21. Drew

Chapter twenty-one

Drew

"I'm going to meet Sam," Kieran says, and I scent the undercurrent of worry he's trying to hide. "We'll be back later tonight."

"Is everything okay?" It seemed like it up until Lucien called. I didn't listen to the conversation—I'm good at tuning them out, and what Kieran and his mate have to say to each other is none of my business.

I don't have to be a wolf to know something's going on.

"Yeah. Yeah, I think so." Kieran gives me a tight smile. "No one's injured, at least."

Yeah, that doesn't make me feel much better, but I do my best to smile back anyway.

"Okay." I wave vaguely at the TV. "I'll be here."

Kieran nods. "Stay inside, okay?"

Something's definitely wrong, but I nod again, and Kieran grabs his keys before he leaves. He doesn't lock the door. I'm not trapped.

Something is very, very wrong, though.

I lean back on the sofa and hit the remote to start the show again. As pretty people dance around each other, I sigh, trying to ignore the longing that's tugging in my chest.

I've barely been here a week. I glance at my phone on the coffee table. Kieran's meeting Sam, and Lucien is probably going with him, so I bet Adam will be there too. It's not like I even have his number.

I don't want to be alone.

I turn the show off and choose another. What am I doing? What am I thinking? Me, Adam, and Sam… It's not possible, no matter what Adam thinks. We're all so different.

If they found out about Hale, they wouldn't want me anyway. Who'd want to be with someone who can't stand up for themselves? Especially considering how capable they both are. Sam's the most powerful mage I've ever seen.

The fact I've barely seen any is irrelevant. I can tell. I can feel his magic even when he's not using it, and I know he's strong.

Adam? He's brave, too, and strong enough to fight alongside Sam.

I sigh, pulling my knees up to my chest and resting my chin on them. Sam killed someone for Adam. I don't know if I could do that.

I don't remember the time before Mum died, but Kieran does. He never spoke about it when he lived with the pack. I know Dad changed, though. I grew up learning to fight. Learning to fight vampires .

And when I got my wolf, that didn't change. Of course Dad was relieved—we knew by then that Kieran didn't have one—but that just meant he pushed me harder. After Kieran left, he pushed me even harder than that.

I'm not a fighter, though. Kieran beat him once. Just once. I never even came close, and I didn't want to.

I don't think everything that's been happening here will persist forever, but what if it does? And even if not, I have nothing to offer Adam and Sam that they can't find in each other. I let out a little whine, burrowing further back into the sofa. I want them, so badly I can hardly breathe for it, but maybe I'm just projecting. Maybe all I want is safety and friendship and no judgement and—

I turn the TV off and get to my feet. I want fresh air. That's what I want, and I know where the wards are, and I know I promised Kieran I'd stay inside and that Hale could be out there waiting, but this is such a small thing that I'm willing to risk it.

Leaving my phone on the coffee table, I cross to the door and put on my shoes, tying them quickly. I don't have keys, so I'll have to latch the door to the building, but the one to the flat should be fine.

I keep my thoughts focused on putting one foot in front of the other until I open the door to the building and step out into the night.

It's chilly, and I've got no jacket, but I don't care. I don't care, either, that the air is tinged with smells of the city—my wolf howls in my head, and it's all I can do to stop myself from shifting.

That's a step too far.

I latch the door, careful as I let it close, and take a few cautious steps down the path. The closer I get to the wards, the more the scent of Sam's magic surrounds me, already filling me with a feeling of familiarity and safety.

Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath in and out. My spiralling thoughts begin to retreat. My wolf calms too, taking stock of our new territory. It's small, and not really ours, but it's a place we can keep safe for the rest of—

I feel a flare of magic and open my eyes. A man stands before me on the other side of the wards.

I recognise him. He's the mage I saw at the shop when I first arrived.

He looks different now, though. He's wearing a sharp suit, and where he looked startled before, now the curve of his mouth is almost cruel.

Can he get through the wards? I square my shoulders and lift my chin, trying to project a confidence I don't feel. Surely not.

When he moves closer, I do too, though I'm careful not to pass through the wards. His lips quirk and he nods.

"Clever wolf," he says. "That might save you yet."

"What are you talking about?"

He eyes me again, then sighs, pushing his hands deep into the pockets of his trousers. "You've been pulled into something that really has nothing to do with you. I can't even blame your brother for it, though I've tried."

"You're—"

"I'm Elliot." Magic flares briefly, but it doesn't come close to touching the wards. "I'm sure you've heard about me."

"Y-Yes."

Is he here to kill me? I'm not going to leave the wards. Not unless he's captured someone, but that doesn't seem likely because surely he'd have said so already.

"The issue I have with the Selkirk is mine alone," he says. Does he mean Sam? "But you wolves did nothing to deserve this, and my master is after you anyway."

"Your master?" I frown. "I didn't think—"

"Things have changed for mages," he says, tone a little waspish. "And for plenty of others. For your pack, too."

My heart begins to race, and it takes a conscious effort to slow it—not that it matters. Dad taught us how to do that to make sure a vampire never saw us scared.

"My pack?"

Elliot shrugs. "I imagine it'll be over for them soon," he says. "You know Hale is already here."

I blink at the non sequitur. "I—Yes."

"He can't protect you from this. Your father can't, either."

"Why are you telling me, then?"

Elliot's expression is almost pained. "Your brother might. And I don't know—I'm not sure why I'm here, but I have to try to get my revenge. He killed my sister. You understand that, right?"

My head spins. Kieran might protect me. No, Kieran can protect me. I know that. I've always known that.

And Sam? "Sam didn't kill her," I say. "He was here. I was with him, I swear."

For a moment, Elliot's eyes widen. Does he believe me? It's the truth. Sam might have killed a mage, but he was protecting Adam. Even if he wasn't with me and Adam that night, I know he wouldn't have killed Nora.

"It doesn't matter," Elliot says, and my stomach sinks. No! "None of it matters."

I take a chance, take a breath, and scent his uncertainty even through the wards. "Why are you helping your master? Whoever he is, you know this is wrong. You've just said it!"

"Fae bonds are hard to break. Not all of us are as strong as you and your brother."

Me…? I shake my head. "Please. We can help, I promise—"

"Don't make a promise you can't keep," Elliot snaps, and the darkness that flickers through his eyes has me taking a step back. I flush at the show of weakness, but Elliot doesn't seem to care.

"Why did you come here?" I ask.

"The Selkirk has another of my master's mages. Not that it matters, abominations that they are. But I thought I might find leverage here…" His eyes sweep the length of me. "But you're too clever for that, and there are depths even I won't stoop to."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you wolves are off-limits. Our master wants your brother for himself, as well as the other one. And you… Like I said. None of this is your fault, and I know the feeling." He frowns. "You really believe he didn't kill her?"

I set my jaw. "I know he didn't."

Elliot nods, but there's no more belief in his eyes than there was before. He takes a step back and gives me a crooked grin. "Just one problem with that, wolf. Magic doesn't lie."

I want to move, want to try to grab him, capture him—but I know better than that.

It doesn't matter, anyway.

Elliot raises a hand in farewell and from one blink to the next, he's gone, a flare of magic the only clue to what just happened.

I stare into the darkness for a few more minutes before everything catches up to me. When I pat my pockets, I realise I left my phone inside.

Oh no. I need to warn them. I turn and run back into the building.