Margot and I got together every weekend, sometimes at her house and sometimes at mine. The crew had met her and they all liked her and she became part of our circle without any effort. Our kids played together and we’d sneak off to some corner and a few times we really had to act quickly.We had rules for this friends with benefits situation that we found ourselves in. Weekends we were together, sometimes sleeping over but during the week we focused on our jobs and our kids. We weren’t dating other people and we weren’t dating each other either, not really.I had turned twenty-six and Christmas was around the corner. Every year we had Christmas together at my house with Chandra, Lauren, Billy and Joey. We exchanged gifts, ate our fill and drank wine. It was usually a peaceful day but this year we’d include Margot and her son, Robbie.It was Saturday afternoon and I lay on Margot’s couch and watched some movie portraying the life of Vikings. The violence didn’t bother me but Margot loo

I pulled open the front door just as Chandra reached to open it. She narrowed her eyes at me and in that moment it didn’t bother me. I was the old Wynter now, the one that never got hurt. I walked past her to the sidewalk and grabbed the dustbin that I hadn’t brought in from the street the previous day.“You are full of secrets Wynter Grey.”“I take it she told you.”Chandra and I stood in the driveway, facing each other, knowing she’d ask but not sure if I’d answer. “You could have confided in me, you know.”“What would’ve been the point?”“Why did you want them to think you were dead?” Her eyes searched mine but found nothing and that both shocked and scared Chandra.“I didn’t. I changed my name to get away from Romania and everything that was expected of me there. I didn’t know they thought I was dead.”“And Alexis? You love her right?”“Loved. I don’t anymore.” I didn’t want to have this conversation with her but the truth was, she was my best friend and she deserved answers to he

Ally made herself comfortable in my house, like really comfortable. I didn’t talk to her about sleeping next to me since Echo said there really wasn’t anywhere else for her to sleep and he ignored me when I pointedly looked at the other couch.Milo went with me on the weekly grocery run and it felt like old times again. Milo and I hadn’t talked about that fight and I wasn’t going to bring it up either. We’d both suffered enough and there was no reason to relive the past.“Put that back.” I glared at Milo as he held the offending object in his hand.“You don’t have one, therefor you need one.”“I don’t need a purple apron.”“Well maybe since you knocked up my sister, she can wear it.”“You knocked up my sister too Milo.”“True.” He grinned at me and placed the apron in the trolley as I shook my head and walked away from him.We finished our shopping and loaded everything into the SUV as Milo kept glancing at me. I ignored his looks all the way to the house as I parked and started unloa

Six hours later, Maxim and I walked through the front door of my house where Ryder paced up and down speaking on the phone. “I want the spell lifted Marlo! And let me know the moment you have a location on her.”“Dad, what happened?”Ryder turned to look at me as fury swirled in his eyes. “She’s gone Wynter, that’s what happened. Disappeared from her bed in the dead of night. Chandra’s shield was broken and we found Milo outside near the river with a broken neck.”“She’s gone?” Maxim had paled and his bag fell to the floor.“You brought their King here?”“Dad, we know who has her. Marcel took her …”“We need people, trackers, warriors, hackers. He’ll have her out of the country before nightfall.”“My men are an hour behind us. I have all of that. Marcel was banished to Guatemala, he’ll have a stronghold there. This is an open declaration of war and it won’t go unpunished. Wynter do you still have contacts inside the Unit?”“Yes. I’ll call Clark, he can gather intelligence for us.”“I’

I must have somehow missed Shae’s scent, probably smothered out by the scents of the vampires around her. His chambers were located on the ground floor in the corner opposite the basement. The ten wolves followed me up the stairs and the tingling feeling spreading from my scalp down my back had me turning around to them.“Open the gates. Now.”They dispersed and I could feel Abeloth reaching out to Echo. They were close but I had no time to think about how they’d gotten here so quickly. It was just past two am meaning they’d had to leave minutes after I’d left.I could feel their presence but I had no choice but to go forward and find Shae. My cover was blown in any way but Marcel had underestimated me, I’d already killed almost thirty of his men in the space of an hour.I encountered five more vampires and one managed to swipe across my throat as we fought and I broke his neck before ripping his throat out. My wound closed as I held my breath and the blood dried as I ran shoulder fir