54

"If he finds out I told you... we're all screwed," Riley said. He paced the clearing in the woods, snapping dry twigs and branches underfoot.

"Well... neither of us is going to put out a news bulletin." Scarlett frowned. "All we have to do is keep our mouths shut."

Silence fell as he stopped shuffling about, sat on a tree stump and looked up at her. "It's not that simple. He can see what you're thinking. How can you guarantee you won't think about it?"

"Hmm." Scarlett felt her shoulders slump. "It's like trying not to think about a pink elephant."

"Huh?" Riley raised an eyebrow.

"Well... you're thinking about a pink elephant right now... right?" Scarlett said.

"Oh." Riley laughed and scratched his head. "I'm so stupid. You should just do what he wants and pair off with that little white Alpha."

The thought made her grimace. "He's twelve!"

"He'll grow," Riley said. It was true, but hardly the point. Besides, the real reason she didn't want to pair off with the kid was her feelings for Riley.

He surprised her by laughing, prompting her to flash him a questioning frown. What could be funny about this?

He shook his head, looking sheepish. "Why is my pink elephant wearing a hat and dancing with a cane?"

Scarlett couldn't help but laugh. She perched on the tree stump beside him and giggled, making him burst into laughter again.

When they calmed down, their eyes met. Being this close to him, all she wanted to do was kiss those perfect lips. He leaned in as though he were having the very same instinct.

"I can't take someone else as my mate," Scarlett blurted. "I just can't."

"What if Damien isn't just making idle threats. He could kill your family. Your friends." Riley lowered his head. "I don't want to be responsible for everyone dying."

Scarlett clenched her fists. "It's not fair."

Riley placed his much larger hand over hers, gently squeezing.

"Maybe... maybe..." Scarlett muttered. She desperately wanted to find a solution, but it seemed hopeless. "Is he really that much stronger than us?"

"Well. Look." Riley pointed at a pair of squirrels scurrying up a nearby tree. They circled the truck as they rose before chasing each other along the branches. "If I were Damien... we'd be those squirrels."

She found it hard to believe and to imagine. How could anything be that strong? And Damien of all people! He'd got his ass kicked at school a few times.

"I remember when Tom beat him up," Scarlett said. "If he's that strong, why didn't he fight back. Why didn't he win?"

"I guess he doesn't care about the opinions of humans any more than we care about the opinions of squirrels," Riley offered. "Who knows?"

"That's scary." Scarlett shuddered.

"He's basically immortal. Psychic. The apex predator." He shrugged. "He's not like us. We are part human. He just takes a human shape for convenience."

"There must be some humanity in him," Scarlett insisted. "Maybe we can reason with him. Convince him—"

Before she managed to finish that thought, Riley was already shaking his head in the negatory.

"I mean... you can try but... I think he's going to force you to do what he wants."

Scarlett nodded slowly, thinking about it. Within her mind, she practised her speech, conjuring the perfect words to say.

"I can do this," she muttered to herself before sprinting away from Riley. She hated leaving him. Every time she was apart from him an ache would appear in her chest, eating its way down to the pit of her stomach. An emptiness that only his presence could fill. It was almost as if she couldn't bear the thought of anything happening to him while she wasn't there to protect him. Instead of the helpless damsel in distress, she was the warrior princess, protecting her love. It made her feel powerful. Special.

As she sniffed out Damien's scent, she imagined fighting him. In her imagination, she could win.

But that wasn't real.

When she finally tracked Damien, he was inside his home. Thankfully, Sienna wasn't with him. She dreaded to think what he might do to her, but it was a secondary concern. Riley was priority number one.

As she stared up at the building, he appeared in the window. It felt like a scene from a horror movie as his pale, blank face pinned her with an unblinking stare.

He disappeared and seconds later was on the front porch.

"Come on then." He raised an arm, inviting her into his home.

Inside his house was cool, despite the blaring hear outside. It was one of those old-style houses that retained a degree of cold and dark—as if permeating from those old bricks. Now that she knew who Damien was, the Victorian mansion seemed a fitting home.

"Tea? Coffee?" he offered.

Scarlett shook her head and sat, suddenly acutely aware that she couldn't make her mouth form sounds.

"Hmm, uhh," she struggled.

"Here." He passed her a glass of water.

After taking a sip, she placed it neatly on the coaster, watching the droplets of condensation drip and pool on the polished oak coffee table.

"You know why I'm here, right?" she asked. Her perfectly polished speech—her bluster and confidence—it had all vanished without a trace.

'He could really wipe us out?' she wondered, looking at the boy sitting opposite her. It didn't seem real.

"You are here... because you do not wish to follow my plan. You want to run off into the sunset with your lover—Riley." Damien smiled, sat back and crossed his legs. "You believe you can convince me to go along with this because you want it so badly."

When he said it like that it sounded not only ridiculously childish... but also... hopeless.

"Please," she tried. "I'm not an incubator. I'm not a breeding pig. I have feelings. I have a life and wishes and hopes and dreams."

"You have free will," Damien added as if agreeing with her.

"Yes." She nodded. "I want—"

"It's an illusion," Damien interrupted. "Free will. It's an illusion. I'm sorry to be the one to tell you this."

"Please..." Scarlett whined. She didn't know what else to say. "Please don't force me—"

"Oh don't be silly!" Damien cried. "I'd never force anyone to obey my will. You have a choice in the matter. It is your life after all."

He smiled and leaned forward, baring his teeth. The only sounds were the ticking of the clock and the beating of his monstrous heart.

"Y—you mean that?" Scarlett asked. "You really won't force me to choose the young Alpha? I—I can choose Riley as my mate."

"Of course you can," Damien said kindly, shaking his head as though she were being foolish to even ask.

Scarlett let out a whoosh of breath she hadn't even realised she'd been holding the entire time.

"Oh thank you," she muttered.

"Of course," he added, "If you do choose to obey my wishes, I might just find it in my heart to let your precious Riley live."

Scarlett felt the Earth shift. She lurched forward, unprepared for the shock of those words.

"He broke his promise to me," Damien explained. "The punishment is death."

"But I could be convinced to let it slide," Damien went on. "It's all up to you, Scarlett. So you see you have a choice. But pick smart. Not all outcomes are equal."