The drive seemed to go on forever and lead nowhere. It wasn't until the light of morning started to creep out that we finally came to a stop.
"We're here," Isaac grumbled.
I couldn't see him or Boston or anything else for that matter. Once I'd settled into the backseat back at the University, Isaac had thrown an old, paint-stained sheet of canvas on my lap and commanded that I lay down and cover myself. That was hours ago.
A warm hand rested on my knee.
"You awake, Noa?" Boston asked.
As if I could have fallen asleep.
No, I had been awake every excruciating minute of the drive. It had been mostly silent, only the sound of the tires on the long pavement and Boston occasionally giving directions to Isaac. Not long ago, the smooth pavement had turned bumpy as the car turned off what I assumed to be a more rural road that hadn't seen maintenance in the years since the Lycan took over, and probably many years before as well.
"Yeah. Is it okay if I come out now?" I croaked.
I could almost hear Isaac rolling his eyes before a car door opened and slammed shut.
"You're good," Boston replied. "Just keep your hood on and your head down while we walk inside."
I threw off the musty sheet that concealed me and sat up to take in my surroundings.
We were parked in front of a house. There were other houses in sight, but they were spread out far enough to be uncharacteristic of a suburban neighborhood. We must have been somewhere in the backcountry, but in an area a little too populated to be considered rural.
Isaac's irritation was evident as he waved to us from the porch to follow him inside the house. I put up my hood and scurried beside Boston the short distance to the house and through the door. Once Boston and I were inside, Isaac quickly shut the door behind himself.
I took a look around, although there wasn't much to see. We stood in the foyer, which led to what could only be the living room. Although, it didn't seem like there was much living going on. All the room contained was an old, lumpy green couch against the far wall and a wooden chair missing a leg on its side in the corner. It smelled musty in the way that unlived-in houses tend to. A thin layer of dust coated the sparsely decorated landscape and the wallpaper was peeling off large swaths.
"Where are we?" I breathed.
"Nowhere," Isaac snapped. He locked three different bolts on the door before stalking further into the room, stopping in its center.
"We'll stay here for the day and then move to the safe house tonight." His eyes narrowed at Boston. "You take first watch. I'm going to sleep."
Isaac didn't wait for a response. He turned and stalked down a dark hallway. The sound of a door shutting was the only cue that he had reached his destination and officially retired.
For the first time since we'd been in my dorm, Boston and I were alone.
Silence engulfed us. I felt I should say something, but I didn't know what. The bizarreness of the situation and the suddenness with which everything unfolded (combined with the fact I was approaching 24 hours without sleep) made my thoughts hard to detangle.
I had never been unsettled being alone with Boston. It felt unnatural. I hugged myself around my center and forced myself to speak.
"So, I don't suppose you would be willing to share any details about our whereabouts, would you?"
Boston chucked. It was a beautiful noise, but not nearly as beautiful as his smile.
"We're in the Lauder Territory. This–" he extended his arms at his sides and took a step back, showing off the surrounding space like it was a luxury resort, "–is a satellite house. Members of the Resistance come here when they're in transit and need a place to crash for a night or two. We'll move to the safe house tonight."
I glanced around the room. I wasn't sure what I was expecting from the Resistance, but if their satellite house was any indication of their proficiency, I was less than comforted.
Boston extended a hand to me. "Come on. You look exhausted. Let's go find you a bed."
I couldn't argue with that. All the exhaustion of the last day seemed to finally be hitting me like a wall.
I slipped my hand into Boston's and allowed myself to a small room down the hall. It was entirely empty except for a bare mattress on the ground with a singular lumpy pillow and threadbare blanket.
Boston rubbed his nape. "I know it's not exactly the lap of luxury...Do you want me to grab the sheet from the car?"
I shook my head. It wasn't ideal, but I'd slept in worse conditions. At least the mattress and pillow looked to be in surprisingly good condition.
I lowered myself to the edge of the mattress.
"Don't you need to be on watch or whatever?" I asked absently.
He shrugged. "There's not exactly much to watch for. We don't have a security perimeter. It's more just keeping an ear out for any strange noises."
Strange noises. My mind wandered as I contemplated those words.
