Visha gave Harvey two chances to run, but he was too angry, and I was too scared.
If I could go back in time, I’d tell my younger self to shove Harvey away instead of clinging to him in fear. He didn’t deserve to be dragged down with me. It’s my biggest regret.
“We fought them, or at least tried to, but it was two kids against a dozen dark witches. One minute we were playing like kids, the next we were chained up in a dungeon, bloodied and broken.”
A bitter scoff escapes me before I can swallow it. “We waited, you know. We held onto hope for a long time,waiting for someone to come and save us. But weeks turned into months, and months into years. Eventually, we stopped deluding ourselves.”
Angel’s heart under my head stops, guilt and shame shadowing his face. I reach for his free hand, threading our fingers together.
I don’t blame him. I know firsthand how hard it was to escape the coven. Still, bitterness creeps into my voice when I think about the days when our hope was beaten out of us. But now, knowing they were still trying to find us, even after a decade, the sting of betrayal fades little by little.
I can’t imagine what it must’ve been like for the people left behind. To have everything but not the ones they love.
“Maybe two or three years ago, Visha came into my cell, bragging about her attack on all four kingdoms, how her puppets killed everyone on sight… including my mate. Harvey believed her instantly. He was too out of it to think straight, but I asked for proof.”
“That’s when she gave you the arm,” Seiji concludes quietly.
I nod stiffly. I know I’m clutching Angel’s arm too tightly, but I can’t seem to ease my grip. I need his touch to keep the memories from swallowing me whole. As my fingers trace the patterns on my mate’s arm, I remind myself that everything Visha said that night was just another thread in her web of lies.
“For years, Visha killed anyone who threatened her future, but I never thought...” I swallow hard, trying to ease the tightness in my throat. Her lie about Angel was intentional.Personal.
“The coven threw a big celebration that night, and the guards were stretched thin. It was our first real chance in years, and I thought we could make it. We had just reached the force field when we got caught.I saw—Harvey was…”
I don’t expect them to understand what I did next, but this conversation was bound to happen, and there’s no point in lying.
“I stopped running and turned back. I distracted theDeviants until Harvey crossed to the other side and then used every last ounce of my power to damage the barrier as much as I could to stop anyone from following.”
I steal a glance at Angel and instantly regret it. The sorrow in his eyes makes my stomach twist.
“I didn’t—IthoughtI didn’t have a mate or a family to return to. But Harvey did. His mate was waiting for him somewhere out there. He could leave it all behind and start fresh. He was the obvious choice.”
Angel ducks his head, and I feel the weight of his heart shattering like it’s my own.
I bump his shoulder, waiting until he looks at me. “He wasn’t okay, Anxo. He was barely hanging on. Another week in that wretched place, and I would’ve lost him. Harvey never would’ve crossed that barrier if he knew I wasn’t going to do the same. It was my chance to pay him back for every timehechoseme.”
I give Angel some time to process everything, and sigh in relief when he brings me into his chest tightly, pressing three soft kisses to my forehead.
Seiji shifts in his seat, rubbing the back of his neck with a nervous laugh. “I think now we all know why Harvey never made it back home.”
Grace throws her head back with a cry. “The poor man doesn’t know we moved his home!”
Uh oh.
8. Tornado in the living room
Nevaeh
“How old are you?”
“Twenty-three,” Angel replies, gently scratching my scalp as I lean into his side. His body radiates enough heat to rival a furnace.
“Wow, you’re old.”
Angel gasps in mock offense and stops the bone-relaxing head massage, but I quickly grab his hand and hold it over my head until he gets the message.
After I shared the details about Harvey’s escape, Grace volunteered to update me on the changes around the kingdom, giving everyone a break from the heavy stuff.
It felt weird getting so much information about these people when I didn’t actuallyknowany of them, so I decided to change that by asking some basic questions.
