by Rebecca Main
“Rokama,” she hisses, eyes darting nervously between the two men. “They cannot be trusted with the innocent. Come,” she holds out a hand to me, “you should not be so close to danger.”
Ryatt stiffens and his hold tightens. “He’s not going to hurt me. Neither of them will, Luna.”
“They’re rokama,” she tells me stubbornly, “like the others. They cannot be trusted.”
“They’re lycans, not rokama, and they are our allies, Lunaria,” Diana tells her. “No harm will come to you while you are under our care. Nor theirs.” The words do little to placate Luna, but she does cease her glaring and drop her hand.
“He doesn’t hurt you?”
“No, Luna. Sometimes he can be a bit of a prick, but he’s never deliberately hurt me. Except for a few incidents, that is…”
Ryatt flushes under my regard. “I apologized for that,” he mutters.
“And you…forgave him?” My heart skips a beat under her scrutiny.
“I did,” I reply slowly, almost unsure of the answer myself. Ryatt straightens. A sudden surge of happiness pulsates through the bond, leaving me glowing with strange satisfaction. “He’s not so bad,” I finish lamely.
“…You are in love?” she asks, equal parts curious and serious. I guffaw.
“She can barely keep her hands off me,” Ryatt replies smoothly, squishing me into his side.
“Get over yourself,” I grumble, struggling to push away from him, the smile I tried so hard to beat winning out.
“It’s definitely love,” he continues, keeping me within the circle of his arm. “I’m preparing a winter proposal and a June wedding. Expect an invitation in the mail.”
“A union!” she squeals excitedly, clapping her hands together and bouncing about. “How joyous! Who would have thought a beast such as yourself could ever love, or be loved in return!”
The blanket falls to the floor in her glee, giving the entire room a show not easily forgotten.
Chapter 14
Quinn
“I can’t believe fairies exist,” I exclaim, climbing the stairs to Ryatt’s bedroom. “I mean, I shouldn’t be surprised because, hello, witches, lycans, and vampires are real, but wow. A fairy. Did you see her wings and her skin? Disney did not prepare me for this moment. Also, did you notice she has zero filter? Or how her mood jumps from one to another in about two seconds flat?”
Ryatt chuckles at my side, scratching the back of his neck. “I certainly wasn’t expecting to see a fairy when we arrived. I’m just glad that the witches will be seeing to her care and not us. You’re already quite the handful.” He bumps me with his shoulder good-naturedly, opening the door to the bedroom and allowing me through first. I immediately kick off my sneakers and sit on the large chest at the end of the bed.
“I don’t think she would have liked to have been under the pack’s care. What did she call you again?”
“A rokama,” he says, slipping off his shoes as well and stretching out on the bed. “Whatever that is.”
“She understood the word lycan enough to associate it with a rokama, so I’d assume something similar.” Ryatt looks pensive for a fleeting second before it vanishes from his face and he sits up.
“I suppose you’re right,” he tells me somewhat cordially. “Well, I’m off for a bit. I’ll just grab some of my things and leave you to the rest of your night.”
“What?” My eyes follow Ryatt’s stiff movements with astonishment. “Where are you going?”
“Out for a run.”
“A run?” My insides twist at his flippant tone. A surge of indignation runs through me for no good reason at all. “Seriously?”
He stills, but it’s momentary. “I’m not a masochist,” comes his cold response. “You’re leaving tomorrow. That’s still your plan, correct?”
I nod my head numbly, swallowing the sudden lump in my throat. “Yes,” I say meekly.
“You said you had forgiven me—earlier—was that true?” His back is still turned to me, hands stalled on his dresser drawer. I do not dare give my reply because it was true. Yet saying the words aloud once more would crumble the last of my resolve. Tomorrow I will leave and—I squeeze my eyes tightly shut—and do what? Go where? I didn’t know, but it would at least be my choice. My decision.
My mistake, a voice whispers darkly in my mind.
It will all be mine. Ryatt slams the dresser drawer shut, tossing his things in a duffle bag he’s taken from the closet.
“I don’t get you,” he tells me quietly. “This evening in the forest. It was just you and I out there. You didn’t wear any of your masks, and it was good, Quinn. You know I can feel it through the bond? Your true feelings towards me? But you’ll happily go on denying them so that you can what, have the last word? Save your pride?”
