Page 29

Audrey

I wake up with a smile on my face.

Holy shit.

It finally happened. I slept with my last mate—well, Brenden and I slept with him.

I wasn’t lying when I told him I wasn’t ready to forgive him—that he’d have to earn that—but I can’t bring myself to regret last night.

“Audrey, wake up.”

My eyes pop open at Brenden’s shaky voice. I sit up as he climbs across the bed and shoves a piece of paper in my face. I grab it from him but don’t bother looking at it yet. No, I’m too focused on the anger and tears on his face.

“What’s wrong? What happened? Where’s Nex?”

He shakes his head. “Just read it.”

Assuming he’s talking about the paper he shoved in my face, I glance down and immediately recognize Nex’s handwriting. My stomach drops, already knowing I’m not going to like what it says.

I read over it once, then again and again. The words don’t change, no matter how much I wish they would.

Lifting my gaze to Brenden’s, my eyes fill with tears. I can barely make him out as my mouth falls open and a wail springs free.

Brenden pulls me into his arms, and we hold one another as we fall apart.

I don’t know why I didn’t see this coming. I should’ve. The writing was already on the wall.

I should’ve listened when he said there would be no happy ending for us.

Why did I allow it to get this far? Why did I invite him back to our room? Would it have been better if we let him walk away?

My tears fall before stopping as rage courses through me.

How dare he do this to me? To Brenden?

He made us trust him, and then he walked right out the fucking door like we were nothing to him.

I don’t give a fuck what pretty words he left on paper. He’s a fucking coward. A real man would’ve waited until we were awake and talked to us about this.

If he would’ve done that, then Brenden and I could’ve convinced him to wait until after Wren’s final. We could’ve all gone to see Lucifer together.

But no, he ran away while we were sleeping. Probably because he knew we’d convince him. He knew he wouldn’t be able to walk away from us.

Well, fuck him. I won’t give him another chance to hurt us—to destroy us.

Even if we can’t find a way around the Fates’ words, he’ll never have a chance at my heart again. I’ll bond him if I have to, but there’s no way in hell I’ll give him another chance to shatter me.

He’s gotten more chances than he deserved, and he’s shown us over and over what kind of man he is. He doesn’t deserve us.

“Fuck him,” I mutter into Brenden’s chest. “He’s a fucking coward.”

Brenden growls, and when I pull away, he’s snarling. “He’ll pay for this.”

“He will. He fucked me over for the last time. I hope he’s ready for hell to rain down on him.” I’m certain the smile I give him is feral, but I don’t give a fuck.

I’ve run out of fucks to give.

Taking a deep breath, I tug Brenden into the bathroom so we can wash away the night. I don’t know about him, but I can’t stand the idea of leaving any part of him on my skin. Not his cum or his kisses. Most certainly not his scent.

I’ve never regretted anything more than I regret giving in to the stupid mate bond that makes me want to forgive him, even when I know he’s not sorry for a single damn thing he’s done. If he was, this never would’ve happened. He never would’ve walked out on us.

Our shower is fast, as neither of us wants to linger in this hotel room longer than we have to. When we step out to pull our clothes on, I realize that not only do I not want to put them back on—I never want to see them again.

Without a thought, I click my fingers and watch as hellfire envelopes them before flickering out and leaving nothing but ashes behind. Hopefully, Wraith can get us checked out without us being here because I’m not walking into the lobby in nothing but a towel.

Linking my fingers with Brenden’s, I walk us through the shadows and into our living room, where I find Cassian, Wraith, and Donovan making out on the couch.

“I’m glad someone had a better night than we did,” Brenden snarks, causing the three of them to break apart.

They turn to us with smiles that quickly fall away when they take us in.

“What the hell happened?” Cassian frowns as he stands, walking toward me until I hold up my hand to halt him.

I glance at Brenden, who looks just as wrecked as I do. “Brenden and I made a mistake last night. We ran into Nex and went to dinner with him. One thing led to another, and we slept together. When we woke up, he was gone. All he left was a note telling us he’s sorry and that he’ll be asking for his services to be transferred to another of the horsemen.”

Wraith’s eyes flash with anger as he joins Cassian. “Please tell me you’re joking.”

“That’s not really something I would joke about, Wraith.” The only joke is me—not that I’d say that out loud. My mates would eviscerate me for talking about myself like that. “I fell for his pretty lies. It won’t happen again. If we need me to bond with him in order to keep Cassian, then that’s what I’ll do. But I’ll never trust him. He’ll never truly be a part of the family we’re building. He made his bed, and he can fucking sleep in it alone.”

“Oh, pretty girl. This isn’t on you. It’s on him. He fucked up—not the two of you.”

Brenden scoffs. “No, Audrey is right. We heard what we wanted to hear—what we needed to hear. Now, we know how far his lies will go.”

None of them have anything to say to that. I mean, what can you say to that?

Nothing they have to say is going to make us feel better. Or erase the last twelve hours. We’ve learned a lesson I would’ve preferred neither of us had to.

Pretty lies are the easiest to believe, but they’re also the ones that cut the deepest.

It hurts now, but we’ll heal. We have each other and my other three mates. They’ll help us put back together our pieces. We’ll be stronger for it, but both of us have lost something important today. I don’t yet know what it is, but I can feel the missing piece inside me throbbing with pain.

“While I know you don’t condone vengeance, Wraith, I don’t want you to grant Nex his request. He doesn’t just get to run away after what he did. He doesn’t get to hide from the pain he caused. He needs to be here to see what he did. Brenden and I will make sure he sees the error of his ways, but when he comes crawling back, we know his words will be lies. Then we’ll crush him, make him feel the pain he made us feel.” I smile, though it falls a bit when the three of them flinch. “What?”

