SCARLETT

A few days passed. Roman had still been working hard, and although it appeared he was battling with himself to keep distance between us, we still hadn't spoken a whole lot. I had made him breakfast once. He clearly appreciated it, but still kept conversation to a minimum.

I had been using the foundation on my face to keep up with the facade that I had purchased it for my blemishes. I tried my best not to overdo it, but I couldn't help but think it looked a little weird when I caught sight of myself in the mirror. Perhaps it was because I wasn't used to seeing myself with such baby-smooth skin.

I was on my way to the office complex to visit Brandon. Erica had set me up with some work to do, since I had a conversation with her about wanting to earn my own money. It didn't feel right receiving a handout from my mate. I understood he felt like he needed to provide for me, but I had always been independent, and I didn't like the idea of sitting around expecting people to pay for me. It wasn't my style.

Brandon was waiting for me down in the foyer, and he beamed once he spotted me. "Hey, Scar."

I mentally recoiled. The nickname was oddly fitting.

"Hey, Erica said you have some work for me?" I questioned, choosing to ignore the pen name..

"I do. Roman and I have been swamped with paperwork, and it's got a little messy. We just need it sorted into their correct piles, and the ones no longer needed can be shredded. Think you can manage that?" Brandon began leading me up towards his office. I had been under the impression that he and his brother shared one, but apparently I was mistaken.

"Sure can." I smiled. The thought of actually having a job was exciting. How pathetic did that sound? It hit me how peculiar my upbringing had been, but I shoved the thoughts away. I needed to focus on the task in-hand. Not only because I was going to be getting paid, but because I was being trusted to sort through confidential files.

I was going to need to keep an eye out for any paperwork that mentioned Nyx and the Enclave Clan.

We passed Roman's office on the way down the corridor, and I stole a fleeting glance at the door, the action catching Brandon's attention.

"He's not in there. He's on his break," he told me. "But he wasn't too keen on the idea of you getting a job. He stated that there's no reason for you to have to work for your money, but Erica told him how lonely you get on your own, so he agreed to let me find you something."

I wondered if Roman knew what I was actually doing. Would he approve of me having access to files that other wolves weren't allowed to look at?

"I'm going to work in Roman's office so you can have some peace and quiet while you're sorting. I've got a few calls to make." Brandon grabbed his laptop and phone before going into more detail about the task I was being given.

It sounded pretty straight forward. Pile everything into their correct category and shred anything that was received over six months ago. Easy.

I was relieved when Brandon left. It meant I could rummage through the papers looking for information on Nyx and the people that wanted me captured. Although there was a niggling part of me that was worried that he had cameras in here. Was he going to play them back and see me reading all the documents? It wouldn't look too suspicious, surely? It was what Brandon asked of me.

I spent the next forty five minutes organising files, having to shred most of them due to them being years old. There were a few pieces of paper that mentioned the Enclave Clan, but it was general information that I already knew.

There wasn't anything of interest, so I allowed myself to enjoy the quiet time. The buzzing of the shredder cut the silence in the large room like a knife, and eventually, my knees began to complain from leaning down on them for so long.

Just as I was about to get up and take a quick break, there was a soft knock at the office door. I opened it hesitantly to see my mate, his face concerned and his body stiff.

"What are you doing in here?" he asked, stepping inside.

"Brandon found me something to do for some cash. He said he told you." I tilted my head towards the now significantly smaller pile of paperwork that still needed working through. I had shredded so much paper that I was certain I could fill ten olympic size swimming pools with remains - not that I had ever seen one in person.

"I wasn't aware he was giving you access to our files." Roman ran his tongue along the front of his teeth as he picked up a document, humming as he examined it. He didn't look angry, just frustrated.

He didn't trust me. Clearly.

"I've just been shredding them," I said, gesturing to the mess. "I haven't been reading them in great detail. Only to see which pile to sort them into."

Roman's eyes softened as he looked me over, and he subconsciously took a step towards me. His fingers twitched by his side, and my chest tightened. The tension was so thick, it could be cut with a knife. A large serrated knife. Made of iron.

"Do you want me to stop?" I asked, referring to my job.

Roman furrowed his eyebrows. "No, I know you want to earn your money." He shook his head, releasing a sigh. "It's just that I didn't -"

The office door was pushed open, and Brandon entered, his eyebrows raising at his brother. "Roman, the meeting is starting. Scarlett, are you joining us?"

My mate cocked a brow, sucking on the inside of his cheek as he gazed down at me. He looked troubled, but if he was debating on whether or not to stop me from following them, he didn't.