What kind of noises were they looking for? The sound of someone attempting to break-in and loot? A stray animal searching for food? Or was it the noise of a dozen Enforcers' boots crunching on fallen leaves outside as they prepared to kick down the door and take me kicking and screaming from the building, just as they had with Chelsea just hours before.
Chelsea.
Just a day before she'd been just like me—a girl from the Alderman territory, one of just a handful of students who had been given the opportunity to attend University.
Now what was her future? To be a broodmare to a monster?
The reality of the last twelve hours hit me like a truck. I bent over, burying my head in my hands.
"Oh God, I'm sorry," I moaned.
The sudden change in demeanor took Boston off guard. His confusion and mild panic were evident on his face as he crouched in front of me, trying to get a better look at my face.
"What are you talking about, Noa? What the Hell do you have to be sorry about?"
"For getting you into this mess!" I snapped.
My eyes met his sympathy-filled gaze. It was almost too much to bear. My eyes filled with tears that threatened to spill over.
"It's going to be okay, Noa. I promise you." Despite how certain he sounded, I didn't feel reassured.
"You don't know that!" I snapped. "I mean if I am mated to a...to one of those..." It's impossible to choke the word out. The thought of it alone makes me feel nauseous. "I'm so sorry, Boston. You never should have gotten involved with this."
"Stop. Apologizing. This isn't your fault," He said firmly, gathering my hands in his. "You are the most important person on the planet to me. And I would do anything to keep you safe. You know that right?"
He searched my face for confirmation that his words were resigning but I couldn't bring myself to meet his eyes. No longer able to blink away my tears, they rolled down my face. Boston gently wiped them away before moving to sit beside me and gathering me up into his arms. I let my body sage against his and rested my head on his shoulder. His fingers gently caressed my arm.
"I think this is the first time I've seen you cry since we were kids. Book and animal-related incidents excluded," he said, a teasing quirk at the corner of his mouth.
I couldn't help but smile waterily. "My grandad's funeral." Just like when we were kids, I can't help but correct him when he was wrong.
"I couldn't tell. My vision was too clouded by my own crying."
We stayed like that for some time. Two lost souls finding comfort in each others' arms.
It was only when the draining exhaustion set in and I found myself beginning to nod off did Boston start to stir.
"You should get some sleep. It's been a long day." He gingerly untangled his body from mine and made to stand.
"Wait!"
I grasped his hand, preventing him from leaving my side.
"Stay. Please...At least until I fall asleep."
He didn't say no. I knew he wouldn't. Boston almost never said no to me. It was why I rarely asked him for anything unless I really needed it. And in that moment I needed him there with me like I needed oxygen.
He seemed to study my face in the dim light. Then, without a word, he moved to arrange himself on the mattress and laid down. Once he had settled, he placed the raggedy blanket over himself before lifting up one side, a silent invite to lay beside him. Without hesitation, I crawled to him and curled into his side, resting my head on his chest. His arm wrapped around me and pressed me against him.
It wasn't long until my exhaustion got the best of me as the steady beat of his heart lulled me to sleep's grasp.
As the world around me began to fade from reality, a familiar voice whispered, "I won't let them take you from me too. You're mine."
┍━☽【❖】☾━┑
Only darkness could be seen from between the cracks of the plywood covering the only window in the room when I awoke hours later. I'd slept through the entire day. I wasn't quite sure how, but I was grateful for the relief that it had provided. Even if waking meant the previous night had not been a terrible dream.
Boston hadn't been there when I'd woken up. I'd hoped he'd return once he was done with his 'shift,' but he must have taken refuge in the room of one of the other closed doors in the hallway we'd passed the previous night.
My body felt painfully stiff as I stood and stretched. I shouldn't have been surprised considering I'd spent hours crunched up in a ball in the backseat of the car the day before and then slept on a lumpy pillow and mattress that was who-knows how many years old. I just had to hope I wouldn't be walking away with lice or bed bugs.
That was probably silly to worry about, anyway–with everything else going on. After all, I was officially a fugitive in leagues with the Resistance.
Nausea gripped the muscles of my stomach at the thought. It didn't feel real. None of it did. And I wished so desperately that it wasn't real.
But it was. And the sooner I accepted that, the better. For everyone.
