“I told you that first night,” he continued, deliberate, almost slow, “when I saved you from a few human murder charges, not to tell anyone about your untraceable translation.”
I nodded slowly, unsure of where he was headed with this. “Yes, you did. Aside from yourself and the Council.”
“And you promised me you wouldn’t speak a word of it to anyone,” he pressed, his whole posture burning with accusation.
“And I didn’t.”
“Yes, you did.”
“What? When?”
“You told Enya,” James accused, tension rippling through his posture.
My jaw dropped in shock. “No, I didn’t! I told her about my struggles with translation—about how I couldn’t project unless my life was in danger. But I never said a word about my untraceable energy.”
“Emma, don’t you fucking lie to me,” he spat. “She knew about it! She told me herself the night you went out clubbing in the Human World.”
“James, I don’t know what Enya told you, but I promise you, I never told her anything.” Then it clicked in my mind, and I stared at him, incredulous. “Isthatwhat this is all about? You think I betrayed you by telling the one friend I ever had in here aboutmyself? Are you serious right now?”
James raised a brow, but didn’t back down. “The one friend? And here I was thinking you and Sean were lookingpretty friendlywhile you were breaking and entering into my fucking home.”
“Glad you’ve noticed Sean and I are as thick as thieves. And yes, pun intended. At least that’s something you’ve noticed about me these last few months.”
His mouth opened then closed as my words started to register. “The fuck does that mean?”
I shook my head. “Nothing. Great work on the deflection, though. Making it all about Sean. Especially when he’s not here to defend himself.”
“Sean’s gone,” James said flatly.
I blinked, caught off guard. “He’s what?”
He shrugged, as if it meant nothing. “The European Collectives are in a state of frenzy. Crown’s been tasked to find the Amplifier. Caden called him back home, and he left.”
Without saying goodbye? A sharp pang hit my heart. Sean had left, and hit me a lot harder than I expected.
The anger that had been fueling me moments ago deflated, leaving me standing there, hollow. The ache in my chest was unexpected, but real. Sean had left, without a word, without even a goodbye. Just like Enya.
Was I even capable of making actual friends?
James watched me, his shoulders still tense, but the fury that had clouded his features had begun to ease. I swallowed hard, my thoughts swirling, and before I knew it, the words I’d been holding back for so long began to spill out.
“I’ve been really lonely, James,” I said softly, almost to myself.
His expression softened immediately, a flicker of perplexity crossing his face. “Lonely? Since when?”
“Since we got together,” I admitted, and I hated I couldn’t keep my hands from trembling. “You’re always so busy, and I get it. I do. You have so much on your shoulders, and I would never blame you for that. But it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve felt forgotten. Like I’m not your priority. Like I’m not anyone’s. And again, I get it, there’s a war going on, and you have a very important role in that, and I don’t, but I have no one else.”
His face fell, the sting of my words clearly hitting him hard. “Emma. I never meant for you to become isolated.”
I nodded, blinking back the sting threatening to spill over. “I know. And I understand. But understanding doesn’t make the loneliness go away. It doesn’t change the fact I haven’t been entirely happy.”
James froze for a moment, his eyes wide with hurt. “You haven’t been happy?”
Pressure bloomed beneath my ribs at the sight of him, broken by something I hadn’t even realized I’d been carrying inside me for so long. “No, not really,” I whispered. “I love you, James. I do. But I need more than this. I need to feel like I’m important, like you’re not taking me for granted.”
He took a step toward me, pain etched into every line of his face. “I’m so sorry, Emma. I thought you knew how much you mean to me.”
I let out a shaky breath, and flexed my hands, trying to steady them. “I know you care. But actions speak louder than words. You’ve kept so many things from me and shut me out when I needed you. I don’t see how we can move forward if you prefer holding on to secrets to building a solid foundation for us.”
