Aidan has been warned about the dangers of being with a human. His people live on the edges of society, in the shadows and alleys. And one day, if he's willing to submit to the birthright ceremony, he'll lead the next generation to continued wealth...
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"Hello mongrel," Hailey says, not missing a beat, but clearly not seeing Emmerson behind me. "Finally managed to connect some dots, did you?"
"Like a witch, witch?" Emmerson asks, her voice pitched higher than normal behind me.
"Yeah," I say, reaching behind me to keep Emmerson from stepping toward her friend. "The real kind. Not real good, but definitely at least a spark of power." At this point, Hailey seems more foe than friend.
"Good enough to keep you off my trail for the more than a year since I arrived in town. What does that say about you?" Hailey asks, ignoring Emmerson for now.
"Says I was stupid enough to let myself get weak." Over a woman. Which woman? Take your pick. Might have started with me being pissed at Clara, but if I hadn't become obsessed with Emmerson, my temper tantrum would have ended long ago. "You put Emmerson in my path to distract me?"
"Why would I want Emmerson to have anything to do with you?" she scoffs.
"You've been the one fiddling with Kaden's memories?" I ask.
"He was having trouble letting go. Wolves can be so clingy and possessive."
"Over a witch? Unlikely." Now it's my turn to scoff.
A slow smile spreads across Hailey's face. "You sure about that?"
"What's what supposed to mean?"
Emmerson tries to step around me, and I hold her back without turning around. "You've been lying to me?" she says to Hailey, her voice accusatory. "And why are you talking about wolves?"
"I knew you couldn't handle any of this," Hailey says. "Have you not put anything together yet? It's clear you're remembering from day-to-day now."
"You've been fucking with Emmerson's head too then?" I take a step toward her, my hackles rising.
Hailey meets my gaze, but she neither confirms nor denies what she's been up to.
"Can someone just tell me what's going on?" Emmerson says, exasperated.
"He's a wolf," Hailey says slowly as though Emmerson can't grasp even the most basic ideas. "I'm a witch. Keep up."
"Don't fucking talk to her like that," I growl. "She knows about the supernatural world."
"Oh yeah? She knew you were a shifter? Promised to someone else? First son of the biggest clan along the eastern seaboard?"
"What?" Emmerson says, her voice faint. "But you said... You said the wolves after me wanted to kill me. Are you... Are you ..."
My sense of self preservation is at war with my heart. The hurt in Emmerson's voice is eating away at my soul, but if I turn my back on Hailey, she might take my soul. It's a real head fuck.
"Em," I say, trying to reach for her without looking. "Those wolves aren't me, aren't mine."
"She has assassins after her?" Hailey pales. "You've let this go far enough that someone wants to kill her?"
