Aspen had moved back to us, a drunk smile on her face. She was swaying to any of the music hitting us from the houses. Take your pick. “Hi, guys.” She tipped her head back, her eyes closed, and kept on swaying.

Bren moved in next to her. “Aspen.”

“Hmm?”

Aspen did not stop swaying, open her eyes, or even look at Bren. The girl was in her own time zone.

Bren frowned at me. “She’s wasted.” She turned to Jade. “Where’s Blaise?”

Jade shrugged, some of the blush was fading. “This is a girls’ night. Boyfriends are not allowed.” She eyed Cross, who was keeping a look out at this point. “You’re not officially on our girls’ night.” Her eyes skirted to me. That blush was coming back. “But flirting is totally okay.”

I was remembering that Veronica girl. I was guessing flirting and fucking were okay on girls’ night?

My phone cut in again.

Sonya: Too late. Offer’s been rescinded.

Christ. Who was this girl?

Jade leaned in, yelling over the music. “I know you dated Tabatha Sweets. Everyone knows.”

I scowled, putting my phone away. “You’re offering a pity fuck?”

Her eyes bulged out. “No! No.” She eased back, starting to glare at me. “Who do you think you are?”

I snorted. “According to you, you know exactly who I am.”

Bren’s hand came to my arm. She was frowning at me, taking in the conversation.

I rolled my eyes and ducked down, saying close to her ear, “Maybe this wasn’t a good idea. Instead of fucking, I think I’m spoiling for a fight.”

Her hand tightened on my arm, and for a second, I thought it was because she wanted one, too. Bren usually did, but she didn’t reply, and she wasn’t looking at me now. Her gaze was trained past me, and her hand just tightened again.

I looked and groaned.

We had incoming.

Harper was leading the charge, with six other guys behind him. Zeke Allen was included.

In these moments, I always knew what I was going to do. Back up my crew, but I glanced at Bren and then to Cross. He was watching his girl, too. We shared a look, thinking and knowing the same thing.

Bren was the one spoiling for a fight.

Our little feral she-wolf was about to come out and play, and I was going to love it.

CROSS

Me: We have trouble incoming. Tell me your guy found Harper’s mom?

There was no answer.

They were coming. Bren was primed. Jordan was ready.

We either needed to go or we’d be able to do what we’d always done.

BREN

Tim Harper was coming toward us.

Some people noticed, stopping to watch. Some were too drunk and kept on partying. I skimmed the rest of his group, my gaze landing on Zeke. He fell to the back, and he kept glancing down. If I were to guess, he was sending the call out to Blaise. With Aspen as blitzed as she was, Harper actually seeking us out, and from the look on his face, he wanted to fight, so I was saying no matter what, we were fighting. One, Blaise would start it if it already weren’t going by the time he got here, and two, I wanted it.

I’d been sidelined for two weeks, and while I hated what I did to Harper, I couldn’t deny that it had woken something up in me. Something that’d been sleeping. The old Bren, but I knew now that I couldn’t keep suppressing her.

I needed the old me and the new me to merge. If I didn’t allow it, I didn’t want to think of the consequences, but Harper was coming right at me and the old Bren was rallying.

He was a bully. He was coming to push his weight around, show off his power, hoping to intimidate us. He was mistaken.

I lowered my head, locking it in place, and just like that, Cross and Jordan got into place beside me. I heard Jordan bend down, telling Aspen’s friend to move her back and away…far away.

“Why?”

He replied, “Just trust me. Her boyfriend will flip his shit if she’s here.”

Zeke looked up then, also noting the interaction. He watched, and then tracked Aspen as she was moved back into the crowd. Once she was clear, he seemed to take a breath and his shoulders relaxed a little bit more. He looked down, and again, I was betting money he sent off another text to reassure his boy.

But then the last of the crowd moved aside, and Harper was now standing in front of us.

I waited, expecting it.

His gaze skimmed over me, going above and over my head to Jordan. He sniffed, actually sniffed. “You’ve been banned—”

He didn’t acknowledge me.

He didn’t look at me.

He didn’t speak to me.

