chapter 9
962 Words
Marcus agreed to the sleepover without ceremony.
No lecture. No conditions spoken aloud. Just a nod over his coffee and a quiet, “Friday’s fine.”
Aria froze mid-bite.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
Suspicion flickered across her face. She was old enough now to know that easy permission usually meant something else had been decided without her. But relief won out. It always did.
“Thank you,” she said, and meant more than just the words.
Marcus watched her carefully as she gathered her things. Watched the way she moved light, unaware, unburdened. He told himself that was the point. That this was what protecting her looked like now.
The drive to school passed in fragments of conversation. A quiz. A teacher she didn’t like. A joke about cafeteria food. Marcus responded where required, his attention split between the road and the subtle shifts in her tone.
As they slowed near the school gates, Aria spoke again, casual, rehearsed.
“I wouldn’t mind walking home today,” she said. “Lena and I could ”
“No.”
The word landed heavier than he intended.
Aria turned toward him. “You didn’t even hear the rest.”
“I heard enough.” He pulled into the drop-off lane and stopped. “I’ll pick you both up after school.”
Both.
Her brows drew together. “You don’t usually ”
“I do now.”
Silence stretched between them, thick and uncomfortable. Aria studied him the way she had when she was younger, back when she thought she could read him if she stared long enough.
“You’re being weird,” she said finally.
Marcus didn’t respond.
She sighed, grabbed her bag, and opened the door. Then paused.
“Lena’s last name is Morales,” she added, glancing back. “In case you forgot.”
“I didn’t.”
That earned him a look half-annoyed, half-amused before she shut the door and disappeared into the morning crowd.
Marcus waited longer than necessary before pulling away.
He didn’t go far.
The school parking lot was already half-full, students spilling across the grounds in clusters. Marcus parked where he could see the entrance clearly. He didn’t need to search long.
Lena Morales stood near the steps, laughing with another girl. She looked exactly like she had at dinner in his mind harmless. Open. Human.
Pack.
The word slid through him uninvited.
Lena’s laughter cut off abruptly. She stiffened, eyes scanning the area. Her friend kept talking, oblivious.
Marcus stepped out of the car.
He didn’t rush. Didn’t stalk. He simply walked, letting his presence unfold naturally. Letting the space bend around him.
Lena’s gaze locked onto his.
Recognition hit instantly.
Her smile didn’t return.
She murmured something to her friend and stepped away, posture tight, controlled. She didn’t run. That told him everything.
Marcus stopped just close enough that the noise of the school dulled around them.
“Lena Morales,” he said quietly.
Her chin lifted. “Sir.”
Good. Respect without submission.
“You spend time with my daughter.”
“Yes.”
“No hesitation,” he noted. “That’s brave. Or careless.”
Her jaw tightened. “I’m careful.”
“Are you?”
Her eyes flicked briefly checking sightlines, distance, exits. She wasn’t afraid of him. Not entirely.
She was afraid of slipping.
Marcus leaned closer, his voice dropping.
“You’re pack,” he said.
Her breath caught. Just once.
“But harmless,” he continued. “That’s why you’re still standing here.”
Her hands curled into fists. “I don’t want any trouble.”
“I don’t care what you want,” Marcus replied. “I care what you do.”
She swallowed.
“You will not tell Aria what you are,” he said. “Not now. Not ever.”
“I wouldn’t ”
He let his eyes shift.
Just enough.
The brown bled away, replaced by something older, brighter, inhuman. The air seemed to press inward. Lena staggered half a step back before she could stop herself.
“Don’t lie to me,” Marcus said softly.
Her pulse spiked. He could hear it.
“I won’t,” she whispered. “I swear.”
“Swears are fragile things.”
“I know,” she said quickly. “I know the rules. I’ve kept them.”
He searched her scent not for fear, but for deceit. Found none.
“Good,” he said. “Because if Aria learns the truth from you, it won’t matter how harmless you are.”
The threat wasn’t loud. It didn’t need to be.
Lena nodded once. Controlled. Steady. Pack-trained.
“Friday,” she said. “The sleepover. Is that still okay?”
Marcus held her gaze a moment longer.
“Yes.”
Relief flashed across her face before she could hide it.
“But you will remember,” he added, stepping back. “You’re a guest in her world.”
“I understand.”
He turned away without another word.
As Marcus walked back toward his car, the weight returned the sense of being watched, measured. He didn’t acknowledge it. Didn’t slow.
Not yet.
The presence didn’t follow.
It noticed.
A flicker in the treeline beyond the school. A smile that wasn’t a smile. Something ancient and amused.
Marcus felt it brush past him like a passing shadow.
On his way out, his phone vibrated.
No message. No missed call.
Just a single word on the screen before it vanished.
Careful.
Marcus’s grip tightened on the steering wheel.
He drove away without looking back.
Behind him, Lena exhaled shakily and forced herself to walk into the building like nothing had happened.
And above them all, unseen and patient, something smiled because the game had finally acknowledged its players.
- Writer
