CHAPTER 206

**ZION**

I couldn’t sit still.

Pacing was the only thing keeping me from snapping.

My fists clenched and unclenched as I moved from one end of the room to the other like a caged animal.

Winter was upstairs with the girls—safe, for now—but the unease gnawed at me like something was crawling under my skin.

Claire had invited herself and Ariel to stay the night.

No surprise there—Claire never asked, she just declared.

Ariel, on the other hand, looked two seconds from saying no—muttering something about an early shift, a group project, whatever excuse she could scramble together on the spot—but Claire didn’t even blink.

She threw an arm around her shoulders and declared,

“Perfect. I’ll grab us pyjamas.”

Claire had said, dragging Ariel toward the stairs like she’d just won custody.

Like Ariel hadn’t spoken at all.

Didn’t even give her the illusion of choice. Typical Claire.

Then there was Harry.

He flopped onto the loveseat without a second thought, arms stretched wide.

“Guess I’m crashing here too,” he said with an easy grin, like this was just another Friday night hangout instead of a hunt for a stalker.

I stared at him. “Did I invite you?”

“No, but where thou art, Ariel, there art I, cousin,” he said with dramatic flair, one hand to his chest like he was in a Shakespeare play.

Ro snorted from across the room. “This guy. You’re not even subtle anymore.”

Harry just shrugged. “Subtlety’s overrated.”

Then Clark threw himself onto the couch with a dramatic groan and said,

“Yeah, I’m not going anywhere either. I already took off my shoes. That’s a full commitment. Also—if you don't have snacks, I swear to God, Zion, I will riot.”

He kicked his feet up like he owned the place, clearly settling in for the long haul.

Ro leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes sharp.

“Guess im staying too.”

Zion leaned against the wall, arms crossed, eyes sweeping over the room full of chaos. He let out a slow breath, voice dry.

“Great. Since everyone’s so eager to crash here tonight,” he said, gaze flicking to each of them,

“we can finally work on Snowflake’s project. You know, the actual reason you’re all here.”

Clark groaned, already slumped on the couch like life had betrayed him.

“Why are we finishing an assignment that isn’t even ours? I barely get my own crap done, man.”

Zion’s eyes narrowed.

“Because if you don’t,” he said calmly,

“I’ll personally make sure your next assignment is breathing through a feeding tube.”

Clark sat up fast.

“Project sounds great. Love school. Huge fan of teamwork.”

.....

I couldn’t focus.

Clark was whining about the assignment like it was a personal attack.

Ro was already scanning the sheet with the same level of enthusiasm as someone reading funeral instructions.

Harry was barely listening—his eyes kept drifting toward the stairs like they’d magically summon Ariel if he stared long enough.

Fuck!

I shot up from the bed, pacing the room like a caged animal.

My jaw was tight, fists clenching and unclenching as restless energy crackled through me.

This wasn’t a sleepover.

And why the hell were we even wasting time slaving over an assignment, that wasn't even ours?

Sure—yeah—maybe if I showed up with it done, Winter would be impressed.

Maybe I’d get more than a kiss.

Maybe she’d reward me with that look she gives when she’s proud of me. That soft smile, that fire in her eyes…

Maybe I’d finally get her on her knees—

I stopped cold, teeth grinding.

No.

Not now.

Focus, damn it.

Now wasn’t the time to think with my fucking dick when there was a psycho out there targeting the one person I’d burn the world for.

And if I wanted to keep her safe… I needed to start thinking with the head on my shoulders—not the one below my belt.

I barely registered Clark muttering something about chips and “emergency chocolate” while Ro shot him a dry look.

Their voices faded under the sound of my own heartbeat, pounding like war drums in my ears.

Ethan.

My thoughts kept circling back to him like a vulture drawn to rot.

Where the hell was he?

He was still missing.

Still quiet.

Still… gone.

Why?

Why the fuck hadn’t he shown his face since that night?

We left him in that warehouse, barely conscious, his face wrecked, his pride even worse.

He should’ve come crawling back with some half-assed excuse by now, trying to save face or stir shit up.

That’s who Ethan was—arrogant, petty, loud.

And yet… the silence around him wasn’t sitting right.

No social media updates.

No smug messages.

No sightings.

It was like he’d vanished off the grid entirely.

I didn’t like it.

Not because I missed him.

Not because I gave a damn about what happened to him.

But because I didn’t trust silence.

Not from someone like Ethan.

Guys like him don’t just disappear.

They plan.

They wait.

And if he was still out there—still breathing-then he was thinking.

Watching.

Plotting.

I stopped pacing and stood still, jaw tight, fists clenched so hard my knuckles popped.

Winter’s upstairs.

Sleeping—maybe.

With Claire and Ariel pretending this was just some cosy girls’ night.

Didn’t matter.

The only thing that mattered was that Snowflake was behind a locked door, and whoever was screwing with her hadn’t gotten close enough to do real damage.