We'd be leaving for the Resistance safehouse soon. Who knew what the future held after that? Certainly not me.
What I did know was that sticking my head in the sand and pretending that this all wasn't happening wouldn't do any good. I could grieve the loss of the life I'd known once Boston and I were safe–whatever 'safe' even was.
After folding the blanket and placing it on the mattress, I tiptoed from the room, careful to close the door behind me as quietly as possible in case Boston was still sleeping. I hoped he wasn't. It was nearly dark which meant we would probably be leaving soon but I still didn't want to get stuck alone trying to make conversation with Isaac in the meantime.
The doorknob was still in my hand when I heard a voice carry from down the hall.
"I am simply making a suggestion," someone–Isaac–growled.
His voice was distant. He must have been in the small kitchen I'd seen off of the living room on the wall across from the hallway.
"Then keep your fucking 'suggestions' to yourself," Boston hissed.
It sounded like he and Isaac were in a heated discussion. But about what?
"You know, I would if your little rescue mission wasn't risking fucking all of us."
"I didn't ask for your help," Boston spat. He was clear he was trying to keep his volume contained but his voice still dripped with venom.
Isaac, on the other hand, seemed much less concerned about being overheard and barked out a laugh. "No, but you were more than happy to take it, weren't you?"
"If you were so against this mission, why'd you even come? Just to be a fucking asshole? Or was it that you were hoping to find something to report back to Lowen?"
There was a brief pause before Isaac replied, "I wanted to see her for myself."
"Well, you've seen her now. Is she as terrible and threatening as you thought?"
There was a scoff. "You're so fucking blind," Isaac said. "You're so concerned with getting your dick wet that you refuse to see what's right in front of you."
"What I see is an innocent human girl in need of help. Isn't that the whole point of the Resistance? To help humans who need it?"
"That's your problem. You can't see the bigger picture."
"If you have something to say, fucking say it."
"I don't think you want to hear what I have to say–or what anyone does, for that matter. Maybe if you did, you would have talked to Lowen."
"We needed to move on a recovery mission immediately. There wasn't time to wait to talk to Lowen."
"No, of course not," Isaac replied, his words dripping with sarcasm. "I'm sure that it had nothing to do with what he might say to do with your little girlfriend."
"The Resistance has helped human mates escape the Lycan before."
"Not when the Lycan was a fucking Alpha."
My skin goes cold. No. Anything but an Alpha. I knew my fate was sealed before, but knowing I was mated to an Alpha cemented it. I was fucked.
"We don't even know which Alpha it is. Jac couldn't pull that information. It's possible it's no one important."
The argument sounded weak even to me. Alphas were rare and powerful. Most if not all controlled their own territories.
"It doesn't matter, it's an alpha. Do you know how territorial Lycans are when it comes to their mates? He will stop at nothing until he has her. Do you understand that? Nothing. He'll burn down cities to get to her. And if he gets her, it's over for us. And no offense, Boston, but I'm not down to die for your little girlfriend. "
"I didn't take you for a coward, Isaac."
"I didn't take you for an idiot, Boston."
"Everything okay?" I called out, my feet moved toward the kitchen without my permission.
I stepped into the doorway of the kitchen where Isaac and Boston stood practically chest to chest. The air was thick with tension before Isaac turned, brushing past me with even a glance. A moment later the sound of the front door gave the cue that he had left.
I watched Boston change into a facade of faux ease before my eyes, rolling his shoulders back to force a less tense posture and adorning a relaxed smile. The act looked so natural that if I hadn't directly witnessed the argument, I would have never guessed there'd been one.
"You're up." He smiled. "You sleep okay?"
I raised an eyebrow in a way that said 'are you going to ignore how Isaac just ran out of here?' but Boston waved a hand dismissively.
"Don't mind him. He's just antsy to get on the road. We're just waiting for it to get a little darker before we set out. Are you hungry?"
I nodded. Boston began to open the paint-chipped cupboards.
"Where are we going?"
"The safe house." I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. That wasn't what I was asking and he knew it.
"And then?" I pressed.
He opened another empty drawer. "And then we hopefully get you something to eat. It doesn't look like the previous guests here bothered to leave us anything."
