Gabriel’s POV
I watched Aria and Cassie walk away.
“Is she okay?” Blake asked.
“Yes,” Nick sighed. “We had a small disagreement.”
“We heard you growl,” Blake smirked.
“Oh, that was directed at Gabriel, not her,” Nick chuckled.
“What did you do?” Blake asked me and laughed.
“I made a stupid suggestion,” I shrugged.
Nick chuckled and shook his head.
“Okay, enough about us,” I said and sat down on the couch. “We need to talk about Patricia.”
“Do you have a plan?” Jake asked me.
“Not really,” I sighed. “That’s why I wanted to talk to all of you. We need to find her.”
“I have a suggestion,” Annie said.
“Let’s hear it,” Nick said as he placed his elbows on his knees.
“Well, I have been talking to Jack and Mike,” Annie explained. “Jack is an excellent tracker. He suggested that we leave and try to find Patricia while the rest of you stay here and practice magic.”
“What do you mean, we?” I asked, narrowing my eyes at her.
“Mike, Jack, and I,” she explained.
I frowned. I was not sure I was comfortable with her leaving. She could get in trouble. Something could happen to her.
“I don’t like the idea of you leaving with them,” Nick voiced my thoughts. “We don’t know them.”
“Yes, you don’t know them,” Annie sighed. “But I do. I’ve known them longer than I know you.”
“Why can’t they go alone?” I asked.
“They can,” Annie nodded. “But I want to do something useful. Think about it. All of you have magic. You need to practice and prepare. Mike, Jack and I don’t. At least we can find Patricia.”
Nick and I exchanged glances. She was not wrong.
“Also, none of you are willing to separate,” Annie added. “Blake and Jacob won’t leave Cassie. The two of you won’t leave Aria.”
“She is right,” Jacob said. “I don’t want to leave Cassie and Aria.”
“And there is no way we are taking Aria on that trip,” Nick said. “Not after what happened with Calvin. She is the safest here.”
“Exactly,” Annie nodded. “We can’t bring Aria along, and none of you are willing to leave here without her. So, we will go.”
I looked over at Nick and he nodded.
“Okay, Annie,” I said. “But you will call me at least twice a day, so I know you are safe.”
“Yes, sir,” Annie said as she saluted me.
I chuckled. “Good.”
“We need to tell Mike and Jack everything we know about Patricia,” Nick said.
“Already done,” Annie smiled.
Nick and I raised our eyebrows and Annie laughed.
“Well, I knew you would agree, so I already told them everything,” she said.
“How did you know we would agree?” I smirked.
“Because my plan makes sense, and I knew you would see it too,” she laughed.
I wanted to argue, but I was interrupted when the phone on the coffee table rang.
Victor replied.
Nick grabbed the phone and opened the message.
His jaw clenched and his grip on the phone tightened.
“What?” I asked, nervous.
“He said to bring Aria to him in the next ten days, or he would come for her himself,” Nick growled.
“He doesn’t know anything, right?” Annie asked quietly.
“I don’t think so,” Nick said and looked back at the phone. “He wrote: Calvin, you little shit. You have ten days to bring her to me, or I will come and get her myself. Don’t play with me. I told you what I’d do if you let me down.”
“Fuck,” I sighed.
“It will be okay,” Blake said. “He doesn’t know where Aria is.”
“Yeah,” Jacob nodded. “And maybe we will find Patricia and she will give us something useful against Victor.”
“We need to be ready,” I said. “I will work with Aria. She needs to learn how to control her power. The rest of you should also practice.”
“We will,” Jacob said sternly.
“We should also practice one-on-one fighting,” Nick said.
I nodded. “I agree. I practiced boxing for a long time. I can show you some of the basic stuff. Just enough so you can defend yourselves if needed.”
“Good,” Blake smiled. “We will be ready when the bastard comes.”
“I am killing that fucker,” Nick growled. “Nobody is taking Aria away from me.”
“He will not take her,” I said. “He will not hurt any of us.”
The guys nodded, and Annie smiled warmly at me.
“When are you leaving, Annie?” Blake asked.
“Mike said he would like to leave as soon as possible,” Annie said. “We will leave tomorrow morning.”
“That would be best,” I nodded. “We don’t have much time.”
Jacob stood up and started walking toward the stairs.
“Where are you going, man?” Blake called after him.
“I remembered I have a book about the history of our politics,” he said, turning around to look at us. “There could be something more about Victor and Patricia in the book.”
“Great,” Annie smiled.
“I will give it to you so you can read it thoroughly on the drive,” he said, turning back and walking upstairs.
“Will you help me make dinner?” Annie asked us and stood up.
“Sure,” Blake and I said at the same time.
“I should check on Aria.” Nick said.
“No, leave her,” Annie said sternly. “She is here, and she is safe. She wanted to talk to her friend. Give her some space.”
“Okay, fine,” Nick sighed. “Why are you so worked up about this? I just wanted to check on her.”
“Because you two are suffocating her,” she said, pointing at me and Nick. “She needs some breathing room.”
“What did I do now?” I asked and raised my hands in surrender.
“Don’t get me started,” Annie said and shook her head. “Now, get up and help me make dinner.”
I chuckled and followed Annie to the kitchen.
Annie was right, though. Nick and I were a little bit over-protective. But that was just because we knew she was in danger. He wanted her and he will do anything to get her. I couldn’t help it. I needed to know she was okay. And the only way I could do that was if she was right beside me the whole time.
Aria’s POV
I don’t know how long Cassie let me cry on her shoulder.
She held me in her arms, rubbing my back soothingly and telling me that everything would be okay.
I don’t know if I trusted her.
