Page 102 of Chasing Ruin
Beside me, Charlotte starts to shake.
“Charlotte,” Wolf repeats, his voice trembling now, but not with weakness. With fury. “Walk to me.Right now.”
“Wh—” Her voice breaks into a whimper.
“Hey,” I murmur, forcing calm into my tone. “Go. It’s okay.”
She hesitates. Then slowly steps away from me. Each step feels like something is being torn out of my chest.
And then I see it.
Wolf sags with deep… relief.
Relief? Why the fuck is he relieved she’s away from me?
The second she reaches him, he grabs his gun.
Fuck.
“The armory backups,” he starts, voice eerily even. “The ones I told you both about… were tampered with tonight. Someone broke in. Dismantled the security.”
A pause.
“Intending to take our weapons and ammo.”
My head spins, trying to catch up. Then he tilts his head slightly. Like he’s waiting for one of us to finish whatever terrifying train of madness he’s possessed with.
“Wolf,” I start, but the confusion in my voice sounds weak.
“Both of them,” he cuts in, ignoring me.
And then I see it finally. I recognize the look in his eyes. It’s not rage. It’s the violent, bone-deep pain of betrayal.
“…were decoys.”
My breath stutters.
And it’s not because of his words. It’s because the man I grew up with—my friend, my fucking brother—is raising his gun, pointing it straight at my chest.
THIRTY-TWO
Charlotte
There are moments in your life where déjà vu grips you so tight it feels like a fist around your gut. Where the unease doesn’t just linger—it settles. Heavy. Rotting. Where you squeeze your eyes shut, desperate to drag the memory back before it slips away. But I can’t do any of that.
The look on Wolf’s face right now has me frozen. I’ve seen it before. That night. Him standing across from me at Sinful Chugs. His quiet, broken voice whispering‘do it’when Ruin ordered me gagged and leashed.
And now, he looks seconds away from doing it again.
My mind spirals, dragging me into a vicious loop of memories. Did I miss something? Anything? A glance. A word. A shift in behavior from Ruin or Ryder? Anything that could mean that they’re traitors?
My hands start to shake again. Because time is running out.
I can feel it in the air. In the tension pulling tighter and tighter around us. But when I look back at Wolf, I don’t just see anger. I see conflict. Pain.
“Wolf,” Ryder says, voice careful. Controlled. “We—we’re not sure what happened but… Wolf. It’sus.”
The gun doesn’t move. Still trained on Ruin’s chest. Wolf doesn’t even look at Ryder.
