Page 77 of The Bonds of Nyx
“What is your issue?” I asked, unfolding myself from the couch. “Why is it so hard to believe that I trust my friends?”
“What makes you think I have an issue with that?” he replied, rising from the coffee table. He stepped up to me, invading my space, his scent overwhelming yet so intoxicating. “It is strange that you somehow become friends with an unidentifiable creature, and yet you see no issue with that.”
“Are you insinuating that, at ten years old, Thea somehow figured out I would one day become Queen of the goddamn supernatural world? And then decided to befriend me, and what? Kill me with cookies?” I poked a finger into his chest.Tingles raced down my arm from the contact, but I tried to ignore it as I forced him to step back. Anger swam through me, as did my magic. No way would I let this asshole hurt my friend. “This literally has nothing to do with you, Hawk. So, stay out of it.”
A throat cleared somewhere behind me, drawing me out of the angry haze I was in. I stumbled back a step and cast a quick glance over my shoulder to find one of Hawk’s team members standing there. The vampire, Zephyr, was tall and lanky, though I had no doubt he was stronger than he looked. His hair was darker than Hawk’s, like Maeve’s, though he had no streak of silver through his. He instead wore his cut to his shoulders in a similar style to his leader’s. His eyes were a striking shade of silver and dragged over me slowly in a way that made my skin crawl.
I gave him a once-over before turning back to Hawk. “Looks like you’re needed elsewhere.”
Something changed in his eyes as his gaze snapped to Zephyr. “Meeting in the basement. Now.” The command sent a shiver down my spine, and I stepped back from him. Dark eyes tracked me as I did, and something in my gut twisted as he smirked.
He said nothing and spun on his heel and stalked to the large door leading down to the underground garage. The vampire followed, keeping his head down as he passed the couch. I couldn’t help but watch as they entered the stairwell without another glance back and didn’t breathe until the door clicked shut behind them.
“What a fucking jerk-face,” Thea said, sighing as she slumped into the over-stuffed couch. “If I could punch him, I would.”
I swallowed thickly and joined her once more. “You could punch him. You were taught well.”
Thea snorted and sipped her coffee, watching me with narrowed, knowing eyes. “He gets under your skin, huh?”
I frowned, taking one of the throw blankets and setting it on my lap. “He’s arrogant.”
“He also took off after you when you had your magical meltdown and sat with you for ages while the others had to compose themselves.” Her twisted little lizard brain seemed to be in overdrive as she offered me a knowing glance before gulping down the rest of her coffee. “He wants you.”
“He does not,” I replied, gagging dramatically as she grinned. “He’s probably one of those guys who spends all of his free time in a gym and looks at size twenty-two girls and thinks ‘I can change her’.”
Thea shrugged, taking the other end of the blanket and draping it over her own legs. “Or he’s one of those gym bros who loves himself some extra weight. For lifting purposes.”
Shaking my head, I sank further into the soft white cushions and glared at my friend. “Not. Happening.”
“Fine.” Thea rolled her eyes as she set her now empty mug down on the coffee table and settled into the couch. “He’s also got a stick up his ass if he thinks I somehow know what I am and am using it to get buddy-buddy with the new Queen,” she added, a hint of insecurity in her tone. The off-handed comment would seem to be only that to the untrained eye, but I knew my best friend better than that.
“I don’t believe him,” I said quietly. “Like, at all. What he said was utter bullshit, and I need you to know that I would never suspect you of that kind of...betrayal. And when we get to Avalon, I’ll help you find out what you are. We’ll comb through that encyclopedia. We’ll find some expert or run tests or whatever needs to be done. But I will help you figure it all out.”
Thea blinked rapidly before turning away. If she thought I was bad about leaning on people, she was even worse. I could now see how badly this mystery was messing with her head. The knowledge that she wasn’t human, but no one could figure outwhere she belonged was eating at her. At least I knew where I fit, even if only one other person knew what it was like to be me. But Thea had none of that comfort, none of that built in support.
“I’ll be here for you, every step of the way,” I promised.
Finally, her gaze found mine again, and she offered me a tentative smile. “The rest of this world won’t know what hit them.”
No, they certainly wouldn’t.
28
HAWK
MYhands clenched into fists as I followed Zeph into the basement. Ivy’s words played in my head on an unending loop, her touch seared into my skin. I’d thought holding her while her magic cooled down had been bad. That having her in my arms without being able to do anything had tested every bit of control I had. But having her so close, with her scent invading all my senses—thathad tested me. The fire in her eyes had burned brightly with her need to protect her friend. I admired it to a degree. But I still didn't trust the little blonde, and I’d make sure she didn’t come back to bite us in the ass.
The rest of my team was already waiting by the armoury when Zeph and I approached. Jessup nodded once before returning to his hand-held, one of the few older, more magically advanced devices we had access to. I had to give it to Queen Greer—she never shied away from advancing our world with the inventions of humans. And adapting them for our own needs with magic had been brilliant.
Konrad and Corbin shared a look, both leaning against the concrete walls. Konrad moved first to secure our little corner of the garage with a spell to enclose the perimeter and hide our voices. At the same time, Corbin did a quick check to ensure we were completely alone.
“So, we have a plan yet?” Jessup asked, finally looking up from his device. He was like the younger brother I never wanted but was stuck with. “Or is Grey hesitating to move?”
Under other circumstances, I would have told him off for speaking like that about a superior, but I shook my head. “We have a plan in motion. We should depart soon unless Her Highness has another power surge and is no longer stable.”
I had a feeling that more than one of them wanted to comment on what happened. I hadn’t given them any details about the extent of my involvement in helping her through the surge—if I had at all, really. I liked to think I played a hand in grounding her to reality rather than her emotions. But the rest of my team didn’t need to know that. I rarely kept anything from them, but for some reason, I felt like I didn’t need to reveal this to them.
Instead of giving them what they clearly wanted, I moved on. “We have the all clear from Grey regarding our original evac plan, so now it’s all about setting it up. We are cleared for five vehicles; more will be brought in within the next twenty-four hours, so we have the supplies we need.”