The three of them share a look before Wraith steps forward. “Nothing, trouble. You just sound tired. You both probably are after what you’ve gone through this morning. Let us take care of you. We need you both at your best for tomorrow.”

I hum, knowing he’s right. I need to focus on taking out Michael and fixing that problem before worrying about Nex. One step at a time. One foot in front of the other.

“That sounds nice,” I finally say, and he smiles.

“Good. Let’s get the two of you upstairs and into something comfortable. Donovan and Cassian will cuddle with you two while you watch a movie or something. I’ll call to get you checked out. Plus, there are a few administrative things I need to take care of before tomorrow. I’ll join you as soon as I’m finished.”

I shrug as Wraith leads me over to Donovan, who picks me up in his arms. I lay my head on his shoulder with a sigh.

“Brenden, Wraith and I will help you upstairs,” Cassian offers, and I hear Brenden scoff.

“I don’t need help to go up the stairs.”

I lift my head to see Wraith still reaching for Brenden. “Remember, Brenden, we’re here for one another. We’ll be your strength. There’s no reason for either of you to be strong through this. Lean on us.”

Brenden shrugs with a shake of his head. “I have no problem accepting your help, Wraith. I thank you for wanting to be here for me, but I’m fine.”

His voice is so monotone, it’s almost as if he’s shut down. Kind of like me.

It’s only then I realize I no longer feel the pain of Nex’s betrayal. In fact, I feel nothing. I feel blank and empty.

I wonder if I should find that disturbing. Right now, I don’t think I have the energy to worry about why I feel as I do. Wraith is right. I need to rest.

“I’m ready to go upstairs now,” I tell Donovan.

With a nod, he carries me up the stairs. I hear Brenden, Wraith, and Cassian follow us up, but I suddenly don’t have the strength to lift my head. It feels too heavy for my body.

In fact, all my limbs feel that way. I don’t feel in control of my body, and I know that should freak me out. It doesn’t.

“Okay, pretty girl, I’m going to set you down now and get you a shirt to wear, okay?” Donovan asks when we reach the bedroom.

Thankfully, he doesn’t seem to need a response as he lowers me to my feet. I blink and he’s back.

“That was fast,” I tell him, surprised. He moved as fast as Brenden does when he uses his vampiric nature. I didn’t know he could do that.

Donovan hesitates before undoing the towel and allowing it to fall to the floor. I lift my hands over my head as he helps me into the shirt. When he bends down to help me slide my panties on, I use his shoulders to keep me upright before he leads me to the bed.

Brenden’s already lying there on his side in a pair of sweats, so I crawl over to him and curl around him. Neither Cassian nor Donovan joins us immediately as they talk with Wraith quietly.

At first I can’t make out what they’re saying, then suddenly I can hear them so well, they might as well be standing next to me.

“What the hell is wrong with them?” Donovan asks, sounding panicked. “What can we do?”

Wraith sighs. “I’m not one hundred percent sure, but I think they might be suffering from rejected mate syndrome.”

“That makes sense for Audrey, but Brenden and Nex aren’t fated mates,” Cassian says slowly.

“Do you know that for a fact?” Wraith pushes.

“Brenden hasn’t said anything,” Donovan replies. “But would he have if he knew? Knowing that it would hurt Audrey?”

Cassian grunts. “But he’s been at the academy longer than Audrey. Don’t vampires sense their mates by smelling their blood? Wouldn’t Brenden have noticed that before he even met Audrey?”

“Fuck,” Wraith curses. “Nex takes pills that change his scent. They’re often used when someone is hiding from another supernatural. Brenden would’ve had no idea. I’m going to fucking kill him.”

“Let’s not be rash, Wraith. If you kill him, then you can kiss me sticking around goodbye.”

The sounds of a scuffle reach my ear, but I can’t bring myself to see what’s going on.

“Don’t be a selfish prick, Cassian. This isn’t about you.” That’s Wraith, and he sounds pissed.

“That’s not how I meant it, and you know that. Don’t let the anger get to you. Please.” That one is Cassian, obviously.

“This is not the time to start fighting,” Donovan hisses. He’s pissed too. “The two of them are falling apart just a few feet from us, and the two of you think it’s a good time to start a fistfight. Knock it the fuck off or I’ll kick both of you out of here and take care of them myself.”

There’s a loud smacking sound—not like skin against skin, but I think someone punched something. I’m not curious enough to turn over to find out.

“Fuck. I’m sorry. This is why I said the two of you would stay with them.” Another sigh from Wraith. “I’m so fucking pissed with Nex, and it’s combining with this bullshit anger I don’t want to feel toward Cassian. I need to make some phone calls to see what the fuck we need to do for them. Don’t leave them alone, please.”

“We’ve got them, Wraith. We’ll hold them together until you can find out how to fix them.” That’s Cassian again.

At least they’re not fighting anymore.

Not that it really matters if they do. It’s not like I can stop them.

I’m just so tired.

Lifting my head, I find Brenden staring back at me blankly.

Had he listened to my mates, too? Did he understand what they were talking about?

I’ve never heard of rejected mate syndrome before. It doesn’t sound good, though, does it?

And is Brenden truly Nex’s mate, too? For his sake, I hope not.

I blink once, then twice. Cassian is pressed against my back now while Donovan is curled around Brenden. I missed them climbing into the bed. I also missed when Brenden fell asleep as I cling to his hand.

I’m losing time, and once again, I realize I should be worried.

The thought is there and gone again in a second.

I’m just so tired…