earlier with “on it” and an emoji as the content. No doubt being vague in case either of our phones fell into the wrong hands.
Torin left me in the pack house, which had been empty for most of the day but was now filled with enforcers, who were no doubt here to keep track of me. This new development would make it a touch harder to escape, but I had a lot of experience slipping in and out of this place, and I knew some exits that I was fairly certain none of these meatheads would be aware of. It would be fine, as long as Simone sent the location to me ASAP.
A few minutes before 8:00 p.m., my phone buzzed in my pocket. I wasn’t alone, so I didn’t even react. Instead, I spent another five minutes chatting to everyone who had greeted me like I was a long-lost valued member of this pack. Not the one they’d all tried to break at one point or another.
Luckily, I was an excellent actor because none of my hatred for them made an appearance.
With a phone burning in my pocket, I eventually yawned my way to bed. When I’d said I wanted to go to Torin’s room, I got satisfied grins from some of his sycophants. Easy to see who was on Team Torin. Unfortunately for him, I was on Team Mera, and I’d be doing whatever the fuck was best for me. Gotta love yourselves first, ladies.
Three shifters escorted me to his room, and I noted that almost all of them were male. This wasn’t how it usually worked—females were just as tough as the men and often had positions in security, but Torin was clearly rocking the dick club during his reign.
Probably something Sisily had insisted on. Except… she was MIA, just like Dannie. Some serious shit had gone down in my absence, and I was going to have to work overtime to catch up on all the news.
As soon as I was safely secured in Torin’s room, I ripped the phone out to find four words from Simone. School. Theater. Fifteen minutes. Right, well that was going to take me at least fifteen minutes to sprint to in human form, but if I went as a wolf, I’d get there in half the time.
As I started to plan, I sent a return text to Simone. Be there in ten. Distraction first.
Her reply was instant. Distraction forthcoming.
I paused. Well, that would make this even easier if I didn’t have to figure out both steps of my plan. Simone had more than a few little tricks in her fur, so I’d let her have the shot first.
To prepare, I searched through Torin’s room, finding a small backpack that I used to hold a set of clothing, making sure it was zipped up tight—wolves struggled with zippers. By the time I was prepped, Simone had come through with a distraction, the perimeter alarms blaring in the distance. I knew how the enforcers worked, though, so first I crawled into bed, fully dressed as I pretended to be half-asleep. The door slammed open, and I jerked upright, blinking as I rubbed my eyes against the light. “What’s happening?” I cried, clutching the sheets to my chest, just like a damsel in distress.
The two dudes glanced around, following protocol to maintain the room’s safety. “Stay here, alpha-mate,” said a tall Black man with a serious face. I didn’t know him personally, and I wondered if he was a new member of the pack. Not that I really cared.
He was clearly good at his job, though. Quick and efficient, but since I’d given him no reason to distrust me, he didn’t. “Can I help?” I asked as they turned away.
Someone hand me a fucking Oscar for Best Actress in a Pack.
They both shook their heads. “No, please. It’s our job to keep you safe. It was most probably just animals setting the alarms off.”
Yeah, maybe. Animals sent here by my feisty best friend. She was a freaking keeper, just like Angel was proving to be as well. Two fierce, fearless, badass female friends. That almost made up for me being Torin’s true mate.
I nodded, forcing a smile. “Okay. Well, please keep me updated.”
They saluted as they left, and when the door closed, I shed the nice girl persona, rolling out of bed. The backpack was placed where my wolf could easily grab it, front door opened just a touch, and then I called my