CHAPTER 115:He Shouldn't Exist But He Does
ADAM
She caught my eye across the room and smiled like we were old friends who’d just bumped into each other after years apart. That grin... irritatingly familiar, like she knew something I didn’t.
I dropped into the nearest booth with a heavy thud, the peeling faux-wood table beneath my arms feeling rough against my skin. I stared down at the cracked surface, as if the chipped pattern could somehow unravel the chaos swirling inside me.
Why her? Why now?
A strange tension twisted in my chest a storm I hadn’t felt in a long time, and one I had no power to calm.
“Come on, don’t act like you don’t see me,” she said, sliding into the seat across from me without waiting.
I looked up, trying to keep my voice steady. “Can you just serve me or I’ll leave.”
She tilted her head, the faintest edge of a smile playing on her lips. “That’s rude. I’m trying to be nice here.”
“I didn’t ask for nice,” I said, voice sharper than I meant. “Just bring what I ordered.”
She stuck her tongue out, playful and defiant, then turned away. I felt that familiar burn of frustration she was playing with my control, and I hated it. Usually, I’m the mischievous one, but right now, I was tangled up with someone who outmatched me.
Not cool, my wolf, Zane, grumbled inside.
You can’t talk to a lady like that.
I clenched my jaw. Why do you care so much? She’s just a human. Fragile. Fleeting. Here one moment, gone the next. We’re here to eat and leave, nothing more.
She’s been kind. You owe her kindness back.
“I’m not here to be controlled,” I muttered, voice low. The restaurant noise dimmed around me as I wrestled with the pull she had on me.
Then everything exploded into chaos.
The door burst open, and a group of men stormed in, guns drawn. Screams filled the air as people dove for cover, heads pressed against tables or crouched low on the floor.
Robbery. A nightmare that had become far too common.
I caught sight of her, cool and composed, pulling out her wallet as the robbers barked demands at the cashier. Something inside me stirred an urge to protect, to act.
We should help, Zane growled.
No, I answered. Better to stay out of it.
One of the robbers suddenly locked eyes with me.
“Hey, you! Why aren’t you down like the rest?” The gunman’s voice sliced through the panicked noise, sharp and cocky. He swaggered toward me, weapon raised, eyes full of the kind of arrogance that came from thinking he had the upper hand.
He didn’t.
The barrel leveled at my face. My muscles stayed loose, coiled, waiting.
Then click.
Time shattered.
The air split with the snap of a bullet. My body moved before thought could catch up, wolf-speed dragging me sideways in a blur. The shot missed by inches, embedding in the booth behind me with a thud.
Gasps erupted. Chairs scraped. Someone whimpered.
I felt the shift burn beneath my skin my pupils sharpening, my irises flickering amber, bright and unnatural. The predator surfaced.
I stood slowly, my gaze locked on the man frozen in front of me.
“Do you want to die?” The words rolled out like gravel, rough and deadly calm.
His lips trembled. The confidence drained from his eyes.
Around him, his crew hesitated, their greed faltering under something far more ancient than fear instinct. Predators know predators.
“Drop the money,” I said, voice low but cutting through the room like a blade. “And get the hell out.”
They didn’t wait for a second warning. Bills fluttered to the floor like dying leaves. The door slammed behind them, their footsteps fading fast.
For a second, the silence pressed in.
Then claps. Scattered at first. Awkward. Nervous. Humans trying to process what they just saw, clinging to the version of it that made sense.
Heroes. Survival. Gratitude.
I didn’t feel like a hero.
I grabbed the paper bag on the counter burger and coffee, still warm. But the scent turned bitter in my throat.
Ever since she walked into my life, everything had shifted off its axis. No rest. No distance from the storm. Her presence was a match too close to dry kindling.
I needed out.
I slipped through the door, keeping my eyes low, my steps quick. The heat of her stare followed me, even though she hadn’t reached me yet.
I couldn’t afford to let her.
Not again.