Linnea's POV
I throw up in the bushes the second we arrive.
Mom's new mansion—because apparently my future stepdad lives in an actual mansion—sits at the end of a winding driveway surrounded by massive trees. The kind of trees that look like they could swallow you whole.
"Linnea!" Mom rushes over, rubbing my back. "Sweetheart, are you okay? Is it car sickness?"
Car sickness. Right. Not the fact that I'm pregnant and haven't told her. Not the fact that my entire life just got packed into boxes and dragged three thousand miles away from everything I know.
"I'm fine," I lie, wiping my mouth with a tissue. "Just nervous."
The mansion door opens and a man steps out. Daemon Silvercrest. My new stepdad. He's tall with silver-grey hair and eyes that seem to glow even in daylight. Everything about him screams dangerous, but Mom looks at him like he's a superhero.
"Welcome home, ladies." His voice is deep and smooth. He walks down the steps and kisses Mom like I'm not even there. When they finally break apart, he turns to me. "Linnea. It's wonderful to finally meet you properly."
He extends his hand. I shake it because Mom's watching, but his grip is too strong. Like he could crush my bones if he wanted to.
"Thanks for... having us," I manage.
"This is your home now. Our home." He smiles but it doesn't reach his eyes. "Come inside. There's something important we need to discuss before the wedding tomorrow."
Tomorrow. The wedding is tomorrow. Two days ago I was a normal girl in Seattle. Now I'm standing in front of a mansion in the middle of nowhere about to become part of a family I don't even know.
Inside, the house is somehow even bigger. Mom walks around touching everything like she's already planning where to put her stuff. Daemon leads us to a sitting room with huge windows overlooking the forest.
"Please, sit," he says.
I sit on the edge of a leather couch, my stomach still churning. Mom sits next to me, holding my hand like I'm five years old.
Daemon stays standing. He looks at Mom, then at me, then back at Mom. "Roslyn, have you told her yet?"
"Told me what?" I look between them. "Mom?"
Mom squeezes my hand tighter. "Sweetheart, I need you to listen very carefully and try not to panic."
"You're kind of making me panic right now."
"Daemon and his son Caspian... they're not exactly normal." She takes a deep breath. "They're werewolves."
Silence.
I wait for the punchline. For someone to say "just kidding!" and laugh.
Nobody laughs.
"Werewolves," I repeat slowly. "Like... people who turn into wolves?"
"Yes," Daemon says calmly.
I stand up. "Okay. This is insane. Mom, what's really going on? Did you join some kind of cult? Is this a joke?"
"It's not a joke, Linnea." Mom pulls me back down. "I know it sounds crazy. I thought Daemon was crazy too when he first told me. But it's real. He showed me."
"Showed you what? A dog costume?"
Daemon's eyes flash bright gold. Like actual glowing gold, like headlights, like nothing human.
I scream and jump off the couch.
"It's okay!" Mom rushes over. "He's not going to hurt you! Linnea, breathe!"
But I can't breathe. His eyes are GLOWING. People's eyes don't glow. This isn't possible. This isn't real.
"I want to go home," I whisper. "Please, Mom. I want to go back to Seattle."
"This is home now." Her voice is firm. "I know it's scary. But you're safe here. Daemon would never hurt us."
"You brought me to live with WEREWOLVES?" My voice gets high and shrill. "Without warning me? Without asking if I was okay with it?"
"Would you have come if I'd told you?" she shoots back.
"NO!"
"Exactly." She crosses her arms. "Linnea, I need you to understand something. Your father—your real father—he had werewolf blood too. Distant, dormant, but it's there. It's in our family line. It's in YOU."
The room spins. "What?"
"Your great-great-grandfather was a werewolf. The genes skip generations sometimes, but they're there." She touches my face. "You belong here more than you think."
I shake my head. "No. No, this is insane. I'm leaving. I'll take a bus back to Seattle. I'll stay with—"
"You're seventeen," Daemon interrupts quietly. "You can't legally leave without your mother's permission. And even if you could..." His eyes flash gold again. "There are things in this world more dangerous than werewolves. Hunters. Rogue packs. Things that would love to find a young girl with dormant wolf blood traveling alone."
Fear crawls up my spine. "Are you threatening me?"
"I'm protecting you." He steps closer. "Whether you like it or not, you're part of this world now. You live on pack territory. That makes you pack. My responsibility. My son's responsibility."
"Where is your son anyway?" I snap. "Shouldn't he be here for this fun family meeting?"
Daemon's jaw tightens. "Caspian is... adjusting to the news of having a stepsister. He'll meet you at dinner tonight."
"Can't wait," I mutter.
Mom hugs me tight. "I know this is overwhelming. But give it a chance. Give Daemon a chance. Give Caspian a chance. Please, sweetheart. For me?"
I want to say no. I want to run. But where would I go? I'm three thousand miles from home with no money and apparently werewolves are real.
"Fine," I whisper. "But I'm not happy about it."
"That's all I ask." Mom kisses my forehead.
Daemon shows us to our rooms. Mine is huge with its own bathroom and a window overlooking the forest. Under different circumstances, I might think it's beautiful.
Right now, it feels like a prison.
I wait until they leave, then pull out the pregnancy test I've been hiding in my bag. Still two pink lines. Still real.
I'm pregnant, living with werewolves, and my stepbrother—who's apparently also a werewolf—is going to hate me.
A howl echoes through the forest. Long and haunting and way too close to the house.
I run to the window and look out. In the tree line, two glowing silver eyes stare back at me.
A massive black wolf sits at the edge of the forest, watching my window. Watching ME.
Even from here, I can feel its gaze like a physical touch. Intense. Focused. Almost... hungry.
The wolf's lips pull back, showing teeth that could rip me apart.
Then it turns and disappears into the darkness.
My hands shake as I close the curtains.
What the hell did Mom get us into?