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Shortly after Cameron and I got back to the apartment, I warned him that we needed to write our story down so we wouldn't forget. Cameron laughed and agreed.
Nox shimmed in just as we were going to sit down for another movie. He glanced around until he found me. "You. I need you." Then he started my way.
"What? Why?”
"The council wants to talk," he informed me as he reached my side. He seemed tense. Did he know what we were talking about? "They want to talk to all of us.”
We shimmed back to the estate, but we shimmed directly into the council room where, not only were the council members there, but so were Myra and her husband... and Naylor with his crew and the rest of my guys. I grew hesitant. Did they know what I knew? Justin and Thad moved to my side.
The older councilman, Samuel, who was grumpy toward me the last time we met, stood and addressed Nox. "Thank you, son." Then he gleaned over everyone else until his hard gaze landed on me. "Everyone sit." He pointed to me. "Except you."
My eyes went wide. Oh shit.
The guys didn't move but stayed standing. Nox spoke again, "Sir, if you don't mind, we'd like to wait for our Gen to get here. He's held up at the moment."
The younger man, Frank, spoke, "Samuel, we can wait for him. It is best if we do so." His wife, Sonia, who next to him, was quiet, studying me.
I leaned into Nox as we stood there and whispered, "What's going on?"
He shook his head and snagged my hand to give it a comforting squeeze. Whatever was going on wasn’t good if he couldn't talk about it.
Awkwardly, we waited until Caleb showed up in front of us, looking ready for battle. "What is the meaning of this?"
Samuel seemed to bristle at his comment. The light within me swirled with protective instincts for Caleb and what was coming next, but somehow I was able to push it down.
"Caleb Bates Gibbs, you dare speak to me like that?"
"I'm sorry, Grandfather, but I don't see why you couldn't have brought this to my attention first before bringing it to the council. I am the one responsible for her."
"Well, since you’re all here," Sonia intervened, "let’s talk about your work, Tracy, and your contact. Warriors, sit down. We won't do anything to your bondmate."
Nox dropped my hand, and the others moved to the front with Caleb. "I'm sorry, but we're not standing aside," Caleb stated while they all stood in a line as if protecting me.
That's when a person stood up in the front row and turned to the council. When the person spoke, I realized who the bastard was. "Now-now, no need to place a barrier between her and me. I'll behave."
"What kind of sick and twisted council is this?" I demanded, realizing who was there. I remained where I was. "To let him near me? After what he's done?"
"Enough!" Samuel barked. "He's not in control here."
I heard the clanking of chains and stepped close to Caleb’s back, peeking between him and Justin to find that evil man in cuffs and chains, glowing ones at that.
Justin pushed me backward, and I let him. I wanted out of Eric's view. I wanted out of there, but I knew that would be the wrong move.
"Why?" I whispered, sounding lost even to my own ears.
"We need to know about your contact and if the possibility of reaching her could be something Eric might be able to do with his... abilities."
“We have a contact,” Naylor voiced. “I'm not sure what you are all under the impression of, but Trace has reached out to her contact and has helped us just recently with this case. The question is, why is it so concerning to you?”
My mouth clenched shut as I let Naylor defend me. Why were they interested? Thinking of all the facts, I came to the conclusion that they thought this person, my contact, might be a misguided female Lydent that needed to come back into the fold. But if this was a female Lydent, then by me telling my guys about the dark website, had I put her in more danger?
I stayed close to Caleb's back, letting all of the guys defend me from the council. I didn't know if they would be so quick to put me in a set of those glowing cuffs or let me walk free, but either way, they wanted something from me that I wasn’t sure I could even give.
I wasn’t ready to admit that my contact was their missing girl, but whoever they were, they absolutely knew about the Lydent race.
Councilman Frank took over, casting a quick glance to Samuel before coming back to us. Caleb tensed. I think he knew why they wanted the information.
"Because the person you are looking for matters a great deal to us," Frank stated simply. "So would you share–"
A deep and sinister chuckle came from the right. "Matters a great deal to you?" Eric sneered, twisting away from us to peer up at the council. "When? When my no-good brother told you Sonia’s precious daughter was supposedly alive?"
"That is enough!" Frank cursed, his eyes going wide.
"Why? Am I cutting too close to home?" Eric raised his shackled hands and the glowing metal hissed as it moved. "Sonia and Ivan were the only ones able to produce an heir.”
“I was her husband too!” Frank yelled, his eyes full of rage. “She was my child just as much as she was theirs!”
Eric laughed, and I crowded closer against Caleb’s back. “But then Ivan took her away. The two of you would latch onto any unknown Lydent female claiming the child was yours."
"I said, that’s enough!" Frank boomed, standing up while Sonia put a hand on his arm, urging him to sit back down. I could see him from above the guys. Rage was pouring off of him.
