The meta blockers Nicholas gave me to conceal my identity, they saved my life. My powers came to me gradually instead of all at once. I inched my way into my fully badass self instead of having it all thrown on me like the others.
Hale takes my hand in his as he looks over all of the other faces without names.
“Is this all of it?” Hale asks softly.
“It is. That’s all I know. I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help.”
“You’ve been more help than we could have imagined. You should be incredibly careful now though. They’re going to be on guard and on a mission now that Wendy has most likely told them what we were doing here.”
“Fucking bitch. I don’t know how I missed that,” Hale growls.
“Because the humans are their strongest allies. No one suspects the weak,” Gabe sighs. “They’ve been cattle, we’ve been outcasts, and soon the full bloods will be a target- at least those of them they can’t change. They have to feed on full bloods in the early stages to complete the change. After that, they’re just like us, only much stronger.”
“This is too big to sit on for long. Clay, I want to take Araya back tonight and speak with the United heads.”
“Do whatever,” he numbly mumbles, completely disinterested in all things around him; lost in his own world of pain.
Hale looks to me, and then his eyes motion for Gabe to leave. They both walk out of the room, and I walk over to the man I’ve called my friend through so much shit.
“She’s still alive, Araya,” he whimpers when he feels the others gone. “She’s been alive for years, and she didn’t come looking for me. She’s not my counter or she would have.”
My heart breaks for the man I never see fall apart. He buries his head in his hands as he sobs wildly.
“Clay, you don’t know that. She might be still, and even if she isn’t, you’re still allowed to love her as though she is.”
“Not now. Now we’ll have to hunt her. I can’t run that. I can’t be in charge of that mission.”
“We don’t have to hunt her. You heard Gabe. She’s been tampered with. Whatever they did, you can use your gift to reverse it. You know I’m right.”
“I don’t know. My gift is far too advanced for even me to control to that extent. I don’t know if I can save her. I’ve already failed her once, Araya. I don’t know if I’ll survive failing her again.”
I rub his back and then wrap my arms around him in an embrace, one of comfort just like he has shown me so many times.
“We need you. She needs you, and I know you can do this.”
He wipes his eyes, and his breaths slowly steady as he nods. His shoulders roll back, his head rises from the ground, and the Clay I know reemerges from the broken shell.
“Then let’s go do this before I change my damn mind,” he growls, and I smile victoriously as my arm loops through his. “If it comes down to you or her, don’t hold back,” he adds in a painful whisper..
“It won’t.”
“You saw what she did to that compound. Whatever they’ve done to her has made her stronger.”
“We’ll bring her back, Clay.”
He takes a deep, cleansing breath as we walk out into the hall, and I hear the thunder and lightening going crazy outside the soundproofed room.
“It’s a stage three,” a man murmurs to us as we walk through. “It’ll be hard to pass through this storm tonight.”
“We’ll go in the morning. We all need rest anyways,” Clay sighs. “Go find Hale. I have a lot of phone calls to make.”
“Hale can make them for you,” I murmur gently.
He smiles appreciatively, and then he pats my hand.
“We all have a part to play, Araya. You and Hale play yours well. This is my part. I’ll handle this. Just go be with Hale right now.”
“I’ll be here if you need me.”
