“Are you sure Maddox isn’t leading us into a cult?” I whisper.

  “I wouldn’t put it past him.”

  We both burst out into laughter again. There are tranquil and serene noises playing everywhere you go. Rainforest sounds with the wind blowing through the trees, birds chirping, and even rainfall. I have to admit, this place is kind of amazing even though it seems weird as well.

  “Well, here’s to joining a cult.” Friday hands me a small cup and I take it. I smell it and it smells awful.

  “What is this?”

  “Aloe juice. It’s good for you, but it tastes awful. Best block your nose.” She does, but still makes a disgusted face while swallowing. “Come on, Leona. Drink up! Don’t leave me to join this cult alone.”

  I shake my head and plug my nose, making sure to keep it that way until it’s fully down my throat. But when I let go, I instantly taste the bitterness of it.

  Yuck.

  “Don’t ever make me do that again.” I toss the cup in the trash and head into a small changing room. There is a chair, a large, plush robe hanging, and a few lockers against one wall. I undress and put all of my things in the locker before pulling out the key and putting the bungee cord around my wrist.

  “As much as I love my kids, I really hate what they’ve done to my body.”

  I roll my eyes. “Friday, you’re gorgeous, knock it off. Besides, shouldn’t Lenny be able to help you with that? You know, like a spell or potion or something?”

  “Yes, Leona. Should. Lenny should be able to help me with that, but the man is awful with potions. I swear, I don’t know how he calls himself a Warlock.”

  I huff out a laugh and shake my head. She’s not wrong. I remember he made a tea for Alec once because he wasn’t feeling well. The poor guy was knocked out for three days straight. And to top it off, he woke up with a head of bleach blonde hair. It was awful. Callan had to walk him through how to fix it.

  “He may be awful with potions but he’s a good brother,” I say, because I feel like it isn’t said enough.

  “That he is, Leona. Lenny is a good man.”

  We both walk out of the changing rooms at the same time. Big, fluffy white robes cover our bodies and our feet bare.

  “I’m ready for this cult if you are,” I say with a smile, offering her my elbow. She threads her hand through it.

  “Let’s do this."

  When we leave La Luxury, I feel like a brand new person. From facials, to massages, to mud baths, the steam room, and more, I feel like I shed an entire layer of skin that took every ounce of negativity with it.

  I feel amazing.

  “We definitely need to do this again,” I say as we get into the car.

  “I agree. I don’t think I’ve ever felt this good before.”

  “Me either.”

  We head out of the parking lot, the guys turn out behind us. I have no idea what they did while we were inside because we literally were here all day. It’s dark now, the sun having gone down at least an hour ago. They did as promised and didn’t bother us once. I’m not sure if they waited inside, stayed outside, or left and came back. Though, I’m sure they did not do the latter.

  I fall asleep on the car ride home. I vaguely remember Friday telling me that we’re home and strong arms lifting me from the car. Soon enough I’m being placed into bed. I get the best sleep I’ve had in a long time.

  Twenty-nine

  Hunter

  I drive my car the six minutes to the alpha’s house.

  The last fucking place on the planet I want to be.

  Scratch that, that may not be true. I’m pretty sure being alone in a room with my father may be worse.

  How fucked is that?

  The fact that being alone in a room with the man that I came from is just as bad as being in the room with the man that leads me? Fuck, I hate people.

  As I reach the house, I park in the large driveway and shut the car off, slamming my door harder than necessary but I don’t want Julian thinking that I’m here for fun.

  This is not fucking fun. This is business.

  I bang on the door when I reach it even though there is a doorbell.

  This is not friendly.

  “Hunter!” Ciella greets as she opens the door. “It’s so nice to see you.” She smiles and steps out of the way so I can step in.

  I don’t say anything back. Her smile falls from her face and a strike of guilt hits me. Ciella has always been nice to me, I shouldn’t be rude to her, but she belongs to Julian, and anything attached to him is tainted. I decide it’s best to keep up my demeanor and ignore her.

  This is not a friendly visit.

  She clears her throat, her eyes shifting from mine and to the floor. “Julian is in the den. Follow me.” She walks quickly through the house. It looks different since I last saw it. Julian must have done some redecorating. It looks pretentious as fuck. Just like his stupid ass. I half expect to walk into the den to see him sitting on a throne with two baboons, one at each side, fanning him with banana leaves while his harem of women feed him grapes and cheese and wine.

  I swear I would murder him on the spot.

  Even though Julian has his own coterie, with another man and one woman, he basically does what he wants and fucks who he wants. So does everyone else in their pack. If it works for them, then whatever.

  Ciella knocks on the door softly. “Julian, honey? Hunter is here.”

  He looks up from the papers he’s looking at on his desk. A wolfish grin settles across his lips. “Hunter. How good it is to see you.” I swear the universe made the biggest mistake in not making him a fucking snake because that’s exactly what this fucker is. A sneaking, slimy snake.

  “Wish I could say the same.” I walk into the room, taking a seat on his couch without waiting for anyone to tell me to sit.

  “Would you like something to drink?” Ciella asks me. I open my mouth to respond that I’d like some fucking alcohol, but Julian cuts me off.