“That’s not it, Ryatt. You don’t—”
“—I don’t what?” He stares me down, swinging the bag over his shoulder as he pins me with a searing glare. “Understand? You’re right. I don’t. I know this whole scenario is one big cluster-fuck and that I went about it all wrong, but there are times when it seems like none of it even matters to you. Like you don’t seem to care about it as much as you let on. Quinn, I know I can make you happy. I’ve never been so in sync with someone, and I know the same is true for you. But you’ll forsake it all just to save face.”
“That’s not true,” I tell him painfully, itching to stand and declare my growing feelings for him. Yet I stay firmly planted in my seat, not daring to lose myself to these strange feelings.
He growls, “Then why?”
“Because,” I choke, “this is all too much, alright? This whole supernatural, paranormal world. I don’t belong here.”
“And yet, somehow, you manage to get along famously with my sister, a she-wolf, and Zoelle and her merry band of witches. You do fit in here. You’re just making excuses. You belong with me. Here.” My heartbeat thunders in my ears as I watch him stalk towards the door. “The fact of the matter is, for all your bravado and games, you’re scared. You’re scared of love, Quinn. The love that could be between us, and the love the people in this town could give to you if you’d just let them try.” I watch wordlessly as he leaves, heart shattering into a million pieces.
Game and match: Ryatt.
+++
“You’re an idiot,” Irina remarks coldly as I toss my luggage in the trunk of my car. I send her a pageant queen smile and slam the trunk closed.
“I’m not.”
“Whatever little argument you had last night doesn’t matter, you fool. You have literally found your soul mate, and you’re just going to walk away from that? That might as well be the very definition of idiocy.”
“I’m not going to argue about this with you,” I tell her frankly, stepping up to the driver side door and facing off against her chilling glare.
“Where are you going to go? The Wselfwulfs know who you are, and Vrana is most certainly out for your blood.”
“Ryatt said someone would be watching out for me until I could make a clean getaway.”
Irina scoffs, coming up and slamming my door shut as I begin to open it. “You’re not just breaking his heart you know? You’re turning your back on the Pack too, and they certainly haven’t done anything to deserve this.” I gently push her hand away and open the door again.
“I have your number. I’ll keep in touch.” She scoffs and turns heel, marching off back towards the house. Adjusting my sunglasses, I slip into the driver’s seat, shutting the door with a sharp clip. Irina was the only one to see me off. If it could be even called that. No Ryatt, or other members of the Adolphus pack. Not even Zoelle. To say it didn’t hurt a little would have just been one more lie to add to the pile I had accumulated. Before I can lose my nerve, I put the car in reverse and peel out of the driveway into the street, gunning my way out of the town.
It’s not long into my drive before I feel my stomach twist itself into painful knots. My breath begins to come in panicked wa
ves, the early vestiges of hyperventilation, as I reflect on the choice I’ve made. Before I can quite comprehend what I am doing, my car ends up in front of the Baudelaire home. Zoelle had mentioned something about a tea to keep her feelings under control. To numb the bond. I would just pick some up before I left. Smoothing back my hair and checking my face in the mirror, I exit the car and head to the front door.
“Oh!” My hand is poised to knock when the door is unceremoniously yanked open.
“Oh, indeed.” Lydia Stein lets her eyes flick over me, a knowing gleam inside them as she breezes past. “You’re not likely to find what you need in there, girl, but you can try.” These witches were definitely mind readers. No matter what Zoelle said.
“Are they in the kitchen?” I ask. She directs a nod over her shoulder, leaving the door wide open for my entrance.
“Shut the door and come in, child.” I do as I’m told, following Diana’s voice and finding her, Maureen, and Luna in the kitchen. Luna wears a dark denim shift dress that does nothing to flatter her figure. It’s at least two sizes too big, though; with her almost size zero frame I doubted anything Zoelle, or even I had, could fit her.
“Hi.”
Diana raises a cordial brow. “There’s no need for sunglasses in here. Go on and take those off and have a seat.”
“I just came to grab some tea. I really need to get on the road.”
“Sit.” I’m not quite as mentally prepared as I should be for this kind of standoff, but I couldn’t walk away now. I take off my sunglasses reluctantly, taking a seat near Luna. She watches our exchange raptly, eyes glued to me as I sit.
“What?” I ask curtly, unable to knock the edge from my voice. I wasn’t so sure I’d be able to keep my cool with the loose-lipped fairy.
“You’ve been crying,” she tells me matter-of-factly. “Why?”
I grit my teeth. “I haven’t been crying.”
Luna’s eyes widen in surprise and she looks to the two elder women for guidance. “She lied to me!”