"Boston..."
"What?" He asked innocently.
His dancing around a straight answer was more than annoying. It was hurtful. I thought that he trusted me more than that. My thoughts must have been evident on my face because Boston grimaced.
"I know you're upset," He said. "You don't have to pretend you're not."
"Oh, don't worry, I fully acknowledge I am very upset."
He winced. I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "How'd you even end up in the Resistance?"
He straightened. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, the only indication of his hesitancy to answer. "I was recruited."
I wasn't sure if that was better or worse than him seeking out the Resistance. In the end, I guessed it didn't matter. Either way, he had put himself at risk of death.
"How?" I asked.
Boston hesitated.
"Oh, I'm sorry. Is that an invasive question? Forgive me, I'm not well versed in Resistance etiquette."
"I was doing a transpo job for them...moving some supplies across territory lines." He shrugged. "I guess they were impressed by my work."
"How long ago?" I asked quietly. Boston studied me before responding.
"October."
"Nine months ago? God damn it, Boston. I was gone for what? Two months? And you joined the damn Resistance!?"
He didn't deny it. He just looked at me. Like he knew I had more to say. When he didn't speak, I pressed on.
"So what, all those times you came to visit me at school and you were in the Resistance the entire time?" I cried.
The deception stung. All this time I'd been losing sleep over Boston's illegal transportation gigs. That was peanuts compared to being in the Resistance.
The worst you could get for running an illegal transportation job was some public lashings, maybe jail time. But truthfully, it was one of those things that even the Enforcers turned a blind eye to.
But the Resistance? That'd get you executed.
Boston's gaze softened. "I was trying to keep you safe." His lips quirked. "Plus, I was hoping to avoid a lecture."
"I only lecture because I worry about you doing something stupid and getting yourself hurt," I huffed.
"I know, Noa. I know."
Silence crept into the room.
"What are we going to do, Boston?" I whispered after some time.
"You, me, and Isaac are going to drive to the safe house. Then, we will figure out what exactly the best next steps are."
'We' as in me and Boston? Or 'we' as in the Resistance?
I hated the idea of placing so much of my trust in an organization I knew so little about. Especially after the conversation I'd overheard between Isaac and Boston.
My eyes trail to the door. "He doesn't seem to like me very much."
"He doesn't like most people, I wouldn't take it personally," he replied nonchalantly.
I pursed my lips in thought. "I don't blame him. For not liking me, that is. I'm the one who's got you guys into this mess."
"Hey, hey, hey! Don't say that. This is what we do—what the Resistance does. We're here to help humans."
"Boston..." I chewed my lip debating my next words. "Is it...is it true? That my, uh...that the, um, Lycan I'm...matched to is an alpha?"
Boston flinched. "You heard that?"
"You two weren't exactly being subtle," I quipped. "So...is it true?"
"Yes."
My stomach tightens uncomfortably at the confirmation. I tried to swallow the growing lump in my throat. "Well, shit," My voice cracked on the last word.
Boston quickly crossed to me and engulfed me in a hug. I don't cry, though. It feels like my tears are momentarily dried up and all that's left is numbness.
"It's okay, Noa. It doesn't change a damn thing." He stroked his hand up and down the length of my spine in long, tender caresses.
"Doesn't it though? You heard Isaac, Lycans don't ever stop until they have their mates. And that would be scary enough if I was mated to a Gamma. But an alpha?"
"Isaac doesn't know the first thing about matebonds," he dismissed.
"And you do?" I challenged. It takes me a moment to realize my words but once they register I'm immediately filled with guilt and shock over my callousness. "Boston, I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to—"
He waved me off. "Don't apologize, Noa, I know what you meant. And you're right—I don't know much about...matebonds," he spat out the word in disgust. "But what I do know is that you are the most important thing in the entire world to me. You're my family. And I'll do anything and everything in my power to keep you away from that monster. Whoever he is."
His words were firm and I could tell he believed them. I just wished I did too.
I gave a weak smile. Boston opened his mouth like he was about to say more when the front door slammed open. A disgruntled Isaac behind it.
His eyes narrowed in on us. The intensity of his scowl makes my skin prickle uncomfortably.
"It's time. Let's go."