“Youbroke intomy loft, Emma!” James roared, his rage no longer held in check. His energy surged, his cerulean haze spiraling out of him like a tempest unleashed. The force of it crackled through the air, slamming into the furniture, shattering it into splinters.
Sean jumped in between us, his own emerald haze counteracting, trying to keep the debris from hurting me. “Emma, get out of here!”
The room trembled under the sheer force of their combined power, their translation sparking across the walls, tearing through the space as if it were made of paper. My breath hitched as the devastation unfolded around us, but I stood my ground. I was not leaving.
“I didn’t know what else to do, James!” I yelled over the chaos, my heart pounding. “You’ve been shutting me out for weeks, not telling me anything! How am I supposed to have faith in you when you won’t even talk to me?”
His blue haze continued to swirl violently, but he didn’t look away. “You should’ve trusted me anyway! I would never hurt you!”
“Then stop keeping secrets!” I shouted, frustrated with his lack of understanding.
Sean retreated his haze, sounding a bit calmer. “James, this isn’t about betrayin’ ye. Emma has a right to find out the truth when yer not willing to provide it. And we found somethin’ that didn’t add up.”
James whirled on Sean, shoving him back a step with a sharp jab to the chest. “What the hell makes you think you have any right to talk to me right now?”
Sean stumbled but caught himself, jaw tightening as he straightened. He then cracked his neck, and chose to ignore James’s question. “We found documents—about Dale’s abduction. It said you and Jackson were both cleared to be in the Diamond City that day. We don’t understand why it was never mentioned before.”
James’s face paled visibly before he took a slow step back, running a hand over his mouth like he was trying to holdsomething in. “You can’t even begin to comprehend what you’re messing with.”
I stepped forward, my desperation growing. “Then tell us! Tellme! What are you hiding?”
He shook his head. “I can’t talk to you about this.”
“Why not?” I demanded. “Why can’t you just tell me what’s really going on?”
“Because!” he shouted, his fists clenched at his sides. “I’m trying to fuckingprotectyou, Emma!”
“From what?” I yelled back, my anger boiling over. “The facts? You’re not protecting me by feeding me lies!”
Our fight was escalating, each word pulling us closer to the edge. I didn’t know where this was headed, but I couldn’t stop myself from pushing further.
“Why won’t you tell me about Dale?” I almost pleaded, the name cutting through the air like a blade. “The guydiedfighting for me! I think I deserve to know. So come on, what is it, James? What aren’t you telling me?”
James shook his head once more, and for a brief moment, he looked like he was on the verge of exploding.
Then, suddenly, he snapped. “Who the hell cares about Dale?! You want to know about his abduction? Fine! It was a fuckingsetup! There, now you know!”
I went still, his words slamming into me with the force of a storm. “What? What do you mean it was a setup?”
Before he could answer, another portal swung open with a sharp crack, and Matthew and Nino burst into the room.
“Sorry to interrupt,” Matthew said quickly, glancing between us, the urgency clear in his entire manner. “But we’ve got a situation.”
“What is it?” James asked, the words strained from the remnants of our fight.
“Radicals,” Nino cut in, brushing past Matthew and slamming a folder onto the nearest table. “They’re spreading across Europe like wildfire. The Council is getting calls from Coastal, Alliance, and Sisu—all asking for help.”
I blinked, my mind spinning from the sudden shift. “Sisu?”
“Scandinavian Collective,” Sean answered quickly. “They’re located in Greenland.”
Right.
Matthew nodded. “The Radicals are threatening the Collectives with an Amplifier. They’re trying to force them to withdraw their consensus. They’re calling us for reinforcements. Apparently, hundreds of magi have died in the last few hours.”
I gasped, clutching my mouth in shock, and Sean cursed some foul words I could never repeat.
James, pale and drawn, set his jaw like a man holding back a reckoning. His features hardened, as though sheer force of will could keep the darkness inside from slipping free. For a moment, he looked ready to break from the strain of whatever he was burying.
