Page 31

Bellamy snorts. “Are you kidding me? Have you never read a book? Bathrooms are where all the bullying and crime happens because there aren’t any cameras. We’re not leaving you vulnerable. Close the stall door, you can still have privacy.”

I raise an eyebrow, surprised. And here I thought he was just a voyeuristic pervert.

As Bellamy pulls out his phone and cranks up some music, I check the stalls to ensure there’s no one else inside. Content that it’s clear, I hold open the door of the cleanest one for her. “Go on then, we’ll wait.”

Face placid, she deadpans, “I hate you both.”

“No you don’t, you liiiiiiiiiiiiike that we care,” Bellamy counters with a smug grin, crossing his arms and leaning against the sink.

She mutters under her breath as she goes into the stall, but doesn’t deny it. When she returns, he turns off the music, and we both ignore the slight blush on her cheeks as she washes her hands like she’s trying to strangle someone.

“Are you actually mad?” Bellamy asks softly.

She sighs and admits, “Not at you. You’re both overbearing as hell, but… it’s actually kind of sweet. You’re right, I’m just pissy because I can’t figure out this stupid project.”

“Talk us through it then,” he coaxes. “Where are you stuck?”

“We can't exactly test the prototype, because what if it works ? The volunteer loses their powers and becomes human forever?” She snatches a couple of paper towels and dries her hands with a sigh. “How are we supposed to produce an invention without any beta testing? Best case scenario, it’ll strip her power and she won’t suffer anymore.

But I don’t even know the worst case because I can’t freaking test it .

What if it backfires on the user? Anyone within a certain radius?

Where does that power even go afterward?

We can’t hold it indefinitely. So does it convert to energy and release back into the world, need to be transferred to someone else, or something else altogether? ”

She thumps her head against my chest when I tug her against me. “I’m scared we’re going to do more damage than good trying to help her.”

Bellamy passes her her drink, and she tosses back the rest, pitching the cup in the trash before we head out.

“Explain that to her before you try. Nocturne may be doing all of this to help his mate, but she deserves to understand the risks of going through the experimental treatment he signed her up for. If she still chooses to give it a shot knowing you aren’t sure what’ll happen, that’s on her and Dane, not you.

Don’t burden yourself with guilt over someone else’s choices.

All you can do is your best, and explain the risks.

Especially when he’s been tying your hands not letting you work closely with Sophia to build this.

You can always make adjustments after speaking with her before actually pulling the trigger. ”

The way she relaxes at his words has me giving him a second look.

For a short while, I respected the man for getting the drop on me.

After his abduction though, I realized he’s just as vulnerable as Ever.

And for all the shit I like to give him, my angel would be devastated if anything happened to the bastard.

But just because he’s in need of our protection doesn’t mean he’s useless.

I suck at the emotional shit, but he handled her fears like a pro.

As we step out of the bathroom, I freeze. Leaning against the wall are the siren and his mates, glaring at me like I’m the devil incarnate.

Buddy, you don’t know the half of it.

Still, my muscles lock up, and I snag the blade at my hip in a death grip. There were people right outside the door and I was so focused on Ever that I. Didn’t. Notice.

I was sloppy.

Inexcusable.

Bellamy’s hand snaps out to grab my wrist as I go to slit their throats, urging me to still my