Yet.

But, I couldn’t shake the feeling crawling under my skin, like cold metal dragging along my spine.

“I swear,” I muttered under my breath,

“if I get my hands on whoever is sending these messages…”

“You will,” Harry said firmly from where he sat cross-legged on my bed, arms propped on his knees.

“Whoever this creep is, he’s not invisible. He’s leaving a trail—we just haven’t spotted the right piece yet.”

I reached over and grabbed the folded list Ariel had left on the desk.

The paper felt thin between my fingers, but the weight of what was written on it pressed heavily in my mind.

Names.

Potential suspects.

People who could be behind those messages.

I scanned down the list slowly, eyes narrowing at each one. Some familiar, some not. Each name was a possible threat, a piece in this fucked-up puzzle.

But my focus wasn’t on the whole list.

My eyes flicked past most, landing again and again on one name — Ethan.

Ethan fit too perfectly.

He knew.

He always fucking knew—even before I did—what she meant to me.

That bastard saw it in the way I looked at her.

In the way I didn’t look at anyone else.

He knew she wasn’t just some girl.

She was mine.

My Snowflake.

My weakness.

My whole fucking world.

I should’ve ended him then.

Should’ve crushed his throat and watched the light fade from his eyes.

But I didn’t.

I walked away.

Now he’s missing.

Before I could sink deeper, Clark’s voice broke through the silence, sharp and certain.

“I know what you’re thinking, Z. The only name that makes sense? Ethan. Forget the list Red made—we need to zero in on him.”

Harry leaned forward, more serious than usual.

“Yeah, I’m with you. The rest of those names? Just noise. I’d bet my fucking life Ethan’s the one behind those messages.”

They didn’t need to convince me.

I already knew.

My jaw tightened as I stared at Ethan’s name, the letters blurring under the weight of my rage.

“Yeah,” I muttered, voice low. “It’s him..I'm fucking sure of it.....”

My fingers dug into the edge of the desk, white-knuckled.

“And if he thinks coming after her is his next move…”

I didn’t finish the sentence.

Didn’t have to.

The crack of my knuckles said it all.

Ro’s eyes narrowed. “You’d kill him.”

I met his gaze. Steady. Cold.

“I’d enjoy it.”

Clark gave a low whistle.

“Remind me never to piss you off over a girl.”

I didn’t even flinch.

“She’s not just a girl.”

The room went quiet for a beat, the weight of that truth dropping hard.

“She’s mine,” I added, voice like steel.

“And whoever’s behind this? Ethan or not—I’m going to find them. And when I do…”

I looked around the room—at my friends.

My chaos crew.

My makeshift family.

The ones who’d bleed beside me if it came down to it.

My do-or-die brothers.

“They’ll learn what happens when you touch what’s mine.”

Harry, ever the peacekeeper, held up a hand.

“We’ll find him, Z. But you need to breathe, man. You’re wound tighter than a tripwire.”

“Yeah,” Clark added, already half-asleep on the couch.

“And if you lose your mind before the psycho does, it kinda defeats the purpose of being the scary one.”

I didn’t laugh.

I couldn’t.

Not until I knew Winter was safe.

Truly safe.

Until then, I’d stay ready.

The room fell into a heavy silence.

My eyes burned through the list again—Cindy... Damien... a bunch of others, meaningless names compared to one.

“It has to be Ethan,” I muttered under again, my breath, the edges of my voice sharp with fury.

“After everything we did to him in that damn warehouse… he knows. Knows Snowflake is the one thing I’d die for. Maybe that’s exactly why he’s targeting her—going after me through her.”

Harry nodded slowly, voice low but steady.

“I’m with you. No point chasing shadows when the real threat’s right in front of us. We double down on Ethan—harder, faster. Since that night? He’s ghosted. No moves, no sightings. Like he vanished off the face of the earth. But that silence? That’s the loudest damn alarm we’ve got.”

“Which makes no damn sense,” Ro muttered.

“He’s not smart enough to ghost us this long on his own.”

“He’s scared,” I growled.

“He should be. But scared or not, he’s out there. And if he even thinks about getting near her again…”

My jaw locked. I didn’t need to finish the sentence.

They already knew.

I’d kill for her.

No hesitation.

“She’s mine,” I said under my breath. The words burned like truth in my throat.

“And no one gets to touch her. No one gets to scare her. Not while I’m breathing.”

Clark let out a long whistle.

“Man’s officially in love. That’s it. Zion’s done for. Let’s get him a matching hoodie and a ‘Mr. Snowflake’s mug.”

“Keep talking,” I said, grabbing a pillow and chucking it at his head.

He ducked, laughing.

But the laughter didn’t touch the heat in my chest—the burning, possessive fire that only Winter could spark. I didn’t just care about her.

I was ready to go to war.

And whoever this bastard was? He’d just started something he wasn’t going to survive.