  “He’s fine. See yourself out, Ciella.”

  She nods her head and leaves the room, shutting the door behind her.

  Rules of enemies 101. Never turn your back on your enemy.

  Well, fuck that. I sit on the couch, facing the door, my back to Julian. The fucking coward knows better than to do anything to me here. He wouldn’t risk it. Too messy. Too fucking stupid. I mean, he is kind of fucking stupid, but he’s not that stupid.

  Unfortunately.

  “You’re cranky.” Julian’s voice is demeaning. He talks to me like a child. I’d love nothing more than to punch him in his arrogant face. He’s nothing to write home about. Pretty average looking for the most part. He’s a little bigger than me in size, but I could take him.

  And I will. One of these days, he’s going to regret most of his life decisions. Because even though he thinks he has me by the balls—and he may right now—I am going to get him back so fucking hard for this. I may not know how, not yet, but trust me I will. If it’s the last fucking thing I do. Julian will pay for this shit.

  “You don’t say.” My words are dry. Bored. I have no issue letting him know I’m cranky. What I don’t want him to know is how angry I am. How much he gets under my skin. How much I want to bash his face in for what he is doing to me. I glance down at my wrist. The mark is getting bigger.

  I don’t have much time left. Leona’s birthday was yesterday, the full moon is tonight. That’s one down and two to go. Yeah, it sucks that the moon fell so close to her birthday, but this is what we have to work with.

  She’s probably better off without me anyway.

  “Aw, why you gotta be like that, Hunt?”

  I let out a chuckle. “Don’t fucking call me that. We’re not friends.”

  “No?” Julian finally steps around so I can see him. This den is set up nicely. The couch I’m on is a large sectional, placed in a conversation pit. This house was built back in the sixties, and even though the structure of it says that, the decor surely doesn’t. Julian has decked this thing out like he’s a fucking king. He’s the alpha of a nobody wolf pack. It makes me gag. “I like to think we are.”

  “Think what you want, doesn’t make it right.”

  He takes a seat to my left, a few cushions down. He smiles, folding his hands together and resting them on his thighs.

  “Have you made a decision?”

  I think about it for a moment. I knew what I was going to say. Have I made up my mind? Yeah, I know what I want to do, what I should do… but it’s not what I can do. What I have to do is not what I should do.

  And all I can think about before I open my mouth to sell my soul to the devil is…

  I hope she can forgive me.

  Thirty

  Leona

  I walk through the same maze for the third time. The last time I walked and walked and couldn’t find my way out like I did the first time. There was no voice to guide me. No mysterious man to help me along the way.

  I couldn’t do it by myself.

  Tonight, I am determined.

  I walk the long, stony hallways. Back and forth, back and forth. I swear I’ve walked this a hundred times and there is no way out.

  How is there no way out?

  This is exactly how it was the first time, why is it different now? I know I’m going the right way. And even if I wasn’t, I’ve walked every inch of this place multiple times. I’ve reached my hands against every inch of the walls, my feet have stepped along every inch of the floor.

  Nothing.

  There is nothing.

  “How do I get out of here?” I growl out. I stop and rest against the wall, letting my head fall back. “Why can’t I do this?”

  My girl, all you must do is ask for help.

  There is that voice again. My eyes fly open.

  “You! Who are you?” I ask, looking around the room. A soft chuckle sounds and I try to follow it but it sounds like it’s coming from everywhere. I can’t follow it in just one direction.

  All in good time. So, what’s it going to be? Would you like some help?

  I never ask for help. I don’t like asking for help. I want to be able to do things on my own.

  Yet… something about this person, this dream I am having, I feel that I can. I don’t feel embarrassed. I don’t feel awkward. I feel eager, like I want to learn, like I want more. I want it all. I just want more.

  “Will you help me?”

  Always, my girl.

  The voice echoes to my right. My head jerks in that direction and I race down the hallway. It seems longer than it did the last time I walked this way, but that can’t be right. I know this is a dream, but it doesn’t really feel like one. I can’t control it like I do in my other dreams.

  As I continue on, a dim glowing starts to show far down the hallway and to the left. I pump my arms and legs faster, wanting to move and get to where I am going. That room… I want to explore it more. I want to see that man and speak to him again. I feel like he has information for me. That he has answers. Like he can help me in ways that no one else can.

  I have no idea why I feel this way.

  Probably because it’s a dream, but either way, I need whatever it is that he has to give me.

  I turn the corner when I reach it, racing out into the bright room filled with trees. This time the room is bigger than it was the last time. Everything about it is better. It’s brighter, it smells fresher. The air is fresh and clean. The colors are more vibrant, the sounds crisp and clear. I stop and take in a deep breath.

  All you ever have to do is ask.

  I spin around. The now familiar face comes into my sight and I can’t help but smile. I open my mouth to ask a question when I hear something faint. I cock my head to the side, straining my ears to listen.

  “No…” I start. My eyes meet the man’s and they are filled with a pang of sadness.

  Until next time, my—

  “Baby, it’s time to get up.” Thorne’s whispered words pull me from sleep. I groan, trying hard to ignore him and go back into my dream, even though I know it’s no use. “Having a good dream?”

