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the worst girlfriend ever.
    Gabriel kissed the top of her head. “Everything’s going to be fine. With or without your memories, we’ll find the fountain.”
    Nate smiled at Scarlet, his happy face shining at her. “Or, at the very least, we’ll keep you away from any stray arrows.”
    Scarlet attempted a smile, but felt no hope. She was doomed to be a weird, sometimes-dead girl with arbitrary amnesia and a crush on her boyfriend’s twin brother forever.
    Great.
    She tried to take a deep breath, but the black corset top she had on held her ribcage hostage. She looked down at the formal dress Heather had picked out for her that was now covered in blood.
    Heather!
    Tonight was the winter formal dance at school and Scarlet had left her best friend, Heather, alone in her bedroom without an explanation when she’d run after Tristan.
    Heather was probably freaking out. Scarlet whipped around and looked at Gabriel. “Does Heather know about me?”
    He lifted a brow. “Does Heather know that Tristan tried to kill himself with a magic arrow, but totally screwed up and got you shot instead?” Gabriel gave Tristan a dirty look. “No. Heather doesn’t know.”
    Oh-kay.
    Clearly, Gabriel was upset with Tristan. And, from the looks of the living room, they’d had a pretty messy fight. Scarlet wanted to believe that their fighting had nothing to do with her, but she knew better. And the thought stressed her out.
    “Okay, everybody needs to lay off Tristan,” Scarlet said, desperate to relieve some of the guilt pulsing inside the green-eyed Archer brother. She looked at Nate first, then Gabriel. “I’m the reason I got shot. Not Tristan. And it doesn’t matter anyway because I’m fine.” She ran a hand through her long, tangled hair.
    I’m just missing a very important memory about the fountain of youth that could save my life. But, otherwise, I’m fine.
    Scarlet looked around the room for a moment. Blood, broken furniture, more blood.
    Yeah, she was out of there.
    “I gotta go.” Scarlet hiked up her skirt so it wasn’t swishing on the floor, and moved toward the front door with sticky feet.
    “Where are you going?” Gabriel asked.  “You’re wearing a bloodstained dress and you don’t have any shoes on.”
    Turning around, Scarlet sighed. “I just died and came back to life, Gabriel. I’m confused. I’m hungry. And I desperately need a shower. So I’m going home. We can resume our highly stressful what’s-wrong-with-Scarlet-and-where’s-the-fountain quest after I wash the blood and dirt off my body.”
    Scarlet turned back and walked out the door.
    She did need a shower. But more importantly? She needed to get away from the cabin. And Gabriel. And Nate. And everything else that was too overwhelming for her to think about right now.
    Especially Tristan.

 
     
    8
     
    The morning after he had taken Scarlet home, Tristan arrived at her house and placed a small sack of food by the door.
    Had he been invited? No.
    In fact, he was almost certain Scarlet was going to be upset that he was there. But that didn’t stop him from knocking.
    The door swung open to a wild-eyed Scarlet. “What are you doing here?”
    She was upset.
    “Before you yell at me, you should know that I come bearing gifts.” He stepped back to reveal the sack filled with meat and vegetables.
    “What is that?” Scarlet looked down at the sack suspiciously.
    “Food.”
    She rolled her eyes. “I know it is food. Why did you bring it?”
    “For you…to…eat…?”
    Why was this so difficult?
    Scarlet crossed her arms. “I have no way to pay you for it. Take it away.”
    Tristan raised his eyebrows. “It is a gift. It costs nothing.”
    “Everything costs something.”
    Tristan opened his mouth, then shut it. With a quick shake of his head he held out his hands. “The eastern forest is dangerous. If you accept my gift, you won’t need to hunt or gather or steal for weeks.”
    “I like hunting.”
    He pursed his lips and put his