“I did not,” I say tactfully. “I—”
“Yes, you did. You said you hadn’t been crying, but you have.” Maureen sets a steaming cup of tea in front of me.
“It’s best to be honest with Luna. She’s like a supernatural bloodhound. She can sniff out a lie a mile away.”
Just great. “How precious.”
“It has its advantages,” Diana counters. “What kind of tea are you looking for?”
I clear my throat. “Something to stem the bond. Zoelle said she used it when she was with Xander, and it helped.”
“She’s lying again,” Luna says in confusion, scrunching her brow. “Why does she lie so much?”
I take a deep breath and count to five slowly. “Would you mind keeping the commentary to a minimum, Luna? The big girls need to have a chat.” Luna looks put out but obliges. Sitting back in her seat, she crosses her arms over her chest.
“We have something, though I’m sure it won’t do you any good. You’re much too far gone for anything we have to help.”
“Seriously?” I take the news like a punch to the stomach, breath hitching as sorrow stretches across my being.
“You’ve consummated your relationship before completing the soulmark. This act binds you in a different way to Ryatt.”
“Fuck me,” I groan, pinching the bridge of my nose.
“You shouldn’t curse,” Luna says haughtily.
I turn a glare her way. “Well, you shouldn’t talk. Ever.” Luna’s purple eyes shade darker, almost to black, as she glares back at me.
“You’re very rude for a person in love.” I gape at her in response, though I catch Maureen and Diana passing a sly smirk to each other.
“I’m not in love,” I tell her sternly. She pouts some more.
“You might as well be,” she snarks back, “He certainly loves you. Though it’s a wonder why.”
“Quinn here prefers a life of solitude,” Diana tells Luna before I can make my retort. “That’s why she’s going away. Isn’t it Quinn?” I nod my head reluctantly.
“But he loves her,” Luna says uncertainly, losing her bite. “Is he going with you?”
I shake my head. “I don’t think you understand what the word solitude means.”
“Why would you leave him if he loves you and if you’re falling in love with him? That doesn’t make sense.”
“What can I say,” my words brittle and tight, “I’m full of surprises.”
She looks at me seriously. “Why?”
“Why what?” I ask back, frustration blooming inside my chest. I turn my gaze back to the older women. “Can I have the tea still? Anything is better than nothing.”
“I’ll mix some up for you,” Maureen tells me, moving slowly to one of the kitchen cabinets. Her movements are slightly shaky, and a grimace flickers over her face at the simple action. “I can feel your pity from here. I don’t need it. I’ll be fine in no time. The spell just took a lot out of me.”
Luna’s lips thin and I catch her eye. “Lie,” she mouths. My lips quirk upwards, but only slightly.
“We have something akin to soulmarks in the Hollow. You see, every fairy is created with their match in mind, and a sigil placed upon them to help find their match. Most fairies find their match shortly after their conception, as they’re typically wrought from the same field.”
“How exactly are fairies…conceived?” I ask, mind stunned to a standstill for a brief moment.
Luna blinks owlishly back at me. “Why, we come from flowers of course.” She gives a short burst of laughter, her mirth evident at my lack of knowledge. “How else would we be conceived?”
I let out an unladylike snigger. “Oh, trust me, there are more fun ways to conceive.”
“Are you speaking of the pleasures of the flesh?” The sip of tea I take is spat out immediately, half ending up back in the cup while the other spills down my chin.
“Oh my God.”
“Lunaria, we spoke about this earlier. Topics such as pleasures of the flesh are not to be had in polite company,” Diana chides. Luna flushes apologetically.
“Your name is Lunaria? As in the plant that forces you to tell the truth?” Maureen sits down beside me and gives my knee a gentle pat.
“I was born of the Lunaria!” Luna tells me brightly. “What flower did you come from?”
I grin. “The pink lotus.”
“Do not encourage her, Quinn Montgomery,” Diana reprimands sharply.
“That sounds like a very pretty flower,” she says. “I’m sure I’ve seen it before in the Hollow.” I hum my agreement.
“It most certainly is.”
“That’s enough, Quinn. Don’t you have somewhere to go?” Diana sends me a pointed look that makes me cringe internally. Time’s up. I stand up and give a weak smile to both Maureen and Luna. Maureen presses a soft silk pouch into my hand.
“Steep for two to three minutes. No more.” I nod.
“You’re really leaving?” Luna exclaims unhappily. Again I nod. “But—but doesn’t he make you happy?”
“He does—