Cole drags me into an alley before I can process the screens. My face is everywhere. Fifty thousand alliance coins. Alive.
"Move." He can't actually say it but his grip on my wrist says it for him.
I stumble after him. My legs don't feel like mine. The baby kicks once, hard, like she knows we're in trouble.
We hit the end of the alley and he stops. He's breathing hard. Blood's seeping through his jacket from where he took the knife earlier. I didn't even check if he was okay. I just ran.
"You're bleeding," I whisper.
He ignores me. He's scanning the street like he's looking for something specific. Then he moves again.
I follow because I don't have a choice. The alternative is getting caught. Getting dragged back to Derek. Losing my kid before I even meet her.
Cole pulls me across the street and down a flight of stairs I didn't even see. It's dark. It smells like piss and old smoke. At the bottom there's a door with no handle. He knocks twice, pauses, knocks three more times.
The door opens. A woman with a shaved head and a scar across her nose looks us over. Her eyes land on me and I see it. Recognition.
"Shit," she says. "You're the girl on the screens."
Cole steps in front of me. He can't talk but his body does it for him. The woman raises both hands.
"Relax. I'm not turning anyone in." She steps aside. "Get in before someone else sees her."
We go in. The door shuts behind us and I hear three separate locks click into place.
Inside it's bigger than I expected. It's a market. Not the kind with stalls and bright lights. This one's all shadows and people who don't want to be seen. There are tables lined with things I don't recognize. Vials of liquid. Weapons. Papers that probably have fake names on them.
"This is the Grayline," the woman says. She's watching me like I might bolt. "You're safe here as long as you don't cause trouble. Alliance doesn't come down this far."
"Why not?" I ask.
She grins. It's not a nice grin. "Because the people down here bite back."
Cole's still holding my wrist. His hand is warm. I don't know if that's normal or if it's because he's losing blood.
"You need a medic," I tell him.
He shakes his head. He's looking around the market like he's searching for someone.
The woman with the scar is still standing there. "You got coin?" she asks.
"No," I say.
"Then you're gonna have a hard time." She jerks her chin at Cole. "He knows how it works. Good luck."
She walks off. I watch her disappear into the crowd.
"What now?" I ask Cole.
He doesn't answer. Obviously. But he starts moving again and I follow.
We weave through the market. People stare. Some of them have seen the screens. I can tell by the way their eyes linger. But no one moves toward us. Maybe it's because Cole looks like he could kill someone even while bleeding out. Maybe it's because turning me in means dealing with the alliance and no one here wants that.
We stop at a table in the back. There's a man sitting behind it. He's old. His hair's gone gray and his hands shake when he picks up a cigarette. But his eyes are sharp.
"Finn," the old man says. His voice sounds like gravel. "Didn't think I'd see you again."
Cole doesn't respond. He just pulls out a small metal card from his jacket and slides it across the table.
The old man picks it up. He turns it over in his hands. Then he looks at me.
"She's the one on the bounty," he says. It's not a question.
I don't say anything. My heart's beating so hard I can feel it in my throat.
"This buys you one favor," the old man says to Cole. "You want to cash it in on her?"
Cole nods.
The old man sighs. He pockets the card. "Fine. But if the alliance traces her here I'm throwing both of you to them. Clear?"
Cole nods again.
"Good." The old man stands. He's shorter than I expected. "Follow me."
We go through a door behind the table. It leads to a narrow hallway. The walls are stained and the floor creaks under our feet. We pass three doors before the old man stops at the fourth.
He unlocks it and pushes it open. Inside there's a cot, a chair, and a sink. That's it.
"You can stay here tonight," the old man says. "Tomorrow you figure out your own shit."
He leaves before I can thank him. The door closes and I hear the lock click from the outside.
"Are we locked in?" I ask.
Cole shakes his head. He walks over to the door and flips a latch I didn't see. It unlocks from the inside. He leaves it that way.
Then he sits on the chair. His face is pale. The blood on his jacket has spread.
"Let me see," I say.
He doesn't move.
"Cole." I don't know why I'm using his name. I barely know him. But he took a knife for me. He used up some kind of favor to get me off the street. The least I can do is check if he's dying. "Let me see the wound."
He stares at me for a long moment. Then he peels off his jacket.
The shirt underneath is soaked through. I pull it up and there it is. A long gash across his ribs. It's not deep enough to kill him but it's deep enough to hurt.
"You need stitches," I say.
He shakes his head. He points at the sink.
I get it. No medic. No help. Just water and whatever we can do ourselves.
I go to the sink and turn on the faucet. The water comes out brown at first but then it clears. I wet the cleanest part of his shirt and bring it back.
"This is going to hurt," I warn him.
He doesn't react. I press the wet fabric against the wound and he doesn't even flinch. I don't know if that means he's tough or if he's too used to pain.
I clean the blood away as best I can. The bleeding's slowing down. That's good. I tear a strip from the bottom of my own shirt and wrap it around his ribs. It's not professional but it'll have to do.
"Why are you helping me?" I ask.
He doesn't answer. He can't.
But he looks at me and I see something in his eyes. Something that makes my chest tight.
I step back. My hands are shaking. I don't know if it's fear or exhaustion or something else.
"I don't even know you," I say. "You don't know me. Why risk this?"
He still doesn't answer. But he touches his throat. Then he points at me. Then at my stomach.
I get it. He's been where I am. Maybe not pregnant. But hunted. Thrown away. He knows what it's like.
"Thank you," I whisper.
He nods once. Then he leans back in the chair and closes his eyes.
I sit on the cot. My whole body aches. The baby's quiet now. I put a hand on my stomach and close my eyes.
I don't know how long I sit there. Could be minutes. Could be an hour. But then there's a knock on the door.
I freeze.
Cole's on his feet in a second. He's in front of me again. Always in front of me.
The door opens. It's the old man. And behind him is someone I recognize.
Rena.
She looks at me. Then at Cole. Then back at me.
"I heard you were here," she says. "I came to check on you."
"How did you find us?" I ask.
"I have friends everywhere." She steps into the room. The old man stays in the hallway. "Let me see you."
I don't move. I don't know if I can trust her. I don't know if I can trust anyone.
But Cole steps aside. And I realize he trusts her. Or at least he thinks she's safer than the alternative.
Rena kneels in front of me. She puts a hand on my stomach. Her fingers are cold. She's quiet for a moment. Then her face changes.
She goes pale. Her hand pulls back like I burned her.
"What?" I ask. My voice cracks. "What's wrong?"
Rena looks up at me. There's something in her eyes I've never seen before. Fear.
"That's not a normal wolf pup," she says.
My blood goes cold.
"What do you mean?" I whisper.
But she's already standing. She's backing toward the door.
"I need to make a call," she says. "Don't leave this room."
She's gone before I can ask anything else. The door closes. I hear her footsteps disappear down the hall.
I look at Cole. He's staring at my stomach. His expression hasn't changed but I can feel the shift in the air.
"What did she mean?" I ask.
He doesn't answer. He can't.
But I don't need him to. I already know. Whatever's inside me isn't just Derek's kid. It's something else. Something old. Something people would kill for.
And now Rena knows.