Page 15

No, I shouldn’t be blamed for my initial reaction to Catalina. My yearning for her fostered anger. How could I crave her? That question was all that swirled my thoughts. She’d been an unknown human, stepping where she shouldn’t, causing things to shift. I hadn’t understood the difference between her and Imogen. Or how it felt to be cared for. Of not being on edge, of no pain.

I hadn’t known.

Catalina could not punish me for my ignorance. The thought was tinged with desperation, but I kept my desires sealed. I would not let her see my devotion to her—as much as I wanted her, she could not know the power she held over me.

Kitten wasn’t malicious. She was soft. She was the opposite of Imogen. She was what I wanted. I hadn’t known having Catalina could be so addicting.

If Imogen knew, she’d rip her to shreds, especially after the rejection from Ren and Asher.

Upon discovering Tobias also valued the human, she’d been close to ripping Kitten’s throat out, so I’d gripped her shoulder to stay her, but if I would have known Catalina would look at me with such cold eyes, I wouldn’t have.

“Earth to Jaxon Crimson.” Catalina waved her hands in front of my face.

“What I needed to tell you.” I cleared my throat and lowered my voice, so the approaching Imogen couldn’t hear. “I will stay after Imogen leaves.”

Catalina raised her eyebrow.

“You don’t want to leave the guys.”

I frowned, shaking my head, but before I could tell her it was for her, she continued, “I mean, I get it, you guys have been together for a long time. You didn’t expect all this drama.”

I scowled, confused.

“Jaxon.” Imogen’s footsteps echoed down the hall leading into the kitchen. Catalina’s lips thinned.

“I don’t get why you’re telling me. We’re done. Plus, I don’t need you. I have a better version of you anyway.”

I internally recoiled, while my body remained stiff as stone. She shrugged. “As for the others, you have to talk to them about how you guys will handle the separation. Leave me out of it."

Her words rocked through me with acute pain. A shroud crept over my thoughts. Her mouth was moving rapidly, but I struggled to focus on her words.

If Imogen knew my doubts. Of the insane, illogical, weak urge to collect the human to me, she would kill her.

Yet, I was being punished for wanting to keep Catalina safe.

“Can you explain it to me?”

“What?” I said, harsh. Her lips thinned but she didn’t flinch or recoil . . . almost like she was used to my outbursts.

I didn’t like that.

“What did Imogen mean about Bastien looking different before?”

The switch in topic restarted my sluggish brain. Imogen was talking about the time Bastien escaped and was gone close to a month. Ren was the one who found him.

“He looked nothing like he does now. Bastien was emaciated, not even a shadow of himself. He was unrecognizable. Drained and skeletal.”

Her eyes widened and fear flitted through them. She took a step back.

“How long ago did he disappear?”

“About four years ago. That’s an estimate. When Ren brought him back, Bastien was as he looks now. We’ve tried to figure out how—” I shut up. Her chest stopped moving and her heart stuttered. I collected her hands in mine.

“Breathe, Cat,” I said with more force than I intended, but humans needed oxygen to breathe, she could hurt herself like this.

She coughed, dragging in breaths with each rattle. “What is wrong?”

“N-nothing,” she said, but her eyes were wide and spooked.