Page 84 of Tangled Hearts

“I know we aren’t family by blood, but we are bonded and there isn’t anything we wouldn’t do for each other,” Ryder said. “I know it’s not the outcome you wanted, and I’m so sorry for that, but you have some answers. When this is all over, we can come back to make sure.”

Max nodded. “I’d like that.”

“Come on, let's go make sure you and Oria have that chance,” I said, squeezing his shoulder.

Oria hugged Max before she jumped onto Gray.

“Soren will lead and I’ll bring up the rear, keep your eyes open and point out anything that looks suspicious,” Ryder said, and I took off to make sure nothing was ahead of us.

The run back took half as long since we had previously walked at Oria’s speed. When we exited the door, the cool night air hit us, and I realized how different even the air was. The moon was full, giving us enough light to make it back to the car.

“I think we should head to my parents' pack,” Ryder said, unlocking the doors.

“You think we will be safe there?” I asked, opening one of the back doors as Gray set Oria down on her feet, but kept her close.

“Do you have any other suggestions?” Ryder looked at us. “We can stay for a few nights, while we figure out a way to end this.”

“Maybe we can go back?—”

“No,” I growled, cutting off my twin. “Our parents will turn us away and there is no point in being around them. They’ll likely do something stupid to us since we left them.”

“Are we all ok going back to my parents pack?” Ryder asked.

“I’d like to meet your parents,” Oria said, with a blush on her face.

He hesitated. “I’d like that too, Heaven.” He walked over to her, kissing her softly. “So, are we all good?”

“As long as it’s somewhere safe, I’m fine with it,” Max said.

“Ok, it's a long drive so we better get going,” Ryder said, as we all hopped into the car.

I looped an arm around Oria’s waist, feeling the need to be near her. “Sit with me?”

“I want to sit with Max for a bit, is that ok?” She looked unsure.

“Of course, he probably needs comforting,” I said, kissing her forehead.

She kissed my cheek before climbing in with Max.

“I can drive, Ryder, you get some rest. You've been driving this whole time,” I said, taking the keys from him and climbing into the driver's seat.

“We can stop and get food and then you guys can sleep,” Gray said, getting in the front seat with me.

“That sounds good,” Ryder said, climbing into the back.

I turned the car on, backing out of our hiding spot to get food, because we all needed to rest up before we figured out what we needed to do about Laima and Taylin.

It would be a shame if we left California without eating In-N-Out—Ryder's words, not mine. After a quick stop for food and gas, we hit the road back to Colorado. The car grew quiet after everyone ate and I saw Oria snuggle up to Max as they spoke quietly about possibly going back. He said there were five major cities and how far they were from the central city that housed the capital.

Gray’s phone finally turned on and he was quick to put music on. I leaned my elbow on the door, holding my head up with my hand, getting lost in the lines on the road. It was a pain in the ass to drive when we could just travel by portal, but we didn’t have time to look for an alchemist or a witch to make us that magic.

The roads were empty with the occasional car passing us and I hoped it stayed like this till we reached Ryder's pack. There was nothing worse than traffic when you had a long drive.

I glanced over at Gray typing away on his phone looking at it intently. He scrolled through something before typing again. Knowing Gray, he was probably researching something about the Fae or who knows what. He loved researching information and I was glad one of us got the brains.

An upbeat song came on and I tapped my fingers against the wheels to the beat when I heard a soft sigh. I looked into the rearview mirror, but it was dark, and I couldn’t really see anything except Max’s outline. A moan made Gray turn around immediately and I glanced back quickly to see Oria and Max kissing.

“Lucky,” Gray muttered.

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