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“Come on, Pumpkin,” I say to Amelia, reaching out a hand and leading her and my mom to the kitchen, giving Zach and Rayne some space to talk. The fact that he is willingly touching her is enough proof that in time he’s going to be okay.
Chapter Twenty-Three
Pearl
Istand and stare at the clothes laid out on the bed for so long that my eyes blur. I hear voices on the other side of the door, and I want to go out and join them, but I can’t tear my eyes away from the bed.
I feel like I’m back to being the girl they pulled from that facility so many years ago. The one that I tried desperately to bury.
Broken. That’s what I feel like.
I shake my head, sliding my mask back on, trying desperately to rebuild the walls with the crumbling ruins surrounding them. I reach down, my body moving on autopilot as I step each leg into the yoga pants and tug the shirt over my head.
“Are you okay?” Rayne’s voice startles me from the door. I’m so lost in my head that I didn't even hear her come in.
For a moment, seeing her face sends relief through my body. I need a friend. Not that Loukas isn’t the perfect mate, but having someone who saw me at my worst and helped me through the trauma is a welcomed sight until I remember…
“You can’t be in here,” I whisper, my body moving backward like having the bed between us will make the difference.
“Pearl,” Rayne says, her voice sounding pained.
“I don’t want to hurt you,” I whisper again, tears filling my eyes.
She blurs closer to me, using her speed and taking my face in her hands.
“You would never hurt me.”
“I almost…” I choke down a sob, visions of yesterday flashing by.
“Look at me,” she demands, and I raise my eyes to hers. “Yesterday was not your fault. Plus, you didn’t hurt me. See.” She lowers a hand, gesturing to herself.
“I could have.”
She lets out a chuckle. “Babe. I am a highly trained hunter. The only time you would hurt me is if I let you. Unless I know I deserve it, I won’t.” A small smile graces my lips at her words, knowing they’re the truth. She may have been right when she admitted that I can beat a lot of people on this island in a fight, but she is not one of them. “There she is.”
“What about Bree and the kids?” I ask. “Did you tell them?”
“I told Bree,” she says, stepping back. “But like me, She doesn’t believe for a second that you will hurt any of us.”
“I wouldn’t mean to.”
“Do something for me,” she says ignoring my previous statement and I dip my chin in agreement. “Search inside you. Right now, do you feel like you want to bite me? Like you want my blood.”
My eyes widen, but she pins me with a stare, so I close my eyes and do as she asks. She steps closer, I feel her body brushing against mine, hear the slow rhythmic beating of her heart, the warmth of her skin, but unlike yesterday when all I could think of was getting one little drop of her blood, I feel nothing but safe with my friend beside me. There is a small part of me that remembers how it felt at first but…
“No,” I say, my eyes opening to see Rayne smiling. “I mean there is a little thing in my brain telling me that I can be powerful if I were to drink from you but it’s something I can ignore.”
“And your magic?” she asks and once again I close my eyes, searching for that spark inside me. The green well where my magic resides.
“It’s small but there.”
“See. You’re not a danger to us. You’re stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
“Thank you,” I tell her, flinging my arms around her neck, unafraid that I will hurt her and trusting that she can handle me if I do. For the first time this morning, I feel like my life will actually be okay.
I know Loukas tried to convince me of that, and I desperately wanted to believe him, but I didn’t. Not really.
“It’s what family does. I was only the first option. If it didn’t work with me, Drusilla and Andres were up next. Breanne was not willing to accept what Artemis said.”
