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"There is something up with Scarlett," said Gary as he joined Jake and me. I turned to face him, giving him my full attention. Anything that had to do with her was always important, more important than anything else.
"What were you and Blake talking about?" asked Gary before I could say anything.
I kept silent. I wasn't sure I could trust him with the information and I didn't want to take the chance that he would share it with Scarlett.
"Fine, don't tell me. But know that she overheard you and she's been acting strange ever since," he revealed with worry.
Fuck!
Why the hell had she been eavesdropping? I ran an agitated hand through my hair as I tried to remember everything that had been said between Blake and me.
I remembered Blake had mentioned that we suspected Victor was behind the rogue attacks. We'd also talked about the fact that Victor was more powerful than we were. If she'd overheard our conversation she'd know that even if we combined our pack with Blake's and Kyle's, we still wouldn't have enough werewolves to defend ourselves if Victor attacked.
I rubbed my forehead. If she'd heard this, she was going to do something stupid, really stupid. Jake and Gary watched me as I wrestled with the few options I had to keep Scar safe. The problem was she wasn't going to be happy with any of the options I was considering.
I let out a sigh and turned to Jake.
"Tell Curtis I need a sedative, strong enough to knock out a female werewolf," I instructed. Gary's eyes widened at my request.
"What are you going to do?" he questioned as Jake left.
"Everything I can."
I kept hoping that she would mention that she'd overheard my conversation with Blake but the longer it went without her admitting it to me, my uneasiness increased. It cemented the fear that she was planning something.
I tried to act as normal as possible but Scarlett picked up that there was something wrong.
While Scarlett was brushing her teeth, Jake knocked on the bedroom door. He handed me the syringe as he gave me a sympathetic look.
I closed the door and before Scarlett came out of the bathroom I got into our bed and hid the syringe under her pillow. I felt a pang of guilt but I tried to ignore it. I kept questioning if I was doing the right thing but I knew that keeping her alive was all that counted.
"Who was that?" she asked as she climbed into the bed. I pulled her into my arms and held her close as my hand reached for the hidden syringe.
"It was Jake. I needed him to do some stuff for me and he was just reporting back," I lied.
She closed her eyes and I realized how far I was willing to go to keep her safe—it made me realize that I loved her. I loved her more than the fate and destiny that joined us together.
"I love you," I whispered as I feathered a kiss against her forehead. She looked up at me, obviously surprised at my declaration.
"I love you too," she murmured. My happiness at the words she said was weighed down by the guilt that was building up inside of me.
"You are everything I ever wanted," I said quietly to her as she closed her eyes and I hugged her. At the same time I pushed the syringe into her back.
"I'm sorry," I whispered at her shocked and confused expression.
The sedative only took moments to knock her out. But just a few mumbled thoughts filtered through to me before she drifted off.
I can't let them die.
Give myself to Victor.
Anger welled up in me as I realized she'd been planning to sacrifice herself to keep everyone safe. Any guilt I felt about what I was about to do next evaporated.
I couldn't think of what would have happened if Gary hadn't told me that Scarlett had overheard my conversation with Blake. For her own good I was going to keep her safe, and I'd do whatever I had to.
I picked her up gently and carried her downstairs into the basement of the house where cells were located. I'd gotten Jake to get one ready for her.
I didn't know how I was going to face her once she woke up. She was going to be hurt and angry. I had no idea if it was something she would ever be able to forgive me for.