  I roll over to find a smiling Thorne. “Something like that,” I grumble.

  “Come on, Friday is waiting for you.”

  “Why are you always so happy in the morning?”

  He just smiles brighter. “If I recall, you yourself used to be a morning person. What happened?”

  “Two insatiable men that like to keep me up all night happened.”

  “That a complaint?” he asks, raising an eyebrow.

  I chuckle, biting my bottom lip, trying to hide my smile. “No.”

  “That’s what I thought. Now let’s go.” He pats my thigh. “Get up. Shower. Get dressed. Callan has made breakfast already. Today is the day, baby.”

  Today is the day.

  The day that Friday and Lenny work together to free my wolf. The day that we open up the note that Myrena gave me with the word that is supposed to fix this. A spell so simple that even Lenny can’t mess it up.

  So they say.

  I climb out of bed and shuffle to the bathroom to turn the shower on. Thorne has picked out my clothes for me and has them piled on the counter. I shower quickly and get dressed, then head over to the main house.

  Lenny is sitting at the kitchen table when I get there. His plate is piled high with pancakes and bacon, his cup practically overflowing with coffee.

  “If you were anyone else, this would not be happening right now.”

  “Good morning to you too, brother,” I say with a smile. “Too early?” I laugh, going to the cupboard and grabbing my favorite mug. I make myself a cup of coffee before making a plate of food and sitting down at the table with Lenny. “Why did we have to do this so early anyway? I wouldn’t have complained if I got to sleep a little longer.”

  “You? You’ve always been a morning person, sis.” I shrug. “Maddox and Alec are out with the kids, in case something goes wrong. Was just easier to do it in the morning.”

  I nod and pour syrup onto my pancakes.

  We both eat in silence. When we’re done, I take the dishes and rinse them off before putting them into the dishwasher.

  “Lenny?”

  “Yeah, sis?”

  “Promise me you’ll try your hardest not to fuck this up.”

  The smile he gives me warms my heart. Most people would take offense to that. Lenny knows he’s not good with spells.

  “Me? Fuck up a spell? Never.”

  I roll my eyes and we walk into the library where Friday and Callan are already sitting.

  “Are we ready?” Friday asks, looking to Lenny and me.

  I look over to my brother who still has a smile on his face.

  “As ready as I’m going to be."

  Thirty-one

  Leona

  Friday and Callan have four chairs set up in a circle. We each take a seat. Lenny is on my right while Friday is on my left, leaving Callan to sit across from me. He’s really just here to make sure that Lenny is doing everything the right way. Everyone says there is no way he can mess this up. All he’s doing is speaking two words. That’s it. Just two words and my wolf will be set free.

  Of course, it isn’t that simple. Friday does have to go hunt for her, which she was told how to do. Only, she and Lenny have to do it together. This isn’t something Friday has ever done before, but I’m sure she can. Aside from that, I was told that I have to let them in. I have to want them to find my wolf. I’m not sure that was something I wanted the last time we tried this. It’s why I haven’t pushed the matter. Everything about this is terrifying. More things I know nothing about. More things I need help with.

  But now I know it’s what I want. My feelings for Castor and Thorne have grown. I want to be with them. Long chats with Lenny at night have helped. The relaxing day at the spa helped. Knowing that I have so much support helped. There is also a little part of me that hopes, once I find my wolf, Hunter will change his tune.

  From what I’m told, once I find my wolf, once we are one, the bond will be stronger. Maybe then Hunter won’t be able to walk away so easily.

  I was angry at him. I still am. But I find each day that goes by, anger isn’t all that I’m feeling. I’m becoming sad. There is a hole within me that is growing larger and larger. A piece of me is missing. And as much as that blonde-headed asshole gets under my skin, I know he can fix it. I know he can fix it all. He can make this all better.

  “Leona, do you remember what Myrena said?” Callan asks, his tone soft and kind. Like it always is.

  I nod. “I do. I need to let them in. I need to want them to find my wolf.” He smiles then looks from me to Friday, then to Lenny.

  “Perhaps we should start them. Remember, don’t stress out over this. If it doesn’t work, just pull back. We will take a break and try again. And if it still doesn’t work, we have plenty of time. There is no rush here.”

  Something about Callan’s tone makes me calm. I want to believe everything he says. He is the logical one, the voice of reason.

  Friday pulls her chair closer to me and folds her legs up to sit Indian style on the chair. She always has to sit that way when she does this. Even when she takes on clients, which isn’t often since she has others to help her, she sits like this. She looks at something over my shoulder and I turn to see what it is.

  Thorne and Castor enter the room, both walking over to take a seat not too far off. Thorne blows me a kiss and smiles. Castor winks. I smile and turn back to Friday.

  “You ready for this?” she asks quietly.

  “So ready,” I say back.

  “Close your eyes and help me find her.” She reaches her hand out for Lenny, who takes it. His eyes focus on me. He offers me a proud smile, one that is burned into my memory as I close my eyes. All of their faces are too. Every last one of them. I’ve gone through life always worried that I have nothing, that I don’t know where I belong, never feeling like I fit in.