To my surprise, he nods and doesn’t deny it. “I know. I… I need to work with her some more. I’ve been working with another witch to learn more about Seeker magic—”
“You brought another fucking witch into this?” I slam my fist against the wall.
He doesn’t flinch. “Yes. One I trust with my life.”
That doesn’t make me feel better. I know Kendrick trusts him, but still… “And? What did this witch have to say?”
“We discussed how to help Mona explore her powers. She suppressed everything for so long, she has no idea how to control it. I’ll need to…” his voice trails off. And for the first time since I met the mysterious man, he seems uncomfortable.
Silas prompts him, “You’ll need to what?”
He winces. “I need to spend more time with her.”
I don’t like that idea. And when I turn to Mona’s other mate, I expect him to feel the same. But Silas has an odd grin on his face. He likes the idea of them spending time with each other.
“What am I missing here?” I ask, walking back to the table.
“Nothing—”
“She hasn’t told them because she’s scared of what they’ll do. But they deserve to know,” Silas says cryptically, to Ghost.
Ghost snarls, flashing his sharp teeth at Silas. In a silent standoff, a conversation passes between them. Silas knows something I don’t. Ghost fidgets, then takes a step back toward the door. His fingers curl around the frame, scratching at the already worn wood.
He doesn’t look at me, but he has my attention. In fact, I can’t look away. He gives Silas one more pleading look, and then his shield drops slowly. The missing scent I knew he cloaked with magic begins to filter into the air around us. The shield lowers completely, and I can finally scent his shifter. And something else, too. Something earthy, a little briny. Like the salt in the ocean, cold stone floor. Something ancient.
Holy fucking shit.
Grayson’s footsteps thunder down the stairs. “I put Mona to bed. She passed out, I think she’s—” his voice cuts off the moment he enters the kitchen, behind Ghost. He eyes him suspiciously, walking slowly around him, then taking steps backward. “What is this?” he rasps. “What fucking magic is this?”
Silas says, “Mona hasn’t told you because Ghost refuses the bond. He doesn’t plan to stay. I think she’s afraid you two will force him to, and staying won’t be his choice. And honestly, I think she’s a little embarrassed that he doesn’t want her.”
“How can he not—” Grayson howls, but Ghost cuts him off.
“It is not that I don’t want her! Do you think I would not give anything to have her! To be with her, to live this normal fucking life with you four!”
His declaration lands like a bomb. The quiet settling in the aftermath, the four of us—pack brothers, all of us—take each other in. Ghost swears under his breath, says something in Spanish, then spins and disappears, his scent along with it.
My heart is racing, almost throbbing, like I can feel each pulse in my brain as I try to process—
“What the fuck just happened?” Grayson demands.
I can’t believe this. All this time, he knew he was our pack brother, our mate’s final bond, and he hid himself from us?
I’m—I don’t know what I am. I think I’m fucking pissed. But I’m too confused and shocked to process.
Silas sighs and kicks the chair at the table out with his foot. “Sit. And I’ll tell you what really happened in Canada.”
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Chapter 28: Mona
I’m sweating, my arms hurt, and though I’ve stopped bleeding, I let the drying blood cover my right eye so Andrea takes pity on me. It barely works. Ever since she found out about Ingrid—especially since we found out Ingrid has been captured, though I haven’t told her what else I saw—Andrea has been unhinged.
It might not seem so to the naked eye. She’s still her typical, militant, uptight, abrasive self. But she’s a little wild. Reckless. She’s supposed to be watching after me, but honestly, it kinda feels like I’m watching after her. Making sure she doesn’t do something crazy.
She’s going after her mate, and I’m her only source of information. Unfortunately, I don’t have that much. I’ve been doing what Ghost told me to do, opening my mind, asking my omega to show me the deltas every night before bed. But what I see is already happening, and I have no control over my environment once I’m there. I can’t save them.
To make matters worse, Ghost showed up last night, and again at the breakfast table this morning. One minute he’s nowhere to be found, the next he’s haunting every corner, and I can’t let myself believe he won’t disappear again. What’s weirder, instead of bristling and hovering like they normally do when Ghost is around, the guys just nodded at him in the way guys do, then kept eating.
