Page 217 of Without a Trace
She waited, measuring me with that same calm intensity.
“I’ve known Scarlett since we were eight,” she said. “I’ve seen her wild. Soft. Wrecked. I’ve seen her fight through things most people would run from.”
Her voice quieted.
“But I’ve never seen her carry this much… It’s you,” she added. “That’s the part that gets me. It’s not Alden. Not the bond. It’s always been you.”
I looked away.
“She won’t choose,” she said. “Not really. But if she did?”
“I don’t want her to,” I muttered.
Sloane set her mug down with a soft clink. “Bullshit.”
She stepped closer, not flinching.
“You want her in every way a man can have a woman. But you’ll let her tear you apart just to keep her whole.”
I didn’t respond.
Because she was right.
And I hated how much that felt like love.
Scarlett
The map took up half the table, Zeke gathering us all for a ‘briefing.’
Old routes marked in charcoal. New ones drawn in red. Pins stabbed through paper, tracking where the Hollow Order still had allies—and where the Red Veil had been seen.
Zeke stood at the head of the table, silver pen in hand—too elegant for a war room, but nothing about this felt ordinary anymore.
“Movement on the eastern perimeter,” he said, tapping the paper. “We spotted a scout—Red Veil. Just one, but that means more are close. The safe-house was supposed to be off-grid. Someone led them here… or they’re using something else to track us.”
Sloane straightened, shifting Hemingway in her lap. “Magic?”
Zeke gave a short nod. “Possibly. Or Lena gave them just enough to narrow it down.”
“So we’re not safe here,” I said.
“We’ve got maybe two days,” he continued. “Once they confirm we’re here, they’ll hit fast. If Brielle’s leading, she won’t wait for orders. She moves reckless when she’s confident.
Sloane sat with Hemingway in her lap, quiet but tracking everything.
“Lena won’t just follow,” I said. “She wants power. She’ll make her own play. Try to finish what she started—divide the Order completely. Maybe even take control of what’s left.”
Zeke nodded. “It’s already splintering. Some of them think the bond makes you a threat. Lena’s just giving them an excuse.”
Kane leaned over the map, tracing a line near the ridge. “Then we cut them off here. Force the Red Veil west into the marshlands. Slows them down. Gives us a buffer.”
“It also traps us if they push from the south,” Alden said flatly.
“We’re not playing defense,” Trace said. “We hit them first. Let them know we’re not scared.”
Sloane raised an eyebrow. “Cool. So we’re going with the sexy-suicidal strategy. Got it.”
I cracked a smile. “It’s kind of our thing.”
