Hybrid: The Prophecy

Chapter 3

"Max and I have decided to build our dream house instead of trying to find one," Brynn tells me that afternoon. We're sitting in front of the TV in my living room watching random New Girl episodes. I'm snacking on pop corn and she's going to town on a package of fudge stripes.

I feel bad for how much I keep zoning out as she talks, but I can't stop replaying mine and Kai's conversation from last night in my head. The guilty look and resentful tone of his voice is haunting me.

I can't zone out around Brynn without facing the consequences, though.

"Earth to Mara," she says, snapping a finger in front of my face. It brings my back to reality, and I stare into her hazel eyes with a guilty look.

"What's going on?" she asks, but I think she already knows.

"What do you think?" I ask in defeat, slumping even further into the corner of the couch.

"Well, you were sleeping until one this afternoon, and I know you haven't been sleeping very well since we captured Kai, so I take it something happened with him last night."

"Bingo."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Her voice is soft as she turns her body to face me.

I close my eyes and the conversation between Kai and I replays itself once again. "I just don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"I wish I could help more. You know I would in a heart beat." She moves closer and wraps her arm around my shoulders, pulling me into her sides.

"I know."

I don't start crying, but I let my head fall limply onto Brynn's shoulder. I just need my best friend right now. This thing with Kai is something that only I can figure out. I know Brynn isn't going to give me any advice, because this isn't a situation where someone can say "well this is what I would do" and all my problems would magically go away.

"Tell me about your house. I'm listening this time," I say.

"I know you'll still zone out at some point, but I'll pretend you're listening the entire time," she says, and I hear the grin in her voice. It makes me laugh. "Max and I both decided we wanted to be in between our families, and since there's not really anything between our pack and his coven, we're building our house in the middle. Since we're building, we can also. . ."

My mind returns to last night.

I was hoping you would come.

Because I wanted to see you.

Amara.

Will you come back tomorrow?

True to her word, Brynn continues to talk. I hear her voice in the back of my mind, though not the words she's saying. Instead, I'm thinking about Kai's jawline. Well, really, I'm thinking about his entire face. Even with only the few minutes I was with him last time, I already have it memorized. The intimidating gaze may be my favorite part because of the fact that I'm not intimidated by it. I don't know if it's because I'm his mate so I don't feel as scared of him or if it's the fact that I'm normally the intimidating one. Maybe it's a mixture off both.

I spend the rest of my afternoon with Brynn. We talk more about her house and the baby (which is remaining a surprise) and what's going to happen with her family's new house that will be started next week. I still zone out half the time to think about Kai and I's conversation last night, but Brynn doesn't give me any crap for it. She stays for dinner with my family, telling my parents everything she's been trying to tell me this afternoon. At least they're able to listen. After helping to clean up the kitchen, she leaves to go see her family before heading back to Max's for the night, and I'm alone again.

As the sun sets lower in the sky, I become more and more anxious and jittery. I try to distract myself by playing a game of Monopoly with my parents before my dad has to leave for duty again tonight (my mom wins), but that's all it does. It distracts me for the time being but does nothing to solve the problem. I'm still just as wound up.

When my dad leaves just before nine, my mom and I each head up to bed. With the jitters back at their full affect, I know I won't be going to bed anytime soon. Instead of wasting any time trying to fall asleep, I impatiently wait for my mom to fall asleep in the room beside me before heading out for another run. I don't want her wondering where I'm going and why I'm gone for so long.

I take off into the woods the second my paws are on the ground. All my cooped up energy is adding more speed, and I feel like I've never run this fast before in my life. I run the border three times to try and tire myself out, each time I near where the cells are setting my mind into a frenzy. On my fourth lap, I know it's pointless to try anymore. I slow down to a trot and find a little creek, lapping up water until my belly is full.

I walk off in a random direction, not having a destination in mind. I'm not dumb, though. I know not giving myself a destination will automatically lead me to the person I swore to myself I wanted nothing to do with. It's like this instinct I have now and can't get rid of.

When I shift at the tree line of the cells and walk towards the entrance, my dad isn't surprised to see me. He lets me in with a small and supportive smile, and the other guard doesn't question him.

The guards inside don't question me either. I'm sure my dad mind linked them, because they don't say a word as they let me through with a single nod of their heads.

Outside the door that is now the only thing separating Kai and I, I begin to feel nervous. I bounce in the balls of my feet to try and shake out some of their nerves quickly building up in me.

What am I even going to say to him? It's not like I'm going to interrogate him and try and push answers out of him. I have no reason for being here other than the fact that my body led me here when I let it take control.

And then it clicks into place why I'm so nervous. I don't actually have a reason for being here. There's nothing I need to try and get out of Kai to figure out what our next move is. The answers he gave me last night were the best while also being the worst. His remorse is good for everyone else to hear, but as someone who is doing my best to hate his guts, knowing he feels guilt for everything he did is not helping my case.

When the door opens and I see Kai sitting too close to the bars with a weak yet peaceful look on his face, I relax. All the jitters and nerves and wound up energy is released from my body, and it's all replaced with an unimaginable calm that makes me feel like I'm floating on cloud nine.

I step into the room, and the metal door closes behind me.