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RYLAND
Fuck. This is all going to Hell, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. From the moment James walked away—okay, ran—Red has been destroyed. I don’t blame her; I feel the pain of the broken bond too. I know it’s stronger for her, and probably for him, than the rest of us. No matter how badly I want to force her to deal with this, I can’t.
So, I’m stuck. Standing here while she makes lists about ingredients and spells. While Orym stares at her, just as dumbfounded as I am, Luca tries to figure things out. It takes her two seconds to shut him down. She doesn’t want to talk about it, and we all understand that. There has to be a way to fix this.
Something made James leave. But what? What could have gotten to him so quickly? I can’t wrap my head around what’s happened, or Red’s reaction to it. I understood her meltdown, but not her sudden recovery. When James walked away, I expected it to break her. I didn’t expect her to get up and move on so quickly.
“Red, it’s okay to let yourself feel. You don’t have to hold it in for us. We can feel your pain. It’s still there, even if you refuse to acknowledge it. Please let us help you,” I beg her.
She responds without looking up from the book she’s scanning. “Ry, I’m fine. I had a moment, and now I’m better. I don’t want to keep repeating myself. If you’re not going to let me work, then you need to leave. I’m busy.”
I stare at her in disbelief. It’s obvious that James leaving has broken something inside of her. There is no way she should be this calm or focused.
We need to keep an eye on her. I say to Luca and Orym along our bond. I purposefully block her from this conversation, because I don’t want her to flip out. She’s safer here than anywhere else, so I want to keep her here.
I agree. Something happened. Did you see anything, Luca? Orym asks, making sure not to let Red know we’re talking along the bond.
Her magic attacked me, throwing me away from her. After that, she got really calm and you guys saw the rest. Luca’s explanation doesn’t really tell me anything, but it doesn’t surprise me either.
I wonder if Grammy or Trevan would have answers for what’s happening. I pull my phone out and send a quick text to our elder hybrid to see what she thinks. Until she answers, we’ll stay here and watch our mate.
“Are the three of you just going to stand there and stare at me while you talk about me with the bond? Because that’s not creepy at all. At least go make yourselves useful and get me something to eat and some tea.” Her demand paired with her tone makes Luca jump. He and Orym go to fill her request.
GARNET
I’m a little disturbed by how concerned my guys are. James didn’t want to be here, so now he’s not. It’s not that complicated. There’s nothing to dwell on or worry about. If I have lingering feelings related to his abandonment, I’ll deal with them after I defeat Amber. I don’t have time right now to even consider anything but preparing to face my aunt.
I pull spells from my books, making lists of ingredients and situations where each one will be helpful. I try not to think about the last time I did this, when James helped me. Maybe one of the others will step in and do research with me.
We only have a few days before the deadline Amber gave us. I have to be ready. I can’t let my family down. I stare at the book in front of me, suddenly frozen. I can’t move and I can’t talk. I’m still standing and breathing, though, so I think I’m okay.
“What the fuck just happened?” Luca’s voice echoes behind me. I can’t turn to face him, and I’m not sure what he’s talking about.
“I’m not sure. She was flipping through that book and then this happened. There was nothing I could do to stop it,” Ryland says, gesturing to me as if there’s something wrong.
Guys, I’m fine. What are you freaking out about? I ask along our bond, but don’t get a response. Why am I frozen? Is this one of Amber’s tricks?
“I tried to reach her with our bond, but she’s not responding. I don’t think she can hear us.” Orym steps in front of me and stares into my eyes. “Can you hear us?” I blink twice, hoping that my eyelids actually move.
“She blinked. So, she’s still in there, just not able to move,” he relays to the others.
“No shit. She’s covered in ice everywhere but her face. How would she be able to move?” Ry slaps Orym on the back of the head and I try to laugh, but no sound comes out.
I play back the past few moments in my head. Reading spell books and making lists, that’s all I was doing. I didn’t cast any spells or repeat any incantations. I didn’t even read anything with ice involved. Yet here I am, frozen in a mostly intact block of ice that I can’t get out of.
Ry pulls his phone out and calls someone. “Something’s happened. We need you here now.” I can’t hear what the other person says in response, but he hangs up the phone and starts to pace.
“Are they coming back?” Orym asks. Clearly, he knows who Ry called. Why can’t I figure that out? Things are starting to feel hazy, and I don’t remember exactly what I was doing here.
My mates and I are working on something important. I have to go through the books and find spells to—to what? I can’t even ask them what I was doing, because my only method of communication right now is blinking. If only I knew Morse code. But would they understand it? I don’t know.
“It’s okay, Red. Grammy and your father are coming. They’ll figure this out,” Luca tells me, pressing his warm palm to my icy cheek. I wish I could ask him why they would go to Gunnar for this. How could he possibly know what happened? Grammy has more practical experience, so she might have some idea. But my father is a wolf shifter. What can he possibly do in this situation that will help?
Come to think of it, what exactly am I doing with these books? Did they leave me to research their war with—with who? Fuck. I want to remember what is happening here. Okay, Garnet, let’s focus. You have four mates. Wait, no. I only have three. Luca, Orym, and Ry. But there was someone else, right? Why do I feel like I’m forgetting something important?
I try to look down at the book in my hands, but I can’t see it through the ice that covers my body. Hold on, that’s weird too. How am I covered in ice, but I’m not cold? None of this makes any sense. My mates stare at me while we wait for what feels like an eternity. The longer I’m encased in this ice, the more uneasy I feel.
My heart races and I feel like my lungs are closing up. The door opens and Grammy walks in with some man I don’t recognize. I thought Luca said my father was coming. I want to ask so many questions right now, but I can’t. All I can do is stand here and stare at the strange man who is now inches from my face.
