“No.” I tried to remain calm. “But she attacked me, so what were we supposed to do?”
“Ripping out our throats wasn’t a viable option.” Beth slipped through the chairs and stood next to me.
“We aren’t a threat to either of you.” Amethyst gave her usual kind smile that warmed her violet eyes.
“You’re a fucking witch.” The guy bared his teeth at her. “All of your kind wants to hurt us.”
Yeah, he’s The Hallowed Guild, all right. There was no denying it after that comment.
“Of course, he’d be another asshole.” Coral pursed her lips and looked at Aidan. “You’re almost redeemed in my eyes now.”
Samuel nodded in agreement. “It does help that he’s not being hateful toward us anymore.”
“Are they talking about you?” The guy glared at Aidan.
“Yeah, I was raised to hate witches.” Aidan tilted his head. “Let’s just say our first meeting didn’t go well.”
The guy sneered. “But you’re here with them.”
Okay, I wasn’t in the mood for games. “Look …” Hell, I didn’t know his name.
“Call him Sparky.” Beth pointed to him. “I think it works.”
“I’m not a fucking dog,” he growled.
“Well, Sparky’s what you got unless you want to give us your real name.” Maybe we could annoy him into submission.
“Damn,” the girl muttered as she tried lifting her head but couldn’t due to Aidan’s grip.
He dropped his hand and stepped back toward me.
She groaned and lifted her head again to survey the room. Her eyes were still that bright blue, which seemed more pronounced with her black hair. Once they’d taken in everything, she focused back on me. “Who the fuck are you?”
“Wow, that was pleasant.” It almost sounded like something Beth would say. “Maybe I’d tell you if you asked me nicer.”
“You’ve got me chained up,” she grumbled and faced the guy. “Who are you?”
“So, you two don’t know each other.” That confirmed our suspicions. “Then why did you two attack us to defend each other?”
“I … I don’t know.” The girl sagged her head. “After these past several days, I don’t understand anything.”
“What do you mean?” It felt like we might actually get somewhere with her.
“You’ll think I’m crazy.” She rolled her head, stretching her neck.
“You might be surprised.” I had to go with my gut. “I’m Emma, and I came here looking for you.”
“What do you mean?” Her eyes searched for something in mine.
Let her go. I felt awful having a conversation with her still chained.
What? Aidan spun around.
We need her to trust us. How could she when we had her chained up? “If we unchain you, do you promise not to attack us again?”
She paused and then slowly nodded.
The guy stared me down. “What about me?”
“Nope, you’re still a wild card.” I headed to the girl’s arm, but before unchaining her, I looked at Amethyst. “Is she good for it?”
“Yeah, she’s curious but scared.” Amethyst gave me a small nod. “But she should be good. She’s not terrified like before.”
“Okay.” I loosened the chains so she could get her arm out.
Aidan growled but followed suit, and the girl was free within seconds.
She stood and took a few steps to get her bearings. “Okay, so I guess this has at least earned my name. I’m Gabby.”
I’d take any amount of information. “And he is?”
“Like we said, we don’t know each other.” Her attention went to him, and her breathing increased. “He’s been chasing me around since the earthquake.”
There it was, the word I’d been wanting to hear. “That’s when you started feeling different.”
“Not really.” She huffed. “I’ve never wanted to talk about this with anyone, so I’m not sure if I should start now.”
“Don’t tell them anything.” The guy strained against his chains again. “They’ve got some kind of agenda.”
“How in the hell would you know?” Beth scoffed. “Just like a man to think he knows everything.”
“The only reason you’re chained up is because you attacked my mate.” Aidan pointed at him as his hands shook with rage.
“You were antagonizing her.” The veins in his neck bulged. “She had to run off.”
“I ran off because of you, not them.” The girl turned on her heel to face him. “You’ve been stalking me for days.”
“You’ve been alone.” He licked his lips. “I couldn’t let anything happen to you.”
“It’s creepy if you were following her without introducing yourself first,” Beth’s nose wrinkled with confusion.
“I wasn’t thinking,” he growled.
“Clearly,” Coral said, her eyebrows rising.
“I don’t need any input from you, shrew,” he spat.
“Look, I came here for you.” He was trying to rile Gabby up, trying to turn her so she didn’t trust us. I needed her to stay with me. If he was her mate, he could affect her.
“Look.” I turned around and moved my hair to show her my birthmark.
“Holy shit.” Her words were knocked out of her. “It’s like the one that popped up on me.” She turned her head so I could see the one vertex.
“This could be a trick,” the guy said, but his voice had lost its malice.
“No, it’s not.” Aidan stared at him. “They’re the hybrids the original alpha warned us about.”
“And the worst thing they can do is run off together.” He went pale and pleaded with Gabby. “Please, listen to me. You need to stay safe.”
Why isn’t he freaking out about her? I’d expected some hate-filled words from him after revealing her witchy secret.
I have no clue. Aidan blinked at the guy.
Yeah, you and me both. Okay, maybe this was a good thing.
“You’ve been chasing me, and you attacked them.” She stared at the ground as if in some sort of internal struggle. “Why would I listen to you?”
“Because, for some reason, I want to protect you even if it goes against my very being.” He cringed. “And I can’t risk anything happening to you.”
“Do you want to go outside to talk?” Maybe she’d be more willing to open up away from everyone.
“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” She glanced at the witches and hurried past them like she was afraid they would hurt her.
Emma, I need to go with you. Aidan’s anxiety was clear through the bond.
I need you to stay here and connect with Sparky. Someone needed to calm him. You are the only one who can relate to him.
If you need me, you’d better link with me instantly. He wasn’t thrilled, and I couldn’t blame him. There was a lot at stake, and we were taking too long to get answers. If we didn’t hurry, there was no telling how hard the others would be to find.