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CASSIAN
Ipaced up and down outside of the apartment. Something happened to Emily a few hours ago, the bond vibrated slightly and pulled tight. I thought Emily was in danger, and my heart practically stopped when I arrived and she wasn’t here. Her phone went to voicemail immediately so either it was broken or dead. I was on the verge of sending the entire pack out on a search when Griffin and Emily pulled up. My hands shook and I forced myself to keep my face straight. What was she doing with him?
“Where have you been?” I blurted out when Emily made it up the steps. She looked exhausted, more than that—drained. Griffin trailed up behind her.
“Hey Cass, my phone died,” She breathed. “I went to—”
“She saved my ass,” Griffin interjected.
My gaze whipped to him. “What?”
“Kellan and a few of the others found me. Long story short—lots of blood and near death. Emily came riding in on a white horse and got me out.” Emily glanced over her shoulder at him and smiled sadly.
“Why didn’t you call me?” I softened my voice, but I couldn’t hide the hurt from it.
Emily rubbed her hands together. “Because you were a werewolf when I left.”
“You saved him while he was a wolf? He could have killed you Emily! They all could have!”
Emily shifted her weight from one leg to the other. Griffin passed us and led the way into the apartment. Emily followed on unsteady legs. “Let's talk about this inside. Emily is tired and she needs to rest,” he said gruffly.
Since when did he care about Emily? I looked at her again, color crept into her pale cheeks and she didn’t make eye contact with me. I realized she hadn’t looked at me once since they arrived. Emily followed Griffin inside, and after a minute, I followed her.
We sat down in the lounge. Griffin handed Emily a bottle of water, and then he handed one to me as well. The apartment was quiet. A blanket was left forgotten on the floor next to the couch. An empty cup of hot chocolate took up the corner of the coffee table. Emily had left in a rush. I should have slept here last night, but either way, I would’ve been down in the cell and she would’ve been gone.
“I’ll explain. I was nestled in a bush close to the camp and for the two days, nothing happened. They spent most of their time in the camp and tortured victims. Gray didn’t leave once. A few hours before sundown, Kellan and a few of his lackeys found me, I’m not sure how. They tied me to a pole, and Kellan had some fun with knives and a fire poker. He used some kind of paste that slowed the healing. I called out for Emily just before the change and I guess she came. I’d already changed so I’m not sure what happened after that,” Griffin explained. Emily nodded but she'd gone pale again.
She cleared her throat, and her eyes glazed over as if she was transported back to the camp. “I heard Griffin in my dream but it felt real. I grabbed some potions, messaged Morgan, and left. By the time I found the camp, Griffin was bent in unnatural shapes. He’d gone through the change while being tied straight against the pole. The poker wound, I’m guessing, oozed with blood and something acidic. His cuts weren’t healing, so I gave him some of the potions from Morgan. It started to help. He was still a werewolf, but he didn’t snap at me or bite me. But it was too late. The sun came up.” Emily explained the rest of the morning—how they were circled by the pack, how she used her powers to save them, and how they bumped into Morgan on the way back to the motorcycle.
Griffin nodded and his fingers twitched toward Emily as if he wanted to reach out and touch her. “Victor said they were preparing for someone or something. It was the only reason Kellan didn’t kill me. Victor wanted him to help set it up so he shattered my knee and hand as a goodbye. I have no doubt that he would’ve finished it off if Emily hadn’t been there.”
“Why didn’t you call Morgan?” I growled at him as baseless anger built inside of me. She would’ve been able to magic them out of there better.
“I don’t know! Maybe because I was near death and not thinking all that clearly and because Emily is the one with the bond,” Griffin snapped.
I sighed deeply. “Okay, well I’m relieved that both of you are safe.” I scratched my head as a new realization hit. “We’re back at square one again.”
Emily shifted in her seat and put her head in her hands. “Let’s rest for tonight, Cass. Why don’t you stay here? Griffin, take the room and sleep for a bit. I’ll sleep on the couch. Tonight we can think of something else.”
Griffin stood. “I second that. I’m exhausted.” He disappeared into the bedroom and shut the door leaving me and Emily alone.
She didn’t move or lift her head. I put an arm around her shoulders and she jumped.
“Sorry, I’m a little on edge. The past 12 hours have been crazy.” Emily laughed without humor but didn’t push me away.
I grabbed one of the throw pillows and put it on my lap. “Lie down, sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up.”
Emily lifted her head and smiled at me through heavy eyelids. “I’m glad you’re here, Cass. Sorry I made you worry. I just wanted to help. I can’t imagine losing you or Griffin,” she mumbled. In less than five minutes, her breathing turned heavy. I tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and watched her sleep.
She was acting strange, distant almost, but I couldn’t blame her. She’d marched into a werewolf pack, saved Griffin, and used a large amount of power to get them out. I’d also be a little off. I did stop to wonder if she would’ve done the same for me, and I mentally slapped myself the moment the thought drifted through my mind. Of course she would. Emily and I would run into a burning fire for each other. The bond though, what was the tension from earlier? I’d have to ask Emily about it, but I’d wait until Griffin wasn’t around.
Grace wrote down the message that Gus and Tiny found on Lyrica, and I kept the note with me. If we could trace it, we could probably find Samara. An idea formed in my mind and I gently moved Emily from my lap. She groaned but didn’t wake up. She must’ve been drained, Emily usually woke up for any sound no matter how light it was. She looked so peaceful, like there was nothing wrong in the world. She was so much stronger than she gave herself credit for. Just a few months ago everything changed, and now she embraced being a witch. Her eyes lit up whenever she managed a spell, and even though I’d only seen her do minor things, I was really impressed. But I’d heard about witches that used too much and the cost caused them to turn to dark magic. I didn’t want that to happen to Emily.
I walked to the kitchen and pulled my phone out to make a call. It rang a few times and on the last ring, it finally connected. I was surprised that she even answered. I hadn’t spoken to her in years, but she was the only person I could trust to help us at the moment. Morgan had been distant so I wasn’t comfortable asking her, and Emily didn’t have the skillset yet.
“Hey, I know this is strange but I need your help. I’ll send you the address.”
Silence. It dragged on, and I pulled the phone away to check if it was still connected.
