Ezra had been upset when I pushed him away. Xan, on the other hand, hadn’t even said hi. I reached up and touched the collar still around my neck. It was suddenly hard to breathe. What if the collar cut the tether, and Xan realized it wasn’t me he wanted at all? Ezra’s anger meant he still cared. But Xan’s silence? That scared me more.
“Q-tip, we’re in bad shape,” Rowan admitted at my side, forcing my thoughts away from the ‘what ifs’ and focusing on the here and now.
The big elemental didn’t look angry. His feet dragged at my side, and raw determination filled his shoulders, the exact opposite of XanRa. My anxiety eased.
On my other side, Cayden staggered, then crumpled, and Rowan cursed, diving to catch him. He didn’t wake. Blood streaked his face, and his shattered knuckles still oozed. My best friend looked like hell had chewed him up and spit him out.
“Shit.” Rowan adjusted Cayden against his chest, though the curse had no heat behind it. “The second he knew you were safe, whatever was keeping him conscious… just broke.”
I nodded numbly. Everything was too much. I didn’t know where to start. Instead, I focused on my friends.
We stumbled into Cayden’s dorm, the air thick with betrayal. Faint runes still glowed across the floor, their light spilling overbroken plates and rotting food. Erick hadn’t just lived here—he’d turned Cayden’s home into a scapegoat’s trap.
Rowan called on his magic, and the stone on the floor vibrated, destroying what was left of Emil’s tiny portal. We ignored the mess and, by some miracle, got the two mattresses onto the floor.
“Will you sleep between us?” Rowan asked, laying Cayden down on one side.
I tore strips of cloth and bound his ruined knuckles, refusing to think about the family and the raw rage that had driven him here.
Rowan sat on the mattress next to us and patiently waited for my answer.
My best friend was unconscious; he didn’t need to make decisions right now, while I still did. Technically, my body had been asleep for days, but shock had put my system on autopilot.
The little dragon poked its nose into the kitchen before licking a crusty bowl. So much had happened, I wasn’t sure I could sleep. Questions tugged at me, but from the look on Rowan’s face, if I said no, he’d eat more magic.
Tying the last strip into place, I sat back looking at my unconscious friend and rested my hand on the collar still around my neck.
Rowan grunted unhappily. “Does it hurt?”
I shook my head.
Rowan scowled and flexed his arm. “None of us could get it off you. Not with magic or tools. We need time and more power, I think. Two things we’ll have in abundance after we rest and the Architect regains full control of his castle.”
Alex. Should I sleep? Was Alex still connected to me? Could he still invade my mind? A shiver of fear ran down my back.
I needed Xan, except I didn’t know if Xan still wanted me. I’d destroyed one of his monsters, a part of his family. My stomach twisted.
Rowan swayed, eyes heavy. “Please,” he whispered. “I can’t sleep unless you’re between us.”
I couldn’t say no to that.
I lay down, certain sleep would never come. The clash with Holiday still burned in my veins, accompanied by Alex’s loop, clawing at my mind. But exhaustion didn’t care. Darkness swallowed me fast and mercilessly.
I didn’t wake up to the sound of “Let it Go.” Tears of relief gathered in the corners of my eyes. However, the faint knock that had dragged me awake sounded again. As the fog lifted, I found Cayden a foot away, his hand almost brushing my shoulder. Rowan’s warmth pressed against my back, his snores steady.
Rowan warned me this wouldn’t be a normal sleep cycle.
The knock came a third time, slightly louder, and I sat up and edged off the mattress. Neither man stirred. A bad feeling settled in my gut. Who knew I was here, Brody? Chancellor Morgen?
The knock didn’t come again, but I knew whoever it was still stood outside.
The ancient woman’s bright pink gaze and stabby, wood-monster fingers flashed across my vision. The little dragon skittered across the floor from wherever it had been, and it rammed its horny head against the door.
There’s no pretending no one was awake now.
I stood and slid to the door. Before I touched the wood, Xan’s face filled my mind. My heart lurched. What if it was him?
‘In case I’ve not made it clear enough, happy with me and Ezra is my desired outcome.’Xan had said to me at his Mixer. Some of my fears eased. This should be Xan. I’d gone through so much. If our places had been reversed, I’d want to see him.
