Chapter 51

Ella, Noah, and Evan

Ella sits on one of the swings, the tips of her shoes grazing against the artificial turf. Her green eyes follow Noah and Evan as they bolt around the swing set, a few boys trailing behind. She chuckles. Her head sharply turns in an attempt to keep up with her brothers’ speed, but she loses them when they dart down the side of the playground. She sighs and slouches, staring at the ground.

To her left, another group of kids play duck, duck, goose, and to her right a group of girls sit under a tree with their dressed-up dolls, giggling amongst themselves.

A part of Ella wishes that she could join those girls. She wants to sit with them and giggle about the latest episode of her favorite show and yell at the boys to go away when they try to bother them.

Alas, she cannot, due to Noah and Evan clinging to her whenever they get a chance. Evan clings to her since she’s his new sister and Noah clings to her since they only had each other while their mom lived her life as Healer M.

The chains of the swing next to her clang together. She looks up and warmly smiles at Evan, whose breathing is ragged and unsteady.

“Did you see me?” Evan excitedly asks. A smile blossoms on his face. Ella shakes her head. “I won the race! I beat Noah at the last second!”

“Wow! Good job, Evan!” Ella responds in a cheery tone, hiding her melancholy. Noah saunters towards them, arms crossed over his chest. Ella raises an eyebrow at him, wondering why he’s pretending to not be out of breath.

“I let him win!” Noah declares.

“I won fair and square!” Evan retorts. The two brothers bicker and all Ella can do is watch. She rolls her eyes and looks over her shoulder.

Glowing yellow eyes capture Ella’s attention. Her body freezes and her heart begins to race inside her chest. He stands a couple of feet away from the wire fence that separates the playground and school from the real world.

She stands from the swing, her feet cementing themselves into the ground. The man lowers his mask and reveals the lower half of his face.

A scar has settled deep into his skin and his teeth match the color of his eyes. Although he’s far away, Ella can feel his malicious chuckle rattling between her ears, sending chills down her spine.

“I’ll be right back,” Ella mumbles to her brothers, but they barely listen and continue to bicker with each other.

Ella crosses the playground, the man’s eyes still following her. She approaches her teacher, Miss Waterson, and tugs on her shirt. The teacher looks down and smiles a Ella, leaning down to her level.

“Hi, Ella, what is it?” Miss Waterson sweetly asks.

“Um… a strange man is watching me,” Ella whispers, pointing to a spot behind her. Miss Waterson’s head shoots up, her eyes scanning the perimeter of the playground fence.

The scarred, yellow-eyed man has vanished. Miss Waterson looks around, placing her hand on Ella’s back, keeping her close. She looks down at her student and frowns.

“Go inside, Ella, I need to go find someone to help you out, okay?” She turns Ella and sends her in the direction of the classroom door. Once Ella is inside, Miss Waterson blows her whistle, beckoning the kids to come inside the classroom for a surprise. The students immediately drop what they’re doing and sprint towards the classroom. As the kids funnel inside the doorway, Miss Waterson waves over a Gamma soldier.

“She spotted a strange man watching her. He went that way,” the teacher points in the direction Ella did. The Gamma soldier nods and immediately runs in that direction, yelling into the walkie-talkie attached to his uniform.

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Sebastian

My cell phone vibrates on the seat next to me. I glance at it and sigh, tilting the phone screen up to face me. The hair on my arms shoots up when I read the name on the screen.

Miss Waterson

My back straightens and I slide my thumb across the screen, bringing the phone up to my ear.

“Yes? Is everything okay?” Concern filters into my voice and I have to hold my tongue before I say anything else.

“I wish I could say so,” she sighs. “Ella spotted a man watching her today. We alerted the Gammas but they came back empty-handed. I thought I should let you know. Feel free to come pick Evan up if you want.”

“Thank you for letting me know,” my heart races in my chest, “I’ll come for Evan soon. I’ll alert Noah and Ella’s mother for you.”

“I appreciate it. See you soon.” Miss Waterson ends the call. It leaves me in stunned silence in the backseat of the car.

How dare the Rogue King send a man to my children’s school?! What game could he possibly be playing at?

“Take me to Evan’s school. Now!” My demand reaches my Beta’s ears and he nods, flicking on the turn signal.

I tap my foot against the car floor. Anxiety floods my body and nausea sweeps my stomach. I cover my mouth and stare outside the car window, shaking my head.

How could the Gammas be so careless with their jobs? I’d have them killed, but unfortunately, I need the numbers against the Rogue King.

My Beta weaves through the early afternoon traffic and we quickly arrive in the school parking lot. I hop out of the car before he can put it in park, running towards the front doors of the school.

The doors explode open and I rush down the hallway, quickly approaching the principal’s office. Before I can get inside, the doors open and they reveal Lily sitting beside Evan. My feet stop me before I can move any further.

The principal’s eyes land on me and he stands, moving around his desk and out of the office where I stand. He bows his head to me and I rest my arms across my chest, frowning.

“Hello, Alpha King,” he greets me, tilting his chin up, eyes meeting mine.

“I’ve come to get Evan,” I push the words out, my eyes flickering to Evan from over his shoulder.

“Ah, yes. He’s been waiting for you. I hope you can understand why we called his mother as well,” he clears his throat, scratching the back of his head. I nod, grunting in response, not wanting to continue the conversation further. “Evan! Your father is here to take you home.”

Evan jumps from his seat and rushes to my side. He stands behind me and I slide the backpack from his shoulders, placing it upon mine instead. I glance down at him, patting his shoulder.

“The Beta is outside. Go wait with him.” My voice is low, barely above a whisper. Evan nods and runs away, leaving us behind. “We’ll be going now.”

I turn on my heel and make my down the hallway, following Evan’s steps, when someone grabs my fist. My eyes train on the hand that’s wrapped around my wrist. Red fingernails with silver jewels. It can only be one person.

“Why are you here, Lily?” I rip my arm out from her grasp. She narrows her eyes at me, a fake smile spreading across her face.

“Evan’s my son. Why wouldn’t I come when I’m called?” She counters, her tone snarky. I contain an eye roll and continue down the hallway’s path.

“We both know that isn’t true,” the words come out under my breath and I hope that she didn’t hear what I said. I clear my throat as I exit the building, stepping out into the sun.

Lily jumps in front of me, our bodies colliding. I step back and glare at her, towering over her small frame.

“Stay the hell away from us, Lily. You’ve caused enough trouble in Evan’s life, he doesn’t need any more problems.” I bark the words at her. She flinches but remains in her spot. “We all know the reason why you’re clinging to us. We’re your last spark of hope, no?”

Lily’s bottom lip trembles. She rapidly blinks away any tears that have begun to form and she steps away from me. She looks me up and down and all I can feel towards her is complete and total disgust.

“Don’t embarrass yourself more than you already have. Go home.” I push past her, her shoulder bumping into my bicep.

I step off the sidewalk and approach the car. I can see Evan sitting in the backseat through the open car window, smiling as he talks with the Beta. I pause and sigh, hands on my hips.

Glancing behind me, my eyes land on the kindergarten classroom’s window. Two pairs of eyes watch me. I tilt my head to the side and lift a hand, waving at them. They wave back to me, Noah and Ella, before their heads dip below the window’s horizon.

I slide my phone out of my pocket and dial Miranda’s number, bringing the machine to the side of my face.