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My blood ran cold when the footage began rolling.
“Emmy. This isn’t what we recorded.” I shot upward. “Where am I? This wasn’t even shot in Dom’s apartment. What’s going on?”
On screen, Dominic Kent sat alone in the middle of a spacious white room that definitely wasn’t his penthouse. Judging by the brutal darkness in his eyes, this new material had been recorded after the mess in my apartment this morning. Dom looked so dangerously riled that I suspected most people watching this would experience a bolt of fear in their bellies at the sight of him.
“My name is Dominic Kent, and I’m technically a candidate for the wildcard election happening tomorrow. I’m here to address rumors from last night’s debate—a debate in which neither Trixie Gardens nor I were present to defend ourselves.”
Dom cleared his throat on the pre-recorded segment.
“Trixie Gardens and I are not, in fact, dating,” Dom said. “The truth is that she hates my guts, and for good reason. I will never understand why The Fates selected me as a nominee, but it’s easy to see why Trixie was selected.”
“What do you mean by that?” Merci asked onscreen. “Why is Trixie worthy of the nomination?”
“The fact that Trixie Gardens won 38% of the popular vote after skipping a debate—and publicly announcing multiple times that she didn’t want to be associated with the election—says just about everything.”
“I admit, it’s an unprecedented and shocking result from the polls,” Merci agreed. “But it sounds like there’s more?”
Dominic’s voice grew raspy. “Trixie Gardens is the most powerful witch I’ve ever encountered, yet the last thing Trixie wants is power. She’s a good person, genuinely. She hates being in the spotlight because she just wants to live her life and contribute to society in the quiet way that she does, bringing a smile to the face of anyone she meets.”
“What about the rumors that the two of you were dating?”
“It’s the easiest thing in the world to fall in love with that woman.” Dom’s voice was hard, gravelly. “I can’t think of a person who’d blame me for having feelings for her. But they’re not reciprocated and never will be. I’m not the person for Trixie. I’m a vampire, she’s a witch. It would never work.”
“So what are you saying, Mr. Kent?” Merci prompted.
“I’m saying to disqualify me if you want, but Trixie and I are not—and will not ever be—romantically attached. Trixie doesn’t want to be elected, but she’s the most deserving of any one of us. Do with that information what you will, and then leave her the hell alone.”
The tape cut out then, and I was left shocked into silence. My first thought was to wonder how much Dom had bribed the TV station into airing that clip. The next emotion was fury, then hurt, then confusion.
“Oh, man,” Emmy whispered, finally taking a sip of her drink. “That man has got it bad for you.”
“What was he thinking?” I threw my phone on the couch next to me. “That’s not what we recorded.”
“Obviously,” Emmy said. “Dominic is trying to look out for you. Probably trying to distance himself from you, especially if he thinks his stupid brother might come after you. I saw the look in his eyes this morning, Trix. He was scared. He blames himself for letting anyone get close to you. Or me, but technically they were looking for you.”
“I don’t care. I understand the logic of it, but it’s not fair.” I stood up. “Dom doesn’t get to make those decisions for me. We were supposed to be in this together, and now he’s going behind my back trying to fix everything.”
“And that’s a problem because...?”
“Because I trusted him to treat me as an equal. As a partner,” I said, feeling my chest tightening at the look in Dom’s eyes as he’d said that it would never work between us.
I knew that what Dom had said on tape was just fanfare; I knew he didn’t mean most of it. I equally knew that he hated the fact that my association with him had put my life in jeopardy. It wasn’t hard to believe that he’d distance himself from any relationship with me because he’d thought it would keep me safe. It was downright stupid.
“I need a breath of fresh air,” I said. “I’m going for a walk.”
“Trix, you can’t do that,” Emmy urged, a look of alarm in her eyes. “People are looking for you.”
I glanced at my phone, saw a blinking light.
Dominic: I’m sorry, Trix. It’s for the best. Stay in the penthouse as long as you want. I won’t return until I hear from you. Until you’re ready to talk. I do love you, but I think it’s important I keep my distance from you until we find my brother.
I pushed out the door of the penthouse. The security guard raised his brows.
“You can’t go anywhere, ma’am,” he said. “I need to—”
I raised a hand. Even I could see the magic sparkling around my fist. It was tinged with a murky red color that dripped from my fingers. Heartbreak aura, my gut told me. I could feel raw power behind it. Love was a powerful thing. Add to that the combination of a frustration and heartbreak, and it had put me over the top. The effects were leaking dangerously into my magic.
“Try to stop me,” I muttered to him. “Just try.”