A part of me was inclined to settle down on Roman's lap as he readied his laptop for their virtual meeting, but I wasn't too sure how he would take it, so instead, I pulled up a chair. I ensured I was out of sight from the camera, twiddling my thumbs.

Brandon was expecting me to become the female Alpha around here, and I knew that was why he had invited me to join in with their meeting, but looking at the way mine and Roman's relationship was heading, I wasn't sure I would ever see the title.

"Thank you for spending the time to talk to us today, Alpha Roman." The voice was loud and dominant, and it was evident that it was an Alpha from another pack at the end of the call. "We have some new information regarding Nyx and the Enclave Clan that we think you could find useful. We've made other packs aware also."

This was information I could use.

I tried my best to keep the anticipation clear from my face though.

My mate nodded, glancing over the laptop screen to search my face, looking for something. I remained neutral though, sucking on my bottom lip as I waited. "Please, go ahead."

"Word on the street is that he's been hunting gifted wolves down in cities, now. Not just in packs. He's got the smaller packs to work for him, and he stakes them out in nearby cities and towns on the lookout for any suspicious activity. They call the Enclave Clan when they find a gifted wolf and they arrive to take them away. So far, there have been a few casualties caused by passerby's intervening, but that never ends well."

I gulped. I had been in that city where that young gifted wolf had been snatched up. It could have so easily been me. Nyx had workers everywhere. They were his eyes and ears.

Roman hummed. "And these smaller packs are agreeing to work with him based on fear, correct?" His voice was so low and deadly that it caused my heart to palpitate, my lungs tightening.

"That's correct."

This was the kind of information that I needed. If things were to go South with Roman and I ended up having to leave, I needed to know the areas to avoid, and now, cities and towns were top of the list.

"We need to speak to these smaller packs and offer them support. They shouldn't feel like they have to do something they don't want to do out of fear." Roman snuck a glance at me. "Can you send me a list of the packs and their contact information?"

"Of course. I'll do that for you now."

"Perfect." Roman ended the call, turning to his brother, running his hands through his already tousled hair. It looked like that wasn't the first time he had done that today. "Nyx and the Enclaves are getting more and more people behind them. It won't be long before he has enough packs under his wing to plan an attack on a stronger and bigger pack."

"Us," Brandon muttered, clicking his tongue, unimpressed.

"He will not hurt my pack. Or anyone I care about. I won't stand for it." Roman's eyes drifted towards me, and I sighed under his intense gaze, his emerald eyes drawing me in and putting me in some kind of trance. I was under his spell whenever he looked at me in such a way, and I was afraid that I would do anything he asked of me when I was like this.

"I should go and finish sorting the paperwork." I cleared my throat, snapping my own eyes away from Roman's, my insides shuddering.

"Actually, I'd like you at home, Scarlett. With me." Roman stood, and I craned my neck. His height still impressed me. "Brandon can finish off the rest of the paperwork. Here's your payment."

I was handed a wad of cash, and I glanced at it, my eyes widening. "But I didn't finish."

"It doesn't matter. Let's go."

I said a quick goodbye to Brandon, following a quiet Roman out of the office complex and towards his house. He was walking quickly, and I struggled to keep up, having to speed walk next to him just to match his long strides.

"I should really give you back half of this money," I said. "It's not right for me to take it all."

Roman shook his head at me. "I have plenty of money, Scarlett. You keeping that doesn't affect me in the slightest. You worked, so you deserve to be paid."

I resisted the temptation to argue. It was obvious that Roman wasn't going to accept the money back, and as wrong as it was for me to take it, I did need it.

"What would you like for dinner?" my mate asked me as we entered the house, and I perked up at the sound of food. I hadn't been eating much recently - the stress of our strained relationship was getting to me.

"Anything. I can help cook if you'd like?" I forced a smile, and although Roman met it with his own, it didn't reach his eyes.

"Sure. Go into my father's study and take a look at some of his old cookbooks. Bring out anything you like the look of."

I adhered, entering Roman's father's study, immediately sneezing due to the amount of dust in the room. Sifting through some of the books, I turned my nose up at a few classic literature as well as some non-fiction books, but when I located the cooking section, I smiled with pride, pulling one out.

Spanish tapas.

I was in the mood for something a little more hearty, so I placed the book back and elongated my spine in order to reach the books above. However, I was just shy of it. Growling to myself, I grabbed the rickety ladder and slid it across the bookcase, clambering up it.

Humming, I sifted through some books, chewing on my bottom lip, waiting for inspiration to hit me. However, before that could happen, something caught my attention on top of the bookshelf.

An old dusty book - covered in cobwebs and a layer of dirt.

I wasn't sure what possessed me to grab it and hold it to my chest, but I did, and what I opened the book to reveal was enough to shatter my entire world.