He was scared of me.

He was still speaking, “—from all fraternity and sorority events.”

Jordan scoffed. “This is a street party.”

“It’s a fraternity event.”

Jordan shot back, “It’s a street, asshole.”

I looked at Zeke, seeing his gaze solely on me.

Before, he always had a smirk, something smug to say. Not this time. He was sober, somber even, and he was staring right at me. I tilted my head to the side, and he didn’t react. He didn’t break eye contact.

I frowned at him.

Still. No reaction from him, except his eyes danced to Cross and back to me. He looked again, off in the direction Aspen had been taken, and he nodded, letting out a noticeable breath.

Cross moved so the back of his hand grazed mine. He always did that in these times. Sometimes it was to hold me back, sometimes to give me strength, sometimes to anchor himself, but this time, as I looked at him, he gave the slightest nod. This time, it was to let me out of my cage.

He showed me his phone’s screen.

Channing: We got her. Whatever you’re going to do, be safe. Don’t let Bren get arrested or I’ll toss you in jail myself.

I gave him a smile, and he hissed under his breath, but he grinned back. He knew what he was doing.

“Harper…” I made sure there was a taunt in my voice.

He froze for a second before looking at me. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, and he raised his chin up. “Yeah?”

I settled back on my heels, getting comfortable. “Remember me?”

It was a matter of time before he talked. I was controlling it. I was deciding when it happened, and it was happening now.

Harper didn’t respond, but I got distracted. Just for a moment.

Beyond him, farther in the crowd was a girl. I frowned, moving to the side for a better view. Kess Foster. She was a blast from the past, the only other girl in the crew system back at Roussou. Her hair caught my attention first, it was like a beacon at times. Almost pure white, but her eyes were the other recognizable attribute. They were like an ice blue color. Sometimes I swore they were grayish white, but she was looking through the crowd. Seeing me, frowning, her eyes narrowed, she started toward me.

Kess was like that.

Her crew had been small, and one of the ones that most forgot was even a crew, but that hadn’t been her fault. It’d been her crew’s fault. Still. She came from crew roots. She scoped out the situation and was coming to help.

That was, until a guy moved ahead of her.

She stopped, still frowning, and looked up.

The guy—he seemed familiar, but I couldn’t place him. Dark hair. Blue eyes that almost matched Kess’, but not quite. A brother? I didn’t remember if Kess had any other siblings, but no. There was an air about them, about them both. He moved into her, also looking at us, but he wasn’t looking at me.

He was watching Harper, and seeing who Harper was talking to—now he saw me and he saw me watching him. That was enough. He grimaced, swearing under his breath (not hard to read lips when someone says ‘fuck’) and then two guys walked past them, and they were gone.

I looked but couldn’t see them.

That was… odd.

“We want you gone.”

I tuned back in. Harper was taking the charge, motioning for Jordan to leave.

The guys around Harper were rallying, moving in as if they were going to physically force Jordan from the premises.

Cross growled, moving to meet them.

And that was my cue. I went, too, reaching for an old friend of mine. I pulled out my knife. It’d been a graduation gift from Cross. A little wolf had been carved into the handle. I loved it, I now slept with it at my bedside, but it accomplished its desired effect.

The old Bren was here and pushing to join the fight. She wanted out of her cage.

I smiled.

They stopped in their tracks at the knife, but the smile, a smile that I knew was eerie, sent them edging backwards.

Harper didn’t move. His gaze was transfixed on my knife and he paled, his jaw slackening.

What happened next, I’d think back on later.

I’d wonder if we continued how we were going, what would happen. If we would’ve contained the situation, scared the guys off, and Jordan could’ve stayed and had a good night, or if things would have inevitably turned bad anyway?

In a way, maybe it didn’t matter?

Because what did happen was chaos. Then again, I was learning that’s what happened when Cross’ brother joined the mix, and as I was noting Harper’s feared response to me, there was a commotion to the side. People were talking. Conversations were loud. A couple shouts, and then Blaise arrived in a rush. He was a force, like a pin being taken to a balloon, and at his presence, Harper was pulled out of his trance.