My eyes widened. “Chancey’s no longer dealing drugs?”
“He said he’s done with it. He’s trying to get rid of all his stock.”
That was surprising. Chancey would sell his own mother for a buck. What had convinced him to stop dealing here at the prison, where money from addicts free-flowed?
Charlie noticed my pondering and said simply, “Ivy.”
“Oh,” I said quietly. “Aren’t Ivy and Chancey just... fuck buddies?”
“What Chancey says and how Chancey feels are two completely different things,” Charlie told me.
My stomach flip-flopped inside of me nervously. “Was it your idea to get Digger thrown into Cellblock 9?”
“Someone had to take care of him,” Charlie said with a careless shrug. “I was done hearing about all the tainted drugs he gave to girls, and no way in hell was I letting you be next. He made a major mistake threatening my pidge.”
“But hiding the nightshade in his room was so risky. What if you had gotten caught?”
Charlie laughed. “Irarelyget caught. There are easier ways to handle things than getting into a fight. Not to mention more effective. He won’t bother you anymore.”
“I can’t believe you did that… for me.” I turned toward Charlie, and he grasped my arms. I rested my hands on his forearms, and Oberi shoved his way between us, wagging his tail.
“I’d do anything for you, pidge. You don’t even have to ask,” Charlie said.
A strange sort of unease settled within me. I was honored that Charlie would go to such lengths to keep me safe. There was no one better I could trust with my safety.
At the same time, I was scared about what Charlie would do to protect me. Because clearly, to him, nothing was off limits.
I was a chosen one, which meant I wassupposedto be a hero— I had a duty to put my relationships, my needs and my wants second, and the world first, because according to my prophecy, I had an obligation to save it.
But day by day, I doubted how far I’d go to save the world. Because if saving the supernatural community meant sacrificing someone I loved, I’d let Earth itself burn.
Like me, Charlie was no hero. He was a villain, and a villain would allow the world to crumble just to get one last kiss.
It made me wonder what else Charlie was capable of if it came down to saving me— if he’d get in the way of what I’d been chosen to do.
To be honest, I was frightened. I wanted to fulfill the prophecy, and save the world, but to Charlie… Iwashis world.
And today, he’d proven just how good he was at defending what was his.
* * *
That night, I steadied myself to go to the fight club. I had on my favorite jacket, as well as the jeans my mother had given me for luck, because I really didn’t want to see Charlie get hurt tonight. I hoped some of their magic worked.
Charlie got Marcus and Kallie passes too, because he didn’t want me to go alone. I’d left Oberi in my cell. I felt really bad leaving him behind, but I knew that a fight club was no place for a Familiar… though I was sorely lonesome knowing he wasn’t with Charlie or me.
It didn’t feel right to have the three of us in separate places. That was asking for something bad to go wrong.
Marcus leaned against a gargoyle statue by what I assumed was a hidden door in the wall. Rishi wasn’t with him— a fight club was no place for cats, either.
Charlie had given us details on how to get to the fight club, and I hoped we’d found the right place. Kallie hadn’t shown up yet, so I sat on the statue beside Marcus.
“Thanks for the picture you drew of Oberi,” I told him, and I squeezed him into a hug. “It was so nice.”
“No problem,” Marcus choked out. I was a tight hugger. “I can’t believe Charlie’s really doing this. It’s such a big risk.”
“I know.” I sighed. “But it makes him happy, so I can’t stop him.”
Marcus eyed me. “Are you two being honest with each other yet?”