“Ari, honey, look at me,” Cassie said after a while. “Talk to me. It will help.”
I raised my head from her shoulder and tried to contain the sobs.
She pulled me to the bed, and we sat down.
“Talk,” she said and wiped the tears from my face.
“I don’t know what to say,” I said, my voice trembling.
“Did something happen with Nick?” she asked me. “We heard him growl. Did he do something, Aria? Because Jake would kill him if he hurt you. You know that.”
I chuckled through my tears.
“No, he didn’t do anything,” I said. “He didn’t hurt me.”
“Good,” Cassie smiled. “But why are you crying?”
“It’s everything,” I said, fresh tears falling out of my eyes. “I don’t even have time to adjust to one thing and here comes the other one. I lost everything in a matter of days. I found out my whole life was a lie. It’s just too much.”
“I am so sorry, Ari,” Cassie said quietly and took my hand in hers.
“I feel like a prisoner,” I said.
“Because of Nick and Gabriel?” she asked me.
“Partly,” I nodded. “They can suffocate me at times. But it is not just them. It is everything that happened. The prophecy dictated my life starting even before I was born. Because of it, I was a prisoner to Grace. Then I became a prisoner of her spell. And she took everything from me when she cast it. Now, I am a prisoner of Victor. And I am a danger to everyone around me.”
“You are not a danger to us,” Cassie said.
“How can you say that?” I said as I looked at her. “Calvin almost killed you because of me.”
Warm tears fell on my cheeks. I remembered how helpless I felt when I saw him holding a knife to her throat. I was so afraid he would hurt or kill her.
“That was not your fault, Aria,” Cassie said, wiping the tears from my face.
“Yes, it was,” I said. “He wanted me. He was there to hurt me. And he used you to get me.”
“He was a sick man, Ari,” Cassie said. “It wasn’t your fault.”
I sobbed, and she pulled me into another hug.
“I am so sorry, Cassie,” I managed to say.
“You have nothing to be sorry about,” she said.
After a few moments, I let her go.
“I just wish we could go back to our village,” I said and looked down at my hands. “Just you, Jake, Blake, and me. I wish we could go back before any of this happens.”
“What about Nick?” she asked softly. “And Gabriel?”
My heart clenched painfully. Guilt washed over me. Did I just wish for a life without them?
I didn’t want to lose them. Or Annie. They were my family as well. I love them.
“Do you think you could live without them?” Cassie asked me when I didn’t respond.
“No,” I shook my head and looked up at her. “I love them. I don’t want to be without them. I guess I just miss how simple life was before. And you and Jake remind me of that life. You two are my calm and safe place. I miss that.”
“We are right here with you,” Cassie smiled. “We are not going anywhere.”
I smiled back at her and took her hand in mine.
“I can’t believe we lost all this time,” I said. “I can’t believe I didn’t remember you.”
“We will get that time back, Ari,” she said. “Don’t worry.”
There was a knock on the door, and Jake peeked inside. I quickly wiped the tears from my face.
“What’s wrong?” he asked worriedly.
I guess I wasn’t fast enough.
He walked inside and closed the door behind him.
“Nothing,” I smiled weakly. “I am fine.”
“Don’t lie to me, Minnie,” he said, and walked over to me. “I know when you are lying.”
He sat down beside me and wrapped me in his arms. He kissed the top of my head.
“What’s wrong?” he asked again.
I couldn’t hold back. I started sobbing again, and I wrapped my arms around him.
I felt Cassie rubbing my back.
“She is overwhelmed with everything that has happened,” Cassie told Jake. “She missed us. She missed the way things were before.”
“Oh, love,” Jake said and tightened his grip around me. “It will be okay. We are here now. I am here. I will not leave you ever again, okay?”
I couldn’t answer. My chest hurt and I felt my heart breaking into a million pieces. I love them. I need them. But I knew they were in danger because of me. I didn’t know what I would do if anything happened to them because of me. I couldn’t let them get hurt. But I didn’t even know how to protect them. I didn’t even know who I was anymore.
“I love you, Minnie,” Jake said quietly. “You are safe with me.”
I know I was. But was he safe with me?
I looked up at him and sobbed. He kissed my forehead and wiped the tears from my face.
“I don’t think you are safe with me,” I said quietly, my voice trembling.
“What?” he asked me, confused.
He looked at Cassie.
“She thinks she is a danger to us,” Cassie explained. “She thinks it is her fault that Calvin tried to hurt me.”
I was glad Cassie was here to speak for me. I could never repeat all of that. I just couldn’t stop crying.
Jake’s eyebrows shot up, and he looked down at me.
“No, Aria,” he said, sternly. “You are not a danger. It wasn’t your fault.”
I placed my head back on his chest and he pulled me to his lap.
A few moments later, the bedroom door burst open, and a loud growl startled us.
Shit. Nick.
“What the hell is going on?” I heard Gabriel’s angry voice.
“Get your fucking hands off of my mate,” Nick growled.
I tried to raise my head, but Jake stopped me. He placed his hand on my head and gently pushed me back onto his chest.
“No,” Jake said sternly. “I’ve had enough of you two. Like it or not, I was in Aria’s life long before you. I love her. She is my family. I am done being pushed around by you two. She needs me and I will not let her go.”
I stopped breathing. I was sure Nick would shift and rip Jake apart.
But nothing happened.
“Now, either calm the hell down, or leave the room,” Jake continued. “You are scaring her, and she doesn’t need that right now.”
I could hear the door close, but I knew they didn’t leave. I could still feel the anger rolling off of Nick.
Jake rubbed my back soothingly, and another involuntary sob escaped me.
