Alister slowed to a stop. “Don’t say shit like that. It wasn’t your fault. Wren came from a village where she was isolated her entire life. Her wanting some time alone shouldn’t be as big of a deal as it is. You didn’t know she’d be in danger, and you should stop blaming yourself. She doesn’t blame you and neither do any of us.”
I reached up to my forehead and ran a hand over the nub of bone where my horns were trying to peek through. “I know, but I’ve been through this shit before. I used to get letters all the time in the Demon Capital, but it feels different this time. Stalkers can be obsessive, and they can do some real damage. They can be fatal if the situation allows.”
A growl rippled out of Alister, and he slammed me into the wall, baring his fangs at me. “Nothing is going to be fatal to our mate. We will all make damn sure of that.” He pushed away from me and walked down the hall. “Don’t let her out of your sight.”
I pushed off the wall and fell back into step with him. “I’m not stupid. I would never let her out of my sight. Neither would Damien.”
“Just stay near her,” Alister said, his red eyes glowing again.
I’d never seen Alister get this worked up before Wren came into our lives. Alister tended to get obsessive with unique stones, but this time, it wasn’t a stone. He was obsessed with Wren. In all the time I’d known him, I hadn’t seen him flip like that, but it made sense. Wren’s safety concerned all of us. And with all the insanity happening in Kalista and the academy, I was right there with him.
“Do you think Rowan was too hard on her?”
“Yes, I do.” Alister’s answer was immediate. “He could have treated that with a lot more class,in my opinion. I like to remember that we know the cruel nature of dragons, and I’m sure all of his issues stem from him growing up in Blezen.”
“That’s true, but Wren has trauma, too. Being controlled like that will have some effect on her, and I don’t want that. The fact that she was able to stand up and speak for what she wanted to do was a huge step for her. I don’t think that last term, she would’ve done that.”
“That’s a good point.” He ran his tongue over a fang. “She didn’t have the chance to stand up for herself with Mirella. Her shadow did that for her, but I think she would have.”
Wren’s heart was too big sometimes. She was still worried about Mirella, who was doing fine. She was all healed up and supposed to start classes again next week. Her empathy just made me worry more.
“Have you noticed how the other students act around Wren?” I growled, my footsteps turning to stomps on the carpeted hallway floor.
Wren came up in my sessions with other students often. Whether they knew she and I had a relationship or not. They were interested in her status in the academy. The range of emotions for her was vast, but the minority were the ones who were indifferent to her.
“Who hasn’t? The interest the student body has taken in Wren isn’t normal. There has to be an outside influence. I just can’t figure out what it could be.”
“Do you think it has to do with that punk, Grayson?”
“I wouldn’t doubt it. If he was telling the truth about having a witch on the back burner, it’s very possible that there could be a spell or some sort of voodoo going on against Wren at this academy. I actually asked Tabitha to look into it.”
“Thank fuck for that. She’ll be able to pin-point whatever it is.”
We reached Alister’s room; he placed a hand on the knob and glanced back at me. “We’ll figure it out. The whole thing is a shit show. We just have to make sure we keep her safe… and ourselves.” He disappeared into his room, and I went a few more doors down.
I entered my dorm, shutting and locking the door behind me. I loved the magical locks at the academy, but it made me feel safer to have physical locks on the door as well. Alister called me paranoid, but Rowan understood my need for safety.
After everything that happened in the Demon Capital, I learned that safety was a privilege. At least that’s how I felt. Safety should be a right, but in our world, it wasn’t.
I loosened the red tie around my neck and pulled it out from my collar, tossing it to the floor. I pulled my shirt off, and my hands went to my waistband before stepping out of them, leaving me in my boxers. I couldn’t even be comfortable in my own skin anymore. I always felt like I was being watched. Granted, I’d been watched my entire life, and stalkers weren’t something that was uncommon for me growing up, even as a child.
Going over to my dresser, I threw on some sweats before sliding into bed. There was a distinct crinkle sound under my pillow when my head sank into it that caused me to jerk up and grab the pillow, lifting it up.
Disgust and shame coiled in my gut. The feeling of being violated came in many forms. Receiving anonymous letters in my mailbox in my office was one thing, but receiving them under my pillow was another level of violation.
A flash of red hair and dark blood assaulted my mind as I stared at the letter on my sheets. Fear froze the marrow in my bones as I’d remembered Eevie, remembered the fear and guilt that swirled inside me when I realized she was killed because of me.
I scrambled off the bed, pushing my legs toward the bathroom before my forearms caught the toilet seat. I lurched forward and emptied my stomach contents into it.
Fuck. I was spiraling. Nobody could deny that, least of all me. Having to go back to the Demon Capital after two years was bad enough. The feelings coming back and reminding me of what had happened were torture.
It was my fault Eevie had become a target. It was my fault Wren was a target for whoever the sick fuck was sending me letters. I was viewed as an object for the majority of my life, and the ones who viewed me as anything more were disposed of one way or another.
That was, until Rowan. Though, Rowan could protect himself. Wren had no idea what atrocities demons and others could cause.
How was I supposed to protect her when I couldn’t even protect Eevie?
My throat burned as stomach acid crept up, and I puked again. As I vomited, my tail sprouted from behind me and ripped a hole in the back of my sweatpants, and my horns burst from my skull, leaving a splitting headache with how fast they had erupted.
