulled the covers to my chin as if they could shield me from whatever would come next.

“Are you awake?” I asked her. She didn’t seem completely there. Of course, she hadn’t been completely there since the moment she’d gone off...or was taken off...by Joel. “Nikki!”

She jerked her head. My words cut through her consciousness too. For the briefest instant, she dropped the dazed look in her eyes.

“Nikki!” Shouting, I tore out of bed and went to her. I put firm hands on her shoulders and shook her. “Nikki, look at me.”

Her eyes grew wide and her mouth formed a thin, bloodless line. She was scared. Terrified. I slid my hand to the back of her neck. Her mark had healed, but I could still feel the leathery outline of her scar. One second, her skin was cool beneath my fingers, the next, it blazed hot, as if fevered. Nikki pulled away from me. Shaking her head no, she opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

Tears filled Nikki’s eyes. “You’re asking too many questions. You shouldn’t. You should just do what they want. It’ll be okay.”

A soft but insistent knock at the door drew her attention away. When Nikki turned back to me, her eyes had glazed over again and her peaceful smile returned. “It really will be okay,” she said.

Before I could stop her, she turned and went to the door. I wanted to stop her. There was no time. It wouldn’t have mattered anyway. Nikki’s broad smile might have been comforting as she swung the door wide and let Deputy Chris Woods cross our threshold. Behind him Trey Summers stood like a sentry in the hallway.

Pain. Revulsion. Cold panic set in as he smiled and put a light hand on Nikki’s arm. He whispered something to her. Nikki nodded and stepped around him, heading out into the hall with Trey. I backed up into my room, as if that made any difference. I wanted to throw up. Trey had been sent to deal with Nikki. Chris was here for me.

Mac. God. I don’t know how I knew it, but he was near. Maybe not on campus, but surely in the surrounding woods. Could he sense my fear already? Would he come running? I knew with chilly clarity that he’d never make it out alive if he did. I had to stay calm. I had to keep Chris from touching me. Something Mac said gave me hope. He’d said Chris wouldn’t be able to mark me unless the Alpha sanctioned it. As far as he could sense, the Alpha wasn’t anywhere near Birch Haven now.

“I’m sleeping,” I said. Glancing at my phone screen on my desk, I read the time. It was five o’clock in the morning. Still mostly dark outside, the horizon had gone from pitch black to deep purple with pink bands of light. Dawn was no more than an hour away. “This isn’t a good time.”

Chris smiled and crossed the room. He was cautious though, keeping at least a foot between us.

Should I lie? Should I keep up the pretense that I didn’t know exactly who he was and what he wanted? In the end, I decided there was no point. To try and keep the lie of Mac’s existence, I would tell the truths I could.

“You can’t touch me,” I said. “Not yet. You don’t have permission from the Alpha.”

Chris’s eyes widened with surprise and he dropped the smile. “So you have been asking questions. Sounds like the wrong ones though.”

“I don’t have to ask. I heard you talking with Joel. I’ve seen the mark on Nikki and I know what it does to her. And I know you aren’t next in line for someone like me.”

Provoking him was a risk. I knew nothing about real Pack politics. I hedged my bets that if Chris touched me out of anger… damaged me...it wouldn’t help his case with his Alpha.

I guessed right. Though Chris’s fists clenched, he kept them firmly at his sides. His wolf eyes glinted gold and sinister. “I think I like you even more now,” he said. “You’ll be a challenge. But, I think I’m up to the task to bring you to heel.”

“You’ve said your piece. Now leave. I’m not going to do anything with you willingly, and you don’t have the go ahead to take this any further. There’s no point in talking anymore. Go.”

I miscalculated. Chris moved so fast I didn’t even see it. The next thing I knew, he had me up against the wall. Pressing his palms flat on either side of my shoulders, he caged me there without even touching me. His hot breath blew against my cheek and his fangs gleamed white and sharp.

“You need to see something,” he said. “You’re right. I won’t touch you. Not tonight. But there’s someone I think you should meet.”

“I’ll pass,” I said, lifting my chin in defiance. I would not show this man weakness, no matter what. “I’m not interested.”

“There was another one like you not so very long ago. You two should talk. She was meant for a friend of mine. I think you already know her. You were rooting around in the library a few days ago. Did you think someone wouldn’t figure it out?”

My heart raced. Sweat trickled down my back. I thought I’d been so careful.

“Lena Morris?” he asked. “Is that who you were looking for? Well, you’re in luck. Do you want to see her?”

Was this happening? I felt like I was in a dream. A nightmare. How had I ever thought for one second I’d be able to get away with anything behind the walls of Birch Haven? Chris read something on my face. His own smile deepened and he finally stepped away from me. He took a casual seat on my bed. That felt as much a violation as if he’d touched me. I wasn’t safe. As long as I was here, he could get to me anywhere.

