Page 76 of Ignited Spirits
Giving me a half smile that softens his gaze, Legion leans down to brush my nose with his. “It means the other half of my soul. Latin, as humans call it, was one of the original languages of the universe, and the one I spoke when I was but a pup. Even with the millions of other languages I’ve learned, it is still the one I am most comfortable with.”
My lips tip up slightly at the corners. Even with everything awful that’s going on, learning more about the mysterious hydra lifts my spirits a little.
“Stop!” Levi bellows, snagging my attention. The room goes completely silent, other than Levi’s heaving breaths. “This is accomplishing nothing. Did any of you even ask Izzy what she wanted? Don’t you think it’s time for people to stop making choices for her?”
Levi is as angry as I’ve ever heard him, and I know I need to defuse the situation before it escalates.
Reluctantly stepping out of Legion’s arms, I skirt around him and come to an abrupt halt.
“Holy shit,” I breathe when I see the scene in front of me.
Like he did when I was under arrest, Levi froze the entire room. Giles is on the floor, bleeding profusely from his nose and a gash on his forehead. Bishop is on top of him, frozen with his arm pulled back to punch him again.
Luca’s and Cain’s faces are frozen in snarls as they stand behind Bishop, looking like they’re waiting for their turn with Giles.
Rhys is pacing behind the two wolves, suspended mid-step with a hand through his hair. I’ve never seen my older brother look so distraught, and it kills me.
“I do not believe they can answer you when you have them frozen,cura,” Legion points out helpfully.
Levi grinds his teeth in frustration before turning to me. His face softens when his gaze lands on me. “What do you want me to do now, little raven? I’ll do anything I can to make this right for you.”
His sweet sentiment thaws the protective numbness surrounding me slightly. I don’t want to feel anything right now, so I try to shake it off.
Instead, I focus on what we need to do so we can get the hell out of here. “Can you move Giles and unfreeze everyone else? St. James is going to kill him before we can get the information we need. And, according to him, all the other councilmen are dead, so we really need him.”
“I can do that.” Levi hesitates before spearing me with a look brimming with understanding and what looks a lot like love. “You don’t have to be here, little raven, if it’s too hard for you.”
I close my eyes and pull in a fortifying breath before returning my gaze to him. “Thank you, but I need to be here.”
Giving me a sharp nod, Levi waves his hand, and Giles goes flying across the room until he slams headfirst into the wall farthest from my mates.
That looks like it hurt, which fills me with a bit of satisfaction.
Then Levi unfreezes Rhys and the rest of my mates. Bishop’s fist slams into the carpeted floor. He looks around in confusion before spotting Giles across the room. Shaking it off, Bishop leaps up and stalks over to the prone and still-frozen councilman.
“Stop!” I shout when he goes to beat on Giles again.
I’m surprised when Bishop listens to me and freezes, his chest heaving from the force of his emotion. “What do you want me to do, Isabel? I couldn’t fucking protect you so the only goddamn thing I can do is avenge you. I know I failed you, so please let me make it right.”
CHAPTER 26
IZZY
“Idon’t need you to make it right or avenge me. I just need you to love me—” My voice breaks, and I angrily swipe the rogue tear rolling down my cheek. “I want you to love me, even though you know what happened. Even though you know I was too weak to stop it. Even though you know that they touched me.”
“Fuck, baby,” Bishop rasps before he whirls around and closes the gap between us in a few steps. He pulls me into his arms, his hold almost desperate. “You’re the only one who can break my heart with only a few words. Of course I love you, so damn much it hurts. I will spend the rest of my fucking life telling you that none of this was your fault if that’s what it takes to get you to believe me.”
I’m shaking my head before he finishes. “I let it happen. I had magic that I could’ve used to stop it, and I didn’t.”
I didn’t know what they were going to do the first time until it happened. Once I realized, I was too shocked to defend myself. And every time after that, I was too scared and weak to think clearly enough to make them stop.
Even if I were able to think clearly, I probably wouldn’t have used my magic, if I’m being honest. Keeping my family safe was always the most important, even over keeping myself safe.
“No, you fucking didn’t let it happen. The Giles brothers and Whelan’s son abused the power they thought they had over you. And using your magic would’ve put you and your family in a shit ton of danger, so it was an impossible choice. In no universe did you make them touch you or hurt you or… rape you.” Bishop’s blue eyes swirl with storm clouds and heartbreak as he tries to figure out what exactly happened.
“They didn’t… none of it got that far,” I whisper, hoping he understands, since I can’t bring myself to say the word. Because nothing that happened feels serious enough to warrant that word. I don’t even feel like any of it qualifies as sexual assault, even though I logically know it does. That feels like a term for people who are actually hurt, unlike me, who’s making a big deal out of some touching.
He closes his eyes before leaning his forehead on mine. “I suppose that’s something, but it doesn’t mean they didn’t hurt you, sweetheart.”
