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Two hands press against the sides of my face and when my eyes focus, I gaze into a familiar pair of jade green eyes, dark with pain. “I’m here. You’re okay, but I need you to breathe, Ver Bear.” He mimics the motion of breathing in and out and I follow it, sucking in a gasping breath. “There you go. Good girl.”
“Ryland?” All I say is his name, but it’s threaded with the questions I’m too terrified to speak aloud.
“I swear. I didn’t kill anyone, Ver, I fucking promise you. Yes, Matthew and I had a disagreement, but I didn’t kill him—“
“I want him detained for questioning!” Mrs. Violet screeches. “And as the two senior enforcers here, you will do as the council requests.” Andrik’s expression falters and he glances at Jedrik, who doesn’t say anything. “Now! Or I’ll have your jobs the moment this show is over. Not to mention I’ll never give you any air time and tank your rating with society. Don’t test me.”
“We’d be happy to investigate, but we’d need full access to the footage to review it ourselves.” The rest of what Andrik says is drowned out by my panic.
A spike of fear has a whimper coming from my throat at the thought of the twins not ending up in my pack. Emmett places his hands on my shoulders and lends me his strength, attempting to soothe me, but it does nothing. This is completely unfair because her threat has the desired effect. Andrik and Jedrik shoot me an apologetic look as they reach for Ryland.
No, I can’t let this happen. Ryland is a lot of things, selfless, compassionate, an extremely talented lover, an even better best friend, and I know one thing for certain: he’s not a murderer.
“Stop! He’s not a murderer,” I plead, tears steadily slipping down my cheeks. “There’s some other explanation, you simply haven’t found it yet.”
Mrs. Violet’s lip curls as I turn my blubbering in her direction. “I have camera footage that proves otherwise. Arrest him. Now.”
“We have no choice, Trouble,” Jedrik murmurs. “It’s going to be okay.”
Ryland clears his throat and holds his hands up. “I’ll come willingly. I have nothing to hide.”
The twins give him an appreciative nod and work to tie his hands behind his back. What the hell? When did Jedrik get the rope?
I don’t have time to question it before they’re hauling him off, taking a giant piece of my heart with them.
Hours.
It’s been hours since they took Ryland and barricaded me in our room. Because the council thinks he’s a killer. As if my Ry would ever hurt anyone. I’m pointedly ignoring the fact I watched him knock the living daylights out of Matthew with my own two eyes.
By the time Jedrik appears at my door, I’ve worn a groove in the flooring of my room from all my pacing. Ryland’s T-shirt is still bunched in my hands from where I’ve been inhaling his scent religiously. I’m sure I’m an absolute mess. Hell, I still have Emmett’s dried cum between my legs.
Jedrik takes one glance at me and wraps me into his arms, his maple scent enveloping me like a woodsy hug. I take comfort in his embrace, curling into him as best as I can. I don’t realize I’m still crying until he tilts my chin up and wipes a tear from my cheek. “It’s okay, Trouble. We’re doing our best to get him out of this.”
“How is he?”
“More concerned about you than anything else,” he replies.
Sounds like my Ry. Always thinking about others more than himself. See? This is why I’m certain he’s not involved in whatever mess is going on.
I take a deep, shuddering breath before asking what’s on my mind. “How bad is it?” Best to get straight to the nitty gritty. Jed’s jaw tenses, the only tell he gives me, but I already know. “That bad?”
“Well, it’s certainly not good. Apparently, Matthew said some sick things about you, which is how his face became acquainted with Ryland’s fist.” That must be the scuffle I witnessed and was apparently caught on camera. “Ryland swears they parted ways after that, but the problem is neither of them appears on camera again before the footage cuts out. Which is suspicious.”
“Yeah, suspicious because it’s convenient as hell. Damn it. Where did Ryland go that he didn’t reappear on the millions of cameras around here?”
“That’s the thing. He says he went straight to the gym to work off some steam, except there’s no sign of that actually occurring. Andrik’s looking into it.”
“What about Matthew’s whereabouts?”
“Ryland said he wasn’t sure where Matthew went other than he’d been talking about getting some fresh air before things devolved into their fight. Actually, I think his exact words were, ‘Matthew was incessantly talking about needing breathing room from the stench of betas since the dampeners were turned off.’”
What an asshole.
“Jed, you know Ry is innocent, right?” I ask, because I have to know.
I wait with bated breath for his response. “Of course I know that, Trouble. The man has to be a saint with how long he waited before diving between your thighs. We see how long I lasted before I threw my stupid notions to the wind and went all in on this connection simmering between us.”
Now certainly isn’t the time for romance, but his statement is so sweet, I can’t help but press my lips against his in a passion-filled kiss that has my toes curling and him chasing me for more when I pull away. “Rain check?” I ask. “We have a beta to save.”
