I giggle lightly, and then he pulls me in for a brief kiss before another tapping at the door interrupts our moment.
“Never a moment of peace,” he grumbles while buttoning his pants fully.
I walk behind the counter to hide my legs from our new visitor. I pick up a fork before opening a container of food Hale brought back, and it clanks to the ground when I see Symphony’s face.
Her hybrid blues are still intact, and I sigh out in relief when I see Clay walking in behind her. Her eyes lower in a shameful glance, and I immediately feel guilty for my accidental cast of judgment.
“I’m sorry to just show up, but Symphony wanted to speak with Araya,” Clay murmurs softly.
I look at her expectantly, and her tearstained eyes finally rise to meet mine. I see so much pain, that a pang of misery stings my heart which is breaking for her right now. Her tears roll free, and she barrels around the counter to jolt me forward in a hug.
I gradually return the embrace, and she sobs wildly against the side of my head as she shows me what she can’t say in her crumbling state.
“It’s okay, Symphony. You’re safe now,” I coo while slowly slipping my eyes over to Hale and Clay.
Hale’s eyes have softened, and I can see how badly he wants to pull me into his arms right now. I’m worried once he does he may never release me again. I could have been Symphony if Ty had mastered this process with my blood.
Clay wipes away his escaped tears, and that’s enough to make mine fall. I hold her tighter as she falls apart in my arms. It’s surreal to know I was fighting her for my life just yesterday.
“Thank you, Araya,” she chokes out over the sobs. “You saved me.”
“I didn’t save you, Clay did that. I just subdued you,” I say very lightly to help ease her out of her anxiety attack.
She pulls back smiling, and her eyes fall on the man who has been tortured without her for far too long.
“Yes he did, but he couldn’t have done it without you.” She turns back to me before continuing with, “I want to help.”
“We don’t expect that out of you. You’ve just endured more pain than I even know how to fathom. You deserve a break. We can handle this without you,” I gingerly offer.
“That bastard enslaved me for years. He stole me from the man I love. He stripped me of my true counter, and he used me as a substitute when he couldn’t have the girl he really wanted.”
Guilt radiates from me, and my tears fall for a new reason now. Her eyes soften when she sees my inner turmoil, and she shakes her head.
“Don’t. This wasn’t your fault, Araya. He’s a sick man with a twisted mind. If it hadn’t been me, it would have been someone else. I was strong enough to accept it, someone else might not have been. You need to know he’s obsessed with you though, and this is nothing more than a hiccup in his vain eyes. He believes he’s invincible now.”
Yeah. I figured out the fact he’s obsessed with me all on my own.
“I’m so sorry this happened to you,” I guiltily rattle out.
“Like I said, this wasn’t your fault. Once he had me, he didn’t plan on ever letting me go. He’s jealous of Clay, Hale, and any other gifted hybrid male. I don’t doubt he planned on having an entire harem full of gifted women before it was over just to deny their counters the love they seek. He’s completely mad.”
“I saw that,” I huff out, and she moves away to rejoin an eagerly awaiting Clay.
He wraps his arms around her while pulling her in for a warm kiss, and I smile before feeling Hale’s arms pulling me to into his body. I was starting to ache to feel his body on mine. After just having endeavored on a blood fuck, the closeness was lacking, and it was so painful. It’s not like I could just blurt that out though.
I lean back to feel his warmth consuming me, and then Symphony speaks to me again from across the counter.
“His ruthless ambition is a force to be reckoned with, but it’s also his downfall. He was collected, calm, and calibrated until he injected himself into the investigation. I think he was eager to prove to you how strong he is. He can do so many things now. He can do as I could with almost everything, but he can’t block powers. It irritated him I could but he couldn’t. He has a lot of power still though. He holds it back because he knows a war is coming, and he plans on having the element of surprise. He doesn’t just have an army, he has a fleet like you wouldn’t believe. All newly turned hybrids with powers like you’ve never seen on a grand scale. It’s going to take divine intervention to stop him.”
I’ll show him divine intervention.
“Where was he planning to attack?” Hale asks softly while sitting on a stool and pulling me to his lap.
“He originally planned on attacking Seminole first, but he doesn’t like someone anticipating his next move. He’ll change his plan, but I think I know where he’ll start. He’ll start with Selma to hit Araya where it hurts. Then he’ll move to Hershian. I know how he thinks because his blood has invaded my body for so many years.”
Brazen walks in unannounced to join the conversation he has apparently been listening in on.
“Sorry I’m late. I just saw your text,” he says to Clay.
