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Chapter 20
Harmonia
Confusion and frustration course through my veins as I sit at the kitchen island at home, staring at the three men arguing with each other in the center of the room.
My question had gone unanswered. The second the words fell from my mouth, Alexi snapped his fingers, transporting the four of us back to the house, and I’ve been sitting here ever since.
It’s like I’m not here as the three of them wave their arms around, faces bright red with anger and agitation, all while I go unnoticed, making myself go through the mundane ritual of putting together a mug of coffee.
I’ve tried to chime in a time or two, but my voice is clearly not being heard among all the growling and grunting coming from the three of them.
One thing is for certain though, the panic in the room is real. I could stab at it with a knife, that’s for sure, and it’s not just coming from me. It’s coming from those three as well.
Tapping my foot on the bar stool, I look over at the three of them again, tuning in to their anger and rage to see where they’re at with the situation. It’s not like I’m the one sitting here with the damn mark on my arm or anything.
Alexi has lost his blazer, the sleeves on his pristine white shirt are rolled back to the elbow while he runs his fingers through his hair again, tugging at the ends in frustration. He works best when in control, and this situation is far from it.
Malik’s face is redder than his hair, his hands fisted at his sides as he angrily taps his foot on the floor. Standing still while a mess continues to arise around him never works well. He’ll be getting antsier with every second that ticks by.
Talon, on the other hand, is pacing back and forth along the length of the bi-folding doors that lead out to the garden. His blond hair is a mess on his head from tugging at it too, but what catches my attention more is the red puffiness around his eyes.
“That doesn’t explain how this has fucking happened, Alexi,” Malik bites, swinging his arm in my direction without turning my way as Alexi scoffs in response.
“She fucking killed someone, Mal. Even I managed to get through their magic to make it downstairs in time to see that.” My chest clenches at the memory of setting the man on fire, but my instincts kicked in and my magic took over, leaving a voice echoing through my mind that left me no choice but to act.
Kill or be killed.
I did not come all this way to die so heartbreakingly on a sidewalk at the hands of some fucker for no damn reason.
“That was fucking badass and you know it,” Talon chimes in, making my jaw loosen in surprise as I gape at him. Of course he would find a positive in all of this.
“And it was also the reason that fucking mark appeared on her arm.” Alexi’s voice is deadly, freezing me in place for a second before I’m rising to my feet and marching toward them.
I’m done with them talking around me like I’m not here, I deserve to be part of this conversation. I didn’t even know the reason behind the mark until now.
“Are you actually going to involve me in any of this?” The bite in my tone is clear as I stand before them, arms folded over my chest, glaring.
Slowly, Talon pauses his pacing and turns to face me with a surprised look on his face, like the asshole forgot I was here. Malik spins on the spot to face me with a guilty look in his eyes as he rubs at the back of his neck while Alexi glares at me, an entirely different demeanor to the man that held me against his chest earlier.
I raise my eyebrows, silently demanding at least one of them respond, but the sound of a doorbell chiming through the house distracts everyone. I glance toward the entryway, and I have to blink rapidly to catch up with the fact that Talon is now there opening the door.
Wiping a hand down my face, I groan. I need to catch the hell up with their abilities instead of letting it continue to catch me off-guard.
With a resigned sigh, I look back up to see who has interrupted my chance of actually getting some answers, only to find Talon strolling back toward me with his arm wrapped around my mom’s shoulders.
A gasp slips from my lips as she offers me a warm smile and it sends me straight over the cliff of emotions I’ve been teetering on the edge of. Rushing toward her, my gasp turns into a full-fledged sob as Talon drops his arm just in time for me to embrace her.
My mom squeezes me just as hard as I squeeze her, and I remain in her embrace for gods-only-know how long, letting every bit of my confusion, pain, happiness, and relief that is rushing through me escape.
As always, she holds me, being the perfect rock for me like she always has, slowly swaying me from side to side after a while, cooing in my ear as she strokes her hand over my hair. In her arms, I feel vulnerable, but now, not so much like a child. I feel grown, with far heavier weights on my shoulders as she tries to guide me through the carnage.
With one final sniff, I lean back, offering a watery smile to my mom, who wears one of her own. “Hey, Hay-Hay.” Her nickname for me makes me chuckle despite the mess I find myself in, and the way she laughs along with me tells me that was exactly her intention.
When I was a toddler, learning all the words of the world, my own name was too much of a handful, so I resorted to calling myself Hay-Hay and it stuck for the longest time with her.
Tucking a loose tendril of hair behind my ear, I take a step back from her, glancing around the room to find that we’re alone. My lips twist in annoyance. It’s clear they brought my mom here to distract me while they continued to keep me out of the loop, but in the same breath I can’t be mad because I’ve missed her like hell.
“Catch me up to speed, honey. Talon barely said a word when he called, just that you needed me.” Her words warm my heart as I link my arm through hers and lead her toward the large sofa at the other end of the room. It’s not often I’m on this side, but it feels fitting to me, relaxing on the sofa with her like we would do as if we were at home.
