Clair was halfway to her car when she noticed them—two n leaning casually against the lamppost near the parking lot. Their postures were deceptively relaxed, but their eyes tracked her every move. Clair’s instincts flared to life, a warning buzzing in the back of her mind. She adjusted her coat and kept walking, her heels clicking against the pavent.
As she neared her car, one of the n stepped forward. "Miss Clair," he said smoothly, his tone overly polite. "A word, if you don’t mind."
Clair stopped, her hand hovering over her car keys. She turned slowly to face them, her expression cool and composed. "I’m in a hurry," she said. "Whatever you want to say, make it quick."
The man’s polite veneer slipped just slightly. "It’s about Anabella," he said. "For your own good, and hers, you should stay away. Walk away and pretend you never t her."
Clair’s eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat?"
The second man stepped closer, his bulk imposing. "It’s advice," he said gruffly. "We’re just looking out for you. Things might get... ssy if you don’t take it."
Clair’s lips curved into a humorless smile. "ssy? You think I scare that easily?"
The n exchanged a glance, clearly unsettled by her calm deanor. "We’re serious," the first man said. "This isn’t your fight. Stay out of it."
Clair stepped forward, her confidence unwavering. "Let make sothing very clear," she said, her voice dropping into a low, dangerous register. "No one tells who I can or cannot help."
Before they could respond, Clair released a wave of her pheromones. The air around her grew thick with her dominance, suffocating and impossible to ignore. The n staggered back, their faces paling as the weight of her presence pressed down on them.
"You want ssy?" Clair hissed, stepping closer. "I’ll show you ssy."
One of the n lunged, clearly panicking, but Clair was faster. She sidestepped him with ease, delivering a sharp punch to his ribs that sent him crumpling to the ground. The second man tried to grab her, but Clair spun and landed a kick squarely in his chest, sending him stumbling back.
"Had enough?" she asked, her voice cold.
The n didn’t answer. They scrambled to their feet, their earlier confidence shattered, and took off into the night. Clair watched them go, her chest heaving with adrenaline. She debated chasing after them but decided against it. She needed to get back to Anabella and Noah.
Sliding into her car, Clair replayed the encounter in her mind. Those n weren’t random thugs—they had a specific purpose. And whoever sent them wasn’t just trying to scare her; they were targeting Anabella.
When Clair arrived ho, she found Noah waiting in the living room. He looked up as she walked in, his expression grim. "Where have you been?" he asked. "Anabella’s resting, but it’s been a rough night."
"I ran into so trouble," Clair said, shrugging off her coat. "What happened here?"
Noah filled her in on Anabella’s ordeal, his fists clenching as he spoke. When he finished, Clair’s jaw was set in a hard line.
"This isn’t random," she said. "It’s coordinated. Those n I ran into—they wanted to stay away from Anabella."
Noah’s eyes darkened. "What did you do?"
Clair smirked. "What do you think? I taught them so manners."
Despite the seriousness of the situation, Noah chuckled. "Remind not to get on your bad side."
Clair didn’t laugh. Her thoughts were racing, mories from her past bubbling to the surface. "This feels familiar," she admitted. "Too familiar."
Noah tilted his head, sensing there was more she wasn’t saying. "What do you an?"
Clair hesitated, her gaze distant. "Back when I was dealing with my own ss... people tried to scare off too. It started small, like this, but it escalated fast."
Noah frowned. "You think whoever’s behind this has done it before?"
"I’d bet on it," Clair said. "And if they’re using the sa tactics, they won’t stop until they get what they want."
"And what do they want?" Noah asked.
Clair shook her head. "I don’t know yet. But we need to figure it out before they co after Anabella again."
Noah leaned back, his expression thoughtful. "Whoever they are, they’re ssing with the wrong people. They don’t know what we’re capable of."
Clair smiled faintly, but her mind was elsewhere. She thought of Anabella’s fear, of how fragile she had looked earlier. Whoever was behind this, they weren’t just targeting Anabella—they were trying to break her.
"Well," Clair said, her voice firm, "they’re about to find out."
She and Noah exchanged a determined glance. Whoever was behind this would regret underestimating them.
______
Under the flickering light of a single, rusted bulb, two n stood in the shadows of an abandoned warehouse. Their faces were bruised, their pride more battered than their bodies. The taller of the two, nursing his ribs, spat on the ground in frustration.
"This was supposed to be simple," he hissed, pacing back and forth. "Just scare the oga, make her back off. How the hell did it go so wrong?"
The other man, rubbing his arm where Clair had landed a solid punch, glared. "We underestimated them. That Clair—she’s no ordinary alpha. She’s... dangerous."
"No kidding," the taller man muttered. "And what about the other one? We didn’t even get close to taking Anabella. Noah showed up before we could do anything."
The shorter man nodded grimly. "It’s like they were expecting us. I told you we should’ve waited for better instructions."
The taller man rounded on him. "And what? Wait until the boss gets on our case for not acting fast enough? You know how they are—always demanding results."
They fell silent, the weight of their failure heavy in the air. Finally, the shorter man spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. "What do we tell the boss?"
The taller man ran a hand through his hair, visibly agitated. "The truth. We failed. But we better figure out how to fix this, or we’re both dead."
The shorter man glanced toward the shadowy corners of the warehouse, as if their unseen boss might appear at any mont. "We need to regroup. Find a way to hit them harder next ti."
The taller man nodded reluctantly. "Yeah. But next ti, we don’t underestimate them. No mistakes."
Their voices trailed off as they disappeared into the darkness, leaving the faint hum of the bulb to fill the empty space.
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