I shutmyself up in my nest that evening, curl up in my favorite blanket, and call my brother.
“Junibear, how’s my favorite sister?”
I hesitate. “Hawthorn, I need your help. It’s about Yule. Father has invited Andrew Radcliffe to stay with us.”
I can practically hear the grinding of his teeth through the phone. “I still haven’t forgiven Father for forcing you to court that monster.”
“Rad intends to mate me over the holiday. He said his bite would be on my neck by the new year.”
He puts the pieces together quickly. “You’re going to be in heat.”
“He knows it, too. He… he told me to leave my door unlocked.”
“I’ll fucking kill him,” my older brother snarls. “You aren’t being mated against your will. Not by him, not by anyone.”
I sigh. “Hawthorn, there’s… there’s something else I need to tell you. A lot of something elses, actually. To start, that freaky magic we were talking about last Yule? Well, it’s an affinity.”
“I thought as much, but what does that have to do with me beating that piece of shit bloody?”
“He has information that I… that the resistance needs.”
“What do you know about the resistance, Juniper?” Hawthorn asks carefully.
“I went to a resistance meeting before they were declared a terrorist group,” I tell him quietly. “Rad took me to the secret facility where they’re making and testing the collars. I passed that information along to the resistance. And my whole pack is part of the resistance.”
“I’m sorry, your wholewhat?”
I heave out a sigh. “You know my study buddy? My ‘dick date’ as you called him? I’ve been with him since last fall. And I’ve been with others too. My beta tutor, Simon. My peer advisor, Cassian.”
“Cassian, who broke your heart, Cassian?”
“Father drove us apart. He lied to Cassian about me and hid all of Cassian’s messages to me.”
“Why does that not surprise me?” he mutters. “Saints forbid one of his children could be with someone they love.”
“And then there’s Ian.”
“Ian, my best friend, Ian? Ian, your dickhead professor, Ian?”
“Ian, who protected me and unlocked my magic. Ian who taught me to fight back and escape an omega trap. I’m in love with him, Hawth.”
Hawthorn lets out a low whistle. “Well, I didn’t see that coming. I thought he was just your asshole professor.”
“He was. Until he wasn’t. Until he was again. It’s complicated and it fucking sucks. I hate sneaking around. But even though we’re not mated, I consider him my alpha. I consider all of my men mine.”
“But you’re not bonded to any of them yet?”
“Father would literally disown me, Hawthorn.”
“Would that be so bad?”
Would it?
“You know the lengths he’ll go to get what he wants. Rad’s the same way. No matter what, he gets what he wants. And what he wants is me and my affinity.”
“He knows.”
“He does,” I sigh. “I have this ability that’s like… like driving magical daggers into someone’s mind. I used them on him when he captured and tortured Simon. But I’ve also used it to glean some information from him. I can read him, his emotions, his thoughts. That’s how I intend to get information out of him.”
