Page 53 of Two For One

“A love spell?” O snapped. “You cast a love spell on us? Was this your plan the entire time, that’s why it didn’t work for her? You put your name instead of hers?”

“I didn’t know who you were before that night he paid to dance with me,” I said, overwhelmed with emotions that I couldn’t place.

Desperation?

“Was that before or after you cast the spell?” O asked, crossing his arms across his chest.

“Af-after,” I stuttered. “She’s wrong, I didn’t⁠—”

Ezra grabbed something, throwing it against the wall furthest from me. His hands signed quickly as I tried to understand something.

“She doesn’t give a shit, Ezra. All she cares about is money and⁠—”

O went completely silent looking at me with wide eyes.

“You’ve been feeding them information,” he yelled, walking over to me. “Who was it? Madame Red or do you have a direct line to Cox?”

He yanked me forward by my shirt. Fear froze me in place.

“Are you feeding information to these assholes that are stealing women and children!” he yelled. “How could you do this!?”

I shook my head as tears fell down my face.

“You disgust me. I can’t believe we trusted you,” he snarled. “What? You don’t have anything to say?”

I willed my body to say something…anything, but I couldn’t. Ezra put his hand on O’s shoulder not even sparing me a glance. The door opened, revealing Madame Red. Her eyebrows shot up as she took in the scene.

“Is everything⁠—”

“Don’t play innocent, I wouldn’t be surprised if you all played us,” O growled. “Actually, I am surprised that you…you did this to us, makes sense why I never once looked at you. I must have known you were an ugly person.”

My lip trembled. “I didn’t⁠—”

“Save it, you sl⁠—”

“Oliver, I would be careful what you say next,” Madame Red threatened.

“Ezra,” I whispered, but he didn’t acknowledge me.

He pulled O back and he let go of my shirt, looking between Madame Red and I.

“And to think I was stupid enough to think this could be more,” O said, pulling away from Ezra, leaving the room.

Ezra signed as he watched O leave and I wished I knew what he had said. He followed O out of the room as my body trembled and I released the sob I had been holding back.

“Oh, Xiomara.” Madame Red walked to me as I let myself fall onto the sofa.

I closed my eyes, not wanting to hear, “I told you so.”

It was just some fun with masked men who broke into my home, so why did it feel like my entire world was falling apart?

Three days with no word from the guys until Judd and Mason came to tell me that I was cleared to go back to my apartment. I grabbed my stuff immediately, desperate to go home to get away from Valentine Town.

I hadn’t left my room in those three days. A heartache like I had never experienced before kept me almost comatose. If Mason hadn’t shown up to chew me out and basically take care of me, I would have hidden under the covers the entire time.

My apartment came into view, releasing some of the tension I had been holding onto since that night. Mason assured me they had someone come and clean the mess. I had no idea how much I had lost, and I was afraid to see what I would have to replace, afraid that nothing was salvageable.

Mason opened my apartment door, walking in as I stood outside, afraid to go in. Maleficent and Merlin walked right in like nothing had happened. I could still hear the fighting and commotion from that night. The fear that I was going to die and almost worse was the fear I had that I would lose Ezra.