Page 88 of Marked By the Pack
“This seems like a weird thing to focus on when I just found out my boyfriend might have killed someone.Boyfriends. God, what is happening?”
“Callum hurt a lot of people and I…”
“That’s not the same,” I said. “It wasn’t recently. Callum has control. Those guys don’t. They could have killed me.”
“But they didn’t.”
“Because Otto threw me into his vault and locked me up!”
“You didn’t see Otto change?”
I shook my head. “No, it was Titan. And then Bennett. And then Huxley.” I wasn’t sure where Ace had gone. He’d probably lost control too.
“Well, isn’t that a good thing? Otto just proved that he can control himself. Enough to protect you.”
I thought back to what happened. Titan had shifted. And then Bennett became a beast and stepped in front of me. Titan probably would have sliced me in two if Huxley hadn’t intervened and shifted into a werecat. And Ace was bold enough to kick Titan’s leg to distract him. They’d all been trying to protect me. Well, except Titan. Seriously, what was that guy’s deal?
“Otto was the first to shift when they showed me,” Emma said. “He lost control the fastest. Maybe his feelings for you help him somehow.”
His feelings for me.I hugged my pillow tighter.
“Bennett told me that since Otto’s the youngest he has the least control. I think he just proved that all wrong.”
I shook my head. “He didn’t hurt me tonight. But he could hurt me tomorrow. Or the next day. Thatwatch didn’t seem to help anything.” It had only worked on me. Bennett used it to get me to stay. Until his fingers convinced me to stay instead.
“Yeah.” Emma sighed. “I thought that too. Bennett swears the watch helps though. It eventually got them under control tonight. Everyone was locked in their vaults but Otto. He used it and held it together for you.”
“This is why you don’t think Callum is dangerous, right? Because you saw the real monsters?”
“It’s not that simple.”
I stared at her. “Isn’t it, though?”
“I wasn’t in love with Bennett,” Emma said. “I’ve always loved Callum.”
“Love doesn’t change the fact that Otto and his friends are monsters.”Or Callum.
“I think it does. I don’t see Callum that way. Honestly, I don’t even see Bennett and his friends that way. They’re hurting. They don’t want this.”
I pictured Otto’s face when he’d told me he was cursed.
“Callum and I had a long discussion about what a relationship with him would be like. He let me in. Even about some of the bits I’d rather not really know.” Emma gave me a sad smile. “But I think the only reason I can see what he is beneath the vampire is because I love him.”
I felt tears welling in my eyes again.
“So if you love Otto…I think you could work it out.”
“My head’s all confused. Everything just hurts.” I pictured Titan’s bared teeth and claws. I wasn’t sure if love was enough here. I wasn’t sure it could possibly be.
“I know.” She put her arm around me and pulled me in close.
Laughter sounded downstairs.
Emma turned toward the door, but didn’t move from her spot.
Seriously…what were Kebe and Callum doing down there? “I think I just need some sleep,” I said.
“Okay.” Emma pulled back the comforter and started to climb in.