Chris reached into his back pocket and pulled out his cell phone. He was in full uniform, his campus police badge gleaming in the dim light. His legs looked big as tree trunks filling out the black fatigues he wore tucked into steel-tipped military-style boots. He had a taser in his belt instead of a gun. I suppose that should have made me feel more comfortable. Except he didn’t even need that. He had shifter strength. I was no match for him.

Defenseless. Is that what all the girls of Birch Haven were? April’s pleading eyes haunted me as I closed mine and took a deep, steeling breath. Had she betrayed me? Deep down, I didn’t believe it. It had been my own carelessness that brought Chris Woods to my door this morning.

Chris spoke into the phone, his voice dropping low and guttural. I couldn’t make out what he was saying. I kept my back pressed against the wall, my arms crossed in front of me. Satisfied with whatever answer he got on the other end of that phone, he pulled it away from his ear and tapped the screen. His smile broadened and he stood up, coming toward me again.

This time, he made no move to touch me. Instead, he turned his phone, pointing the screen at me. I had a childish urge to close my eyes. It would be a way to take power away from him. At the same time, I knew I had to see. I think I knew in my gut what he was about to show me.

Lena.

I’d only seen the one grainy photograph of her. Still, she looked enough like her brother that I recognized her instantly. Except, this was no photograph. I was looking at what was presumably a live feed. She looked like she was in a prison cell, with gray cement walls, a bed stripped bare in one corner. Lena sat in the corner of the room on the floor, her knees drawn up.

She was in white drawstring pants and a plain black tee-shirt. Her auburn hair hung in unkempt strings around her face, but she was looking straight at the camera. It was probably mounted high in the corner of the room.

“Bring it closer,” Chris said into the phone. Then, he handed it to me.

My fingers trembling, I took it from him. Lena Morris was gaunt, frail. I could only guess what she looked like in real life before, but this woman didn’t appear to weigh more than ninety pounds. She bore a webbing of silvery-white scars over both arms. As she lifted her chin, her hair fell out of her eyes. Another scar cut a cruel path through her right eyebrow all the way down to her cheek.

She fought.

April’s words rang through me. There was someone in the room with her, though I couldn’t see him. Lena tried to make herself as small as possible, her eyes following her unseen captor. Then, Chris took the phone away and hung up.

“What happened to her?” I asked.

“She’s a sick, sick woman,” he said. “Crazy, they say. I want to keep that from happening to you, Eve. You think I’m your enemy. I’m not. I’m the only one who can save you from losing your mind. I know it’s a lot to take in at once. That’s why I’m giving you time to get used to the idea. But, once the Alpha approves our match, you’ll be so happy. I promise.”

“Happy? You mean brainwashed, like Nikki.” I kept my arms hugged around me. I wasn’t sure what I’d do if Chris tried to get closer.

She fought.

God, Lena. Even as wrecked as she was, I swore I could still see some of the fire in her eyes. She wasn’t crazy. She wasn’t sick. She was holding on for dear life. I had to get to Mac. He had to know. We had to figure out a way to help her.

“You’ve listened to too many wild stories.” Chris laughed. He mustered a smile that I think he meant as kindly. I wanted to throw up. I was safe though. I knew it. If he’d wanted to hurt me, he’d have done it by now. Mac was right. Chris couldn’t make a move without permission from the Alpha. As long as he stayed away, I had time.

He did touch me then. Chris lifted his index finger and traced a line along my jaw. I recoiled but held my ground. Where Mac’s touch brought heat and desire, Chris’s was cold, jarring. My very nature repelled his. Chris’s eyes narrowed and he froze. Oh, God. He sensed something. I prayed it wasn’t Mac. Because I could sense him. I don’t know how I knew, but if I closed my eyes, I swore I could feel him moving fast along the perimeter of the town. He was pacing like a caged animal. It was me, he was sensing me. I kept Chris’s focus and willed my heart to beat slower. Instinct told me if Mac thought I was in real danger, he’d risk his own life for mine.

“Maybe you’re right. Maybe I have,” I said. “But, you’ve said what you came here to say. Now, go. For the time being, I’m not Nikki. And you have no right to me. It’s not up to you to decide. Something tells me you’re not even supposed to be here now, are you? You’re crossing a line.”

Chris’s wolf eyes glinted gold. I’d guessed right and called his bluff. He straightened and slid his phone back in his pocket. “Just be careful,” he said. “You never know who you can trust around here.” He shot me a wicked wink. Quick as a shot, he leaned in and kissed my cheek. It felt like a slap. Then, he turned and walked out of the room.

As soon as the door closed, I sank slowly to the floor, hugging my knees much like I’d seen Lena do. Lena. I couldn’t be like her. I couldn’t be like Nikki. There had to be another way.