“You made me like this? You gave me magic?” He whips his head toward the door. “Someone’s looking for the Princess. Why would the Princess be here?”
My door opens, and Darwin pokes his head in my room. “Uh, there’s a guy in front of the building, insisting to see you. You might want to hurry up and get over there. He’s drawing attention, and your brothers are ready to pummel his ass.”
I glance toward Odyssey, and Darwin pushes the door open wider and finds Odyssey on the opposite side of the door. I slap a hand over my face. I don’t have to read Darwin’s mind to know what he’s probably thinking. The strong urge to run away tickles my spine.
Pushing past Odyssey and Darwin, I make a run for it. Odyssey grabs my arm. “I think you should put on some shoes and a shirt,” he says, pointedly looking down at my feet. I can feel the heat rise in my chest and face. Darwin raises an eyebrow at me, but he doesn’t say anything.
“It’s not what you think,” Odyssey grumbles.
Hurriedly, I shove my feet in my favorite pair of shoes and grab a zipped-up hoodie and rush out of my room with both Darwin and Odyssey hot on my heels.
Tension fills the air as we near the front entrance of the building. Most of the recruits stand around, listening to my brothers snarl at some stranger I can’t see. I push my way through the gathering crowd, as confused and strange glances turn my way.
Elijah and Skunk stand near the front doors behind the twins, who block the entrance. “I’m not going to ask you again. What the hell do you want with my sister?” Jeremy bellows.
“I need to speak to the Princess, and I am not leaving until I see her!” the stranger shouts.
This guy has a death wish. Facing off with my brothers is one thing, but facing off with Skunk, Elijah, and the gathering recruits is just plain suicidal. Even though most of them don’t know who I really am, just hearing ‘Princess’ is enough to put them on guard. They are trained to protect the royal family.
Finally making my way to the front, I wiggle past Elijah and Skunk. Skunk grabs me and holds me back. “Zip up your damn jacket,” Skunk growls in my ear. I stiffen when I look down at my chest. I quickly pull the tab up. What the fuck is wrong with me today? In my rush to leave my room, I never fastened it closed, exposing me to everyone.
“You won’t see her unless you tell us what this is about,” Justin explains calmly. Sensing me behind them, the twins step in closer together, blocking the stranger’s view into the building.
“It’s important! It’s a matter of life and death, and I need to speak to her, only her.”
Life and death? Who is this guy? I try to stand on my tippy toes to get a look at this stranger, but I can barely see past the twins.
“Listen. I don’t have time. I need her help. Just tell her that Reggie is here to speak to her. She’ll know who I am.”
My heart starts to race. Does he know what happened to Tyler? I rest my palms on my brothers’ backs and emit a small current of electricity. They jump and separate.
I push myself between them. “Reggie?”
He wears a black hoodie with the hood pulled up over his head. His face is encased in shadows, not that I know what he looks like. I only spoke to him on the phone for a few minutes on my birthday.
He hunches over, with one arm crossed over his midsection, gripping his side. The energy around him feels desperate andscared. A slight breeze blows in, and a sweet, coppery odor wafts through the air. He smells like blood. The hand gripping his side squeezes, his knuckles turning white.
I look back up to his face, pale and sweaty. What the hell happened to him? My heart races. “Did you drive all the way here from Territory Five?” I ask.
He nods. “Are you the Princess?”
Shit. I really didn’t think this through, in my rush to get down here and away from Darwin and Odyssey. Squaring my shoulders and lifting my jaw, I hold his eye contact. “Yes. I’m Princess Jessica Langhlan. Where is my guard? Where is Shadow?”
A brief look of relief crosses his features, but then he moans and bends forward at the waist. Drops of blood splatter on the concrete. I take a step toward him, but a large hand holds me back. “These men came and took him,” Reggie mutters before falling to his knees. When he holds his hand out in front of him, it’s covered in blood. “Help,” he whispers, collapsing to the ground.
“Skunk!” I scream, rushing forward. Glancing over my shoulder, I bark an order for someone to find the Leads.
Chapter 56
Stranger in the Midst
JESSICA
Six Years Ago
“Acouple of years ago, I lay in the exact same bed. It was in this same territory, where my family brought me after I was found. It’s in this same place that I met Shadow. He’s my family, too. More than that, he’s my future, and I need you to wake up so you can tell us where he is. Please, Reggie. I know you’re hurt, but I need your help. I need you to wake up. Please…”
I wipe the tears streaming down my face. Even though Skunk healed him, he still lost a lot of blood and hasn’t woken up yet. I glance up at the donated blood bag hanging from the IV pole.
