Epilogue
Sawyer
“So then Lily says, ‘Just because you’re the Alpha, doesn’t mean you can leave your dirty clothes everywhere!
’” Juliet’s laughter mixed with Maddie’s in the soft, inviting space of the living room.
I perched on the edge of the sofa, nursing a glass of wine and the loneliness of my secrets.
They were trying to make me feel welcome, like I belonged.
But I’d been here before, letting my guard down only to have it slice me open when I least expected it.
The cabin was so different from the sterile hell Dane had locked me in.
Warm lighting played off hardwood floors.
Furnishings that looked like they were out of a magazine surrounded us.
This should have been comforting. But every gentle question Juliet asked about my past brought my shoulders tighter.
Every time Maddie switched the conversation away, I saw the worry in Juliet’s eyes.
They were so kind to me, and I was lying to them about who I was and what I’d run from.
I forced a smile as Juliet handed me a fresh glass of wine, the dark red reflecting against the plush pillows like drops of blood.
“Thanks,” I said, trying to sound grateful.
“This is really nice. I’m not used to… nights like this.
” My voice felt foreign in my throat, words I should have said but never could. I took a sip to mask the hesitation.
“Well, Sawyer,” Maddie chimed in, a teasing lilt to her voice, “you better get used to it if you’re going to stick around here.” Her eyes sparkled, her short dark hair catching the light like a halo.
Juliet nodded, her expression softening. “We want you to feel at home. Like you’re part of the family.”
Home. Family. Things I’d only known in name, but not in heart. “I really appreciate it,” I said, not trusting myself to say more without my voice cracking under the weight of falsehoods.
Juliet sat next to me, her sincerity palpable. “So, what’s your story, Sawyer? Where are you from?”
The question hung in the air like a sniper’s bullet. I had my answers prepared, the same evasive maneuvers I’d used on Pearl and anyone else who got too close. “Up north,” I said vaguely, studying the glass in my hand as if it held some revelation.
“And you decided to stay in Texas?” Maddie pressed her curiosity in earnest.
I shrugged, my shoulders tensing. “I needed a change,” I said, keeping my tone light, my insides a churning mass of fear and memory.
I could still feel the cold steel of the lab, the clinical detachment of Dane’s voice as he charted my responses, the gnawing realization that I was little more than a tool to be wielded by my father’s ambitions.
Distance, I reminded myself. Distance is your friend.
Juliet must have sensed my discomfort, because she shot Maddie a look. “It’s okay,” she gentled. “We don’t mean to pry.”
“It’s fine,” I lied, hating how easy it was becoming.
Maddie leaned back, changing gears. “So… Bridger, huh? He’s kind of a big deal around here.”
At the mention of Bridger, something flickered inside me. It was the same flutter I’d felt when his hazel eyes first met mine, like he could see past the lies and straight into the truth I’d hidden even from myself. “Yeah,” I said, the word laced with more meaning than I intended.
Maddie raised an eyebrow, catching the subtle shift in my voice. “He’s a good one.”
I felt heat rise to my cheeks and hid behind my glass. “He’s been so great. Since he broke those chains off of me…” my voice trailed off.
“Oh, shit!” Maddie just remembered he is who brought me out of the lab. “I’m so sorry, Sawyer. I’m such a dumb bitch. Forgive me for reminding you of that.”
“Maddie, it’s okay, truly.” I gave her a genuine smile. “Bridger was the light in the midst of that awful darkness.”
Juliet seemed pleased with my admission. “He’s a good guy,” she agreed. “Loyal. Like all the pack.” There was an emphasis in her words, a hint that she knew more than she was letting on.
They continued to chat about Bridger and the other pack members, the rhythm of their voices soothing despite my anxiety.
My mind was a battlefield of thoughts, each more volatile than the last. How long could I keep this up before they discovered the truth?
The guilt of deception was heavy, a weight I didn’t know how much longer I could bear.
I should have left it at that. Let them carry the conversation without me. But some reckless part of me wanted to hold on to this fragile sense of belonging, even if it was built on lies. “I heard Bridger used to be in the military,” I said, testing the waters.
Maddie nodded, jumping at the chance to share. “Yeah, Delta Force. A lot of the guys in the club are former special ops. And now they run Dairyville. It’s pretty amazing.”
I absorbed this, realizing just how far outside their world I was. Not only did I lack their camaraderie, I was a shifter of unknown blood. An outsider among outsiders.
“Don’t worry, Sawyer,” Juliet smiled. “You’re one of us now.”
The knock at the door cracked through Juliet’s laughter like a gunshot.
My spine stiffened before I even registered why.
Must have been some primal instinct honed by a year of running flaring to life.
Juliet sprang up with a squeal, nearly tripping over the wine bottle Maddie had cracked open an hour earlier.
“You have no idea who this is,” she gushed, eyes bright as she flung the door wide.
The woman standing there wore danger like perfume.
Dark curls framed a face sharp enough to draw blood.
A Russian accent dripped from her lips as she said, “Hello, kotyonok.” Juliet threw herself into the woman’s arms, babbling about missed calls and chaotic months while my pulse thrummed in my ears.
Lucia Kozlov. The name slithered through my memories whispering of Bratva dealings at college parties, Juliet oblivious to the blood running colder than ice in her friend’s veins.
“Maddie, Sawyer—this is Lucia!” Juliet beamed, none the wiser that she’d invited a predator into their midst. Maddie offered a polite nod, but Lucia’s crimson-lined gaze snagged on me like claws.
“Sawyer?” She repeated slowly, head tilting in a way that made my rib cage tighten around my pounding heart. “How… interesting.”
The room suddenly felt airless. “Bathroom,” I blurted, chair screeching as I stood. I didn’t look back as I fled down the hallway. Her stiletto heels clicked behind me in a languid staccato.
She let me yank her into the shadowed corridor by her designer sleeve, amusement playing on her lips as I hissed, “Don’t.”
“Savannah,” she purred my actual name like a curse.
My knees locked to keep from buckling as she leaned in close enough for me to smell lies and bergamot tea.
“Your father has bounty hunters crawling through every territory.” Her nail traced the frantic jump of my pulse. “Poor Dominic must feel so… jilted.”
Ice flooded my veins. She knew everything.
“I’m not going back,” I choked out, clinging to fraying resolve as Bridger’s face flashed behind my eyes—his laugh against my hair last week when he thought I was just another rogue wolf needing shelter.
Not a crown princess in hiding. Not collateral in an alliance binding the Eastern wolves to Dominic’s Midwestern throne.
Lucia clicked her tongue. “Running from an arranged marriage? How delightfully human of you.” But something flickered in her glacial stare; a sliver of old camaraderie from winters when we’d built snow forts while our fathers carved up cities between sips of vodka.
Juliet’s voice trilled down the hall—“You guys okay?”
I didn’t breathe until Lucia stepped back with a smirk sharp enough to flay skin from bone. “Enjoy your little rebellion while it lasts, volchitsa,” she murmured silkily over my trembling silence—a promise and a warning tangled together.
The crown felt heavier than ever as I followed her back toward wavering laughter and flickering trust, toward Bridger who couldn’t know his stray smelled of autumn forests and king’s blood.
But when Lucia glanced at me over one shoulder? For half a heartbeat…
She winked.