"What, Frankie? You would, wouldn't you? That is why you're angry. Because there is a small bit of truth to that? Just because my liar of a brother Ivan gave you hope?" He scoffed. "You're reaching for the stars brother-in-law, but all you're doing is grabbing someone else’s hope. Another Lydents' child. Theirs. Is. Dead."
"That's enough."
I peeked through the guys, curious enough to risk being spotted by Eric. Frank looked ready to burst. That's when Eric swung around to me with a crooked, evil grin and pointed. "She can't help you any more than she can help herself. Tell them," he urged in a violent tone, his own eyes wild with blackened swirls. It was fuckin' scary and had my body putting off warning signals as the slimy, prickly feeling came and stayed. He knew something. He knew.
"Tell them how you found all those people. How the skills you so wonderfully mastered are false.”
Ohhh shit.
“A result of a black-market information website. A backdoor. You didn’t find that information; you stole it. And now I suspect your contact is running."
Caleb stiffened as did Justin. I pressed into Caleb's side for strength. Naylor, his team, and parents all shifted their attention to me, waiting for an answer. How in the fuckin' hell did he know?
Samuel spoke up, his gaze now on me. "What is he talking about?"
My throat closed. Nox stepped forward. "Her contact reached out, but it wasn't to agree on a meeting place. All the contact said was goodbye. We don't know where she is or if Trace's contact was in fact Sonia and Ivan’s child. We don't even know if this person is Lydent for that matter. All that is clear to us is the contact is aware of Lydents and doesn’t want anything to do with us, and they somehow knew Ivan. For all we know, sirs, Eric could be behind this whole thing."
My heart stopped, and I swung my gaze back to the sickly tall man whose head tipped back while he crackled out a laugh, then jerked back down and shot daggers at Nox. "You wish it was me. That would take care of your little problem, wouldn't it? Keep me locked up?" He clicked his tongue. "Oh, how the mighty have fallen."
Nox never glanced to him. "Eric has the means to do it. Wealth to cover up a home operation. The force to have humans do what he wants. And he knew about the website Trace was on. It all leads back to him. Not a ghost. Not a girl. A coal black heart that wanted to use others for his own gain. The question is..." – he turned his gaze now toward him – "how did you know Ivan's light would go into Trace?"
Eric lunged at Nox, the wild expression of insanity apparent in his gaze. His whole body was tight like a wire, but he didn't make it far. "You bastard of a child. Lies! All lies!"
Nox didn't seem to be alarmed by this. "No, I'm sure. I see it now. Clearly."
"Lies," he hissed. "Lies."
One second Eric was there, the next he was gone. Poof. Like he had shimmed away.
It freaked me out. "Where—where did he go?"
"Prison," Thad barked. "Where he belongs."
"So what now?" Caleb asked. "Mystery solved. Do you need us any longer?"
At this time, Myra and her husband, along with Naylor and his team, shimmed out. Probably to regroup.
Councilman Frank sat down, devastation clear on his face. Councilwoman Sonia leaned into him to whisper with a crestfallen expression about the news they had just learned. The lead that wasn’t what they’d thought. I mean, it was hard to believe it was Eric all along. My gaze went to Nox again; Nox said it, so it must be true? I was so confused.
When Samuel granted us permission to go, Cameron and Nox joined up and shimmed out together.
Justin twisted around and took my hand. Then their Gen took notice and his, lips tightened before he spoke to Justin. "She can go with you, but tonight when you warriors are on that mission, she’s with me, got it?"
Justin stiffened like he wanted to deny him, but all that came out was, "Yes, sir."
What? “Don’t I have any say in this?”
“No,” all of them voiced.
Caleb nodded, giving me a brief glance, then shimmed out too. Thad, Justin, and I were the only ones left. I glared at them.
All the council members were talking. I wanted to go before they changed their minds about us leaving.
Justin kissed my forehead. "Ready?"
Thad crowded in. "Let's get out of here."
I nodded. And like that, we were back at the apartment.
I went to the couch and on a groan flopped down. “Is it time for bed yet?”
The two of them chuckled, but Justin answered as he made the same path I did and landed by my side. “No, we still have hours.”
“Anyone want to help me with my talent?”
Thad grunted, and Justin sat up, now in warrior mode. “I forgot about it. Yeah, why don’t we do that?”
“We need to grab her some clothes to wear,” Thad grumbled. “She’s not fighting in tight jeans and a blouse. She needs to move in her clothes, not be restrained.”
I popped up from my spot on the couch and walked over to Thad. He watched me as I came his way. “Myra and I bought clothes. She even splurged and bought me exercise clothing. Will that work?” When I stopped in front of him, he bent down like he would kiss me.
“Yes,” he muttered, before straightening. His hand met my hip, and then he smirked. “Let's go get them. Justin, meet you there.”
The room quickly disappeared, as did the two of us, before we landed back in my room at the warrior camp. I broke out of his hold. “Did you have to do that? Leave him behind?”
The giant of a man grinned. “Yes. How else am I going to spend any time alone with you? I have to take all the opportunities I can get.”