Ididn’t even need to focus for my magic to swell to the surface. A rough wind, conjured by my nervous energy, shot towards the pub’s doors, practically blowing them off the hinges. Behind me, Arwyn called out my name. His obvious confusion startled me, and yet I didn’t have the time to face it.
“Verena,” I called out as every head whipped around to face me when I entered, except hers. “We need to talk.”
They were all here. Romy, and Kai. Verena, just as Emon had warned me. From the look of the group they didn’t look how I felt inside—disturbed.
Romy took a step towards Verena, who finally turned around as if she’d forgotten her name. My friend’s stance was clear: protective. Her eyes shone with their circlet of amber, then faded away. A spike of magic cut the air before dissipating.
Everyone was on high alert.
“What’s that door ever done to you?” Kai grumbled. His hip leaned against the bar table to his side as his familiar squirmed in his arms.
“Verena,” I said again, jaw so tight every tooth in my gums ached. “Talk.Now.”
“Hector, what’s wrong?” Arwyn caught up, reaching for my wrist as if he could stop me.
How could I voice my problem aloud with so many people listening?
“Perhaps we can all relax,” Romy added, an air of warning in her tone meant only for me.
“Yes, calm down, Hector,” Arwyn added, reaching for my arm.
I yanked myself out of Arwyn’s attempted grip, the suddenness of it nearly making me fall over. Regardless if I loved every pore on that man’s body, I nearly burst at being told to calm down.
“Verena has come for safe sanctuary,” Romy announced, positioning herself between me and Arwyn’s aunt, her body acting as a shield. “Deep breaths in and out, friend. She’s no threat.”
“You sound so sure about that,” I snapped. To regulate the canter of my heart, I took a deep breath in through my nose. The harsh scent of old beer, musky wood and silver dust itched at the back of my throat. “We don’t even know who she is. What games she is playing.”
“If you let me, I can explain,” Verena said, eyes tracked to the floor.
There was a slight shake to her voice, something I’d not recognised in her before. She hugged her arms around her waist as if she had the ability to swallow herself away from this awkward interaction.
“And you will,” I replied, eyes cutting over to her. “Me and you.”
“What happened to the coven?” Romy added, a slight growl in her throat. “If there’s something you want to say, you say it with all of us present.”
“No.” I refused to take my eyes off Verena. “Not this time.”
Emon, who huffed and puffed in my skull, finally reached my side. I felt his slick body as it coiled around my ankle and began slithering up to take his position on my arm. The familiar press of his scales, the way they tightened and pinched at the hairs on my arm, was borderline comforting.
Verena’s eyes widened as my serpent-familiar extended his jaws and flashed brilliantly sharp teeth. This wasn’t the first time she’d been, somewhat, introduced to Emon, and yet it was like she was recognising his danger for the first time.
Good. Let her fear me.
“Me,”Emon corrected.“They fear me,not you.”
Romy flashed her gaze between each of us, the lines on her forehead growing deeper by the second. “Hector, stop. Whatever this is, leave it at the door.”
“I can’t,” I said, every bit of my body trembling with adrenaline. My intuition was screaming, if only I had the sense to listen to it.
“Why?” Romy snapped.
Because I don’t trust Verena. Because she is hiding something from all of us. Because…
“Everything I do is to protect this coven,” I said, attempting to calm my voice. “Everything. That includes wanting a little chat with Verena before another word is shared between anyone else. If Verena has nothing to hide, I’m sure she would be happy to follow me upstairs. Right?”
Verena swallowed hard. After a few beats of tension-heavy silence, she righted herself and nodded. “Yes. Actually, I wish to speak to him alone.”
“You do?” Kai asked, softly. “Because believe it or not, you don’t actually need to do anything you don’t want to do. You’ve proven yourself an ally, with or without Hector’s approval.”
