Page 46 of Omission

Not exactly, but I remember the name of a women’s boutique on a bag, the last time she came to see me. She’d come in to share some good news, Marsilla wanted to come home.

“When was this? Home?” I ask, my jaw ticking. “This is not her home. She’s not—”

Uncle Roberto holds up one hand while writing with the other. It’s sloppier than the last note, but his emotions are raw. Angry. A bit bitter and he’s within his rights to be so.

I’d rather kill myself than allow her to further taint my brother’s legacy.

I should’ve done a better job of protecting you three, but I’ll never make the same mistake again. My mate will die for what she’s done.

“I’m sorry, Uncle. We failed you, too.” It’s a shame I’ll carry for the rest of my life. How we didn’t do more to find him—force him to give us an explanation of what occurred that day. Maybe if we’d looked, this man could’ve come home and lived his life in peace—escaped that nightmare.

You were a kid, Leo. A babe.

You’d just lost your parents while trying to navigate the responsibilities placed on your head, to protect these lands at all costs. You watched a woman come in and hurt your aunt, whom you loved, and then drag me through a portal without my putting up much of a fight. Yes, I was glamoured, but how were you supposed to know that?

What could you have done?

“I’m not a kid anymore. This time I’m not lying down or waiting for an attack.”

Then prepare for war now, and not the day it arrives at your doorstep.

She’s more vicious than her brother and plays the long game, Leo. She’s been dropping clues along the way as a warning. Don’t get me wrong, in a sick way she cares for you, always has, but that won’t stop her from coming after what you love.

Protect Anaya at all costs.

XXX

If heartbreak had an expression, this would be it. Anaya doesn’t know how to answer me or what to do with herself—her end of the bond is screeching at me that she’s scared—yet my worry overrides any logic at the moment. How those two assholes escaped eludes me and being played for a fool doesn’t sit well with me.

Someone betrayed me. A member of my coven will die before the day is through.

“Where would they go, Anaya?”

“You don’t trust me?” Small. Hurt. Those four words are heavy with sadness. Tears pool in her eyes and the sight cuts me deep; I’m going to repay the traitor's kindness with a dosage of my own. With me, she’s supposed to be safe at all times and living freely—never in fear. It’s unacceptable, but what’s worse, it’s like reliving my parent's last days all over again.

The knowledge that someone you trusted betrayed you…

That they’d hurt someone you love for selfish gain…

Because I do. Since that first day, this slip of a girl has owned my heart and I don’t want it back. Not now. Not ever.

My feelings for her have grown, even if I owe her more than pretty words. I owe her romance, something I’ll be remedying tonight. At the very least, we’ll take a step in the right direction.

“Precious one, look at me.” I’m swallowing hard, feeling her slip through my fingers. She’s putting up a wall, yet our bond is unforgiving. Without marking each other, I’m attuned to every single part of her. Which gives me an idea. If you can hear me, look up.

The quickness in which her head snaps up gives me relief, which she feels on her end, and her brows furrow. Confusion settled onto her face. “How are—”

“Do you know where they are? Answer me, Anaya.” Play along, precious one. We have a traitor and I’ll explain later. “What allies do they have near here?”

The mounting tension drops from her end now, almost instantaneously, but the tears from earlier still fall. The drops had gathered and grown and now play perfectly into the moment.

“I don’t know, Leonardo. Please believe me.” The hands at her sides are shaking, her wings dulling a bit from their luminescent splendor, and I curse those who ruined this moment for her. She’d been so excited today when I offered the area for her to test out their strength—her muscles—after days of being lethargic. Curing Roberto took a bigger toll on her than she first believed. “How could this happen? They’re going to come for me.”

“Or did you let them out?” The moment the question leaves me, shocked gasps surround us, and I’m happy to hear so many of the females she’s befriended hiss on her behalf. They love you, Anaya. Just like I can’t live without you. I trust you. “Where were you last night while I was in my office? Did you sneak out to help your brother and his general?”

“No! I swear I didn’t!” Can you hear me? Her sweet voice inside my head is a blessing and calms me down so that I don’t act without proof. Because I’m no longer an idiot; I learned my lessons on coincidences the day I found my beautiful, little fae. And like that day, I want to bathe the world in my enemy's blood.

I’d burned the world to the ground, as long as she’s safe.

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