And at some point I’ll run out of tears. Hopefully. Otherwise, I will be crying for the rest of my life.
Chapter twenty-seven
Blue
Everyone is sitting around the dining room table. Everyone apart from the one person who matters. Sammy’s absence makes the room feel empty.
It’s noisy with this many people, but I feel strangely detached. As if I am in a bubble. I’m here, but I’m not a part of this. I don’t belong. I don’t fit in.
Everyone is having to get together to sort out another one of my problems. Though this one isn’t my fault. I didn’t ask to be stalked in the mall.
And now a Council Enforcer is here to talk to us about it. Which is very unnerving. But maybe the mage is only here because Brodie and Carter called in some favors, and nobody high up is actually that worried.
If Sammy was here, I’d ask him what he thought.
My gaze drifts around the table. Red, Pink, Gray, Jade, Lello and Ned. My fellow harem boys. We were imprisoned together. But we are not the same. Because Brodie, Carter and Mal are here too. And Pink’s mage is at the bottom of his garden in his campervan. And according to Lello’s gossip, Jade is falling for his coworker, and Ned for his boss.
Which makes me the only one who is alone. And that’s entirely my own fault. I thought I’d be alone forever. I never imagined in my wildest dreams I’d find someone as wonderful as Sammy. He is a miracle. A gift from the goddess. And I’ve fucked it up.
The room falls silent, so I pull my attention to the here and now. The enforcer is clearly waiting for everyone’s attention before he speaks.
“I am Ethaniel Methuen, enforcer of the council. Thank you for meeting with me,” he says.
His eyes are an interesting shade of gray and his blond hair is twisted into an unusual pattern of plaits. Immense power is coiled within him, and I’m glad he is on our side.
“We have investigated the incident and it appears that an associate of Richard Smithson is seeking to capture a harem of his own.”
My breath stutters in a sharp, jagged inhale. The only thing worse than being paranoid, is being right. One of Ritchie’s friends is on the hunt.
Soft murmurs break out as people turn to their loved ones. I sit in silence and watch the enforcer.
“We are confident we can eliminate this threat, but for now, we advise that you stay at home.”
A dozen conversations spring to life. A hum of noise. The air clouds with fear and anger. Frustration and anxiety. I breathe it in and it feeds my own terror.
“Do they know where we live?” I ask the enforcer.
“We presume so. The logical explanation is that they were watching the house and then followed you to the mall. Since you were alone, they thought it was worth a shot.”
I force a swallow down my throat. The enforcer’s eyes fill with pity. I can tell he sees me as nothing more than a helpless little sex slave. A victim. Maybe he is right. But Sammy never looked at me like that. He saw something else. Something more.
“The house is incredibly well warded,” says the enforcer. “You will be safe here. They won’t try an attack. It would be far easier to abduct some other paranormal.”
My stomach heaves. I nearly retch. Some unsuspecting innocent is out there, going about their life and they are about to have theirworld destroyed. Their freedom taken. Their sanity broken. Their body violated.
“Please don’t let that happen,” I whisper, but the enforcer seems to hear me anyway.
“I won’t,” he says solemnly.
Red asks him a question, and he turns away from me to answer. Now I’m sitting here in silence while everyone else is talking.
My stomach has twisted itself into a hard, aching knot. I can’t believe I was right about the men in the mall. I had all but convinced myself that I was paranoid and delusional. The truth is horrifying. They really are out to get us.
We have to stay in the house for our own safety? This is awful. How long will we be confined for? And once the Council says it is safe, how safe will it truly be? This threat came out of nowhere. The next one could very well succeed.
Cold sweat trickles down my back. My hand reflexively wraps around the talisman hanging from my neck. Even though it is an impotent gesture. Gray’s gift shields me from sirens. No one else.
A soft, distressed wail catches my attention. I watch as Carter pulls Lello onto his lap and holds him close. My gaze flicks to Gray. He looks pale but stoic. Mal’s arm is draped over him protectively. I’m glad they have someone to face this with, I truly am. But an aching loneliness is gnawing at me nonetheless.
