It was hard to wait for someone who wasn't around. I tried to be patient and keep my curiosity under wraps, but it was too difficult considering everything in this room was a reminder of him not being here.

"You're still here?" Merida asked once I had made it downstairs and it was really dark. She was sitting on the couch with her legs on Mr. Ramon and she craned her neck to look at me. "You were so quiet; I thought you had left with Ryder."

"Why didn't you leave with Ryder?" Mr. Ramon countered before Merida lightly hit him on the chest, causing him to restrain from chuckling just once. Well at least he was getting what he wanted by me leaving.

"Well, just tell him I left and I'll see him later," I pleaded within a sigh. "Good night."

"Night," Merida smiled and I left, adjusting to driving Ryder's Porsche. And I had also noticed that the dark red truck that had always been sitting there was missing.

"Where've you been?" Cassandra asked once I got home. I threw the keys on the counter and leaned on it while smelling every exact ingredient she was cooking with. I put my forehead against the marble when I realized that I left all my bags of clothes and shopping gear in the Porsche.

"I'll be right back..."

"I have a question," Andrew announced when I began to get up.

"Does Ryder just buy you out every time he's an asshole? Because I think I should deserve the same treatment," he taunted. I grabbed the car keys before he could.

"He didn't buy me out," I denied. "Preston dropped me off at his house and then Ryder had something to do later on so he said I could drive home. There."

"Why were you at his house? You left supposedly shopping!"

"Well things change, okay?"

Andrew groaned out of frustration. My first thoughts went back to Ryder and his brother. And how one of them wasn't even here anymore. He had probably missed many moments of him groaning at him because of a girl.

Can I talk to you outside? I thought to him.

"Whatever," he voiced and began stomping off in that direction. I sighed as I looked at Cassandra as the front door slammed shut.

"So what happened at Ryder's?" she questioned and I dared her to bounce her eyebrow out of inappropriateness, but it never happened.

"We...talked," I tried to simplify. Then her eyebrow rose. "And we kissed and we talked more. That's it."

I rushed and fled the scene. I walked outside with a new feeling. Somehow, no matter how reassuring I wanted to be with Andrew, I was...drained. I was tired of feeling like my brother hated me and the universe's choice for my mate. It was ridiculous and energy consuming that I didn't have time for. Especially not when I was busy worrying about Ryder. I didn't know why he went out with some guy and "Brett" and "Maya" when we had agreed to not worry about my anomaly.

But still, I wanted to assure Andrew that everything was fine.

"Ryder didn't turn me; I turned myself," I began.

"What, did he convince you that after he bit you; that you had a choice in whether or not to accept the Bite or not?" he scoffed with his arms around his knees. I sat beside him but he refused to look at me. He looked straight ahead at the Mustang with a look resembling the one I had before I destroyed his.

"Drew, my eyes were purple," I told him and it caused him to look over. "Look, shit happened during the trip because Stella had kissed Ryder—"

"Of course they kissed."

"—and I tried not to get angry, but then Ryder sensed me following him and got me. Stella said something and I snapped," I finished. "I saw exactly what Ryder saw and my eyes were purple, Andrew. Last time I checked, Betas were silver—"

"It's different. You wouldn't be his Beta."

"Good...because I'm not his Beta or anything," I agreed.

"Then what are you?" he raised his voice. "Because nothing is adding up, Ashlynn. Nothing! You can't expect me to believe that you just phased out of nowhere and Ryder had nothing to do with it."

"But I do expect you to believe it, so believe it!" I yelled at him and felt a new surge of energy course threw me and delegate into every fiber of Andrew's being before the sensation rushed his veins, turned to ice at his heart and broke off. He stood up.

"You can tell Ryder whatever you want from the entitlement that he's making you think you have, but you are not my alpha," he hissed before spinning on his heels. "So don't tell me what to do."

"I don't know why you think that means anything to me," I retorted. "You're the one who doesn't want to be Alpha, remember! I heard you talking to Ryder before we left for the trip." Andrew paused. "I heard you say that you didn't want to be Alpha, but you flipped your shit when he offered to Bite me...So make up your mind, Andrew. I am here. I'm a werewolf and Ryder didn't change me. So do you want to be an alpha now that you're not the only one in the family or what? Because if you're going to continue to try to be a tyrant to me and my mate, then I rather just take the title from you so you don't turn into a dick like his brother was or like Preston will be."

"You don't even know what you're talking about."

I groaned. "Why do you keep saying that? I know everything, Andrew! I'm not saying that because I'm arrogant, but look around! I have you in one ear and Bailee in another along with Stella and not to mention the unlimited access to Ryder. If there was something to know then I would know it. Stop trying to put the blame on everyone else, Andrew. Please."

"I'll stop trying to blame your goddamn boyfriend when he can explain why I found a witch at our doorstep asking for you on behalf of whatever shit Ryder pulled you into."

***

"Ryder, answer your phone!" I finally yelled through the receiver and hung up. Ryder where are you?

I had half a mind to call Merida to question where her son was, but the other half kept calling out to Ryder like someone trying to get a message sent through the crowded telephone lines on New Years.

I asked Andrew to describe the girl one more time and I searched my memories for a small blonde girl who had a natural darkness in her eyes. And then my memory went to when Bailee talked about how Ryder had spent the whole "sick day" of Stella's to be with Stormy. So I called Bailee.

"Ashlynn?" she grumbled, probably asleep.

"Hey, sorry for calling so late, but do you have Stormy's number?"

"She doesn't really have a number," she sighed.

"Well can you tell me where she lives?"

"I don't know where she lives," she sang, already falling back asleep. "Ask someone else."

"What about Evan?"

"He's...he might be at the café because Ryder was still sitting outside with some people last time I called, but Evan's probably upstairs because his sister was crying about some guy sitting with Ryder," she explained in a yawn. Hmm. I sighed, trying to piece things together, but at least now I knew Ryder was just in town with probably members of his pack. Suddenly, the doorbell rang and it seemed almost immediately that Andrew opened my bedroom door and looked at me.

"It's her. The witch."

"Thanks, Bailee. Good night," I rushed before hanging up the phone and following Andrew downstairs to the front door. The scent was vaguely familiar, like when someone told you to describe something; you noticed more things about it. A part of this scent threatened to burn my nose if I inhaled too much. I opened the door without checking the peephole and saw a girl standing there as mysterious as any other time I had been introduced to her. She glanced at Andrew briefly and then I realized that her name described the grayish texture of her eyes when they finally fell upon mine.

"I assumed you would be looking for me by now."