Chapter 6

　　At 7:45 PM, with fifteen minutes to spare, Eve signed the contract electronically. Her cursor hovered over the "submit" button for a full minute.

　　This was it. Her last chance to back out.

　　She thought of her mother's papery-thin skin. The bruises. The exhaustion.

　　She clicked submit.

　　The response was immediate.

　　Contract received and accepted. A car will collect you tomorrow at 7 PM. Bring an overnight bag. You'll be staying at the estate for your first performance. - D. Blackwood

　　Eve stared at the message.

　　Overnight.

　　She'd be spending the night with them.

　　Her phone buzzed...a text from the hospital.

　　Dr. Williams: Great news! We're scheduling your mother's first treatment for Monday. The advance payment cleared, and we're getting everything set up. This is going to change everything, Eve. Thank you for making this possible.

　　Eve set the phone down and walked to her tiny bathroom. She stared at her reflection in the mirror...the same face she saw every day, but somehow different now.

　　In twenty-four hours, she'd meet the Blackwood brothers. In twenty-four hours, she'd begin six months of... whatever this was going to be.

　　You won't lose yourself, she promised her reflection. No matter what happens. You won't lose yourself.

　　But as she crawled into bed that night, Eve wondered if it was a promise she could keep.

　　Or if the woman staring back at her from the mirror was already starting to disappear.

　　Eve spent the entire next day in a state of controlled panic.

　　She went to the hospital in the morning, sat with her mother while Dr. Williams explained the treatment protocol. Margaret looked hopeful for the first time in months, talking about things she wanted to do when she was better...travel, finally finish her garden, maybe get a cat.

　　Eve smiled and nodded and tried not to think about what she'd sold to make those dreams possible.

　　By the time she returned to her apartment at 4 PM, her stomach was in knots. Three hours until the car arrived. Three hours until she met them.

　　She stood in front of her closet, staring at her meager wardrobe with rising desperation. Dress appropriately, the email had said. What did that even mean?

　　After twenty minutes of paralysis, she settled on a simple black dress...modest neckline, hem just above the knee. Professional but feminine. She paired it with low heels and minimal jewelry. Her makeup was careful and neutral, her dark hair pulled back in a sleek ponytail.

　　When she looked in the mirror, she saw someone who might be going to a business dinner. Not someone about to spend the night with three dangerous men who'd bought six months of her life.

　　The overnight bag sat on her bed, packed with basics...toiletries, change of clothes, phone charger. She'd agonized over what pajamas to bring before deciding on a simple tank top and sleep shorts. Nothing too revealing, nothing too prudish.

　　At 6:45 PM, her phone buzzed.

　　Maya: You still have time to run. I'm serious. Just leave. Go somewhere they can't find you.

　　Eve typed and deleted three different responses before settling on: I'll be fine. I'll text you tomorrow.

　　Maya: If you don't text me by noon, I'm calling the police.

　　Eve: Deal.

　　At 6:58 PM, there was a knock on her door.

　　Eve jumped, her heart racing. She grabbed her bag with shaking hands and opened the door.

　　A man in a black suit stood in the hallway...tall, broad-shouldered, with the unmistakable aura of a shifter. His eyes were cold and assessing.

　　"Miss Chen?"

　　"Yes."

　　"I'm Marcus. I'll be driving you to the estate this evening." His gaze swept over her, professional but thorough. "Are you ready?"

　　No. "Yes."

　　He took her bag without asking and gestured toward the stairwell. "This way, please."

　　The car waiting outside was a black SUV with tinted windows....expensive and anonymous. Marcus opened the back door for her, and Eve slid inside, her hands clasped tightly in her lap.

　　The interior smelled like leather and something else....pine and musk. Werewolf scent, she realized. This was their vehicle, marked with their presence.

　　Marcus got in the driver's seat and pulled smoothly into traffic. He didn't speak, and Eve was grateful. She didn't think she could manage small talk right now.

　　The city gave way to suburbs, then to countryside as they drove north. Eve watched the landscape change through the tinted windows, each mile taking her farther from everything familiar.

　　After forty-five minutes, they turned onto a private road. Trees pressed close on either side, creating a tunnel of darkness. Eve's anxiety ratcheted higher with every passing second.

　　Then the trees opened up, and she saw it.

　　The Blackwood estate.

　　It wasn't a house. It was a compound...a massive stone mansion that looked like it had been transplanted from some Gothic novel. Three stories of dark stone and tall windows, surrounded by manicured grounds that seemed to stretch endlessly.

　　"Jesus," Eve whispered.

　　Marcus's eyes met hers in the rearview mirror. "The main house has forty-two rooms. The alpha triplets reside in the west wing. That's where you'll be staying tonight."

　　Forty-two rooms. This wasn't a home....it was a castle.

　　The SUV pulled up to the front entrance, where warm light spilled from tall windows. Marcus opened her door, offering his hand to help her out.

　　Eve's legs felt unsteady as she stood. The night air was cool and smelled of pine and earth. Somewhere in the distance, she heard wolves howling.

　　"This way," Marcus said, leading her up wide stone steps to enormous double doors.

　　They opened before he could knock.

　　A woman stood in the doorway...older, maybe sixty, with steel-gray hair and sharp eyes. She wore a simple black dress and an expression of practiced neutrality.

　　"Miss Chen," she said. "I'm Mrs. Blackwood, the house manager. Welcome to Blackwood Estate."

　　The name registered. "You're related to...?"

　　"No," the woman interrupted smoothly. "Blackwood is simply the surname I've used for thirty years in service to this family. Come inside, please."

　　Eve stepped into an entrance hall that took her breath away. Soaring ceilings, a grand staircase that split in two directions, dark wood paneling that gleamed in the chandelier light. Everything screamed wealth and power.

　　"The masters are finishing business," Mrs. Blackwood said, her heels clicking on marble floors as she led Eve deeper into the house. "They'll join you shortly. I'll show you to the guest suite where you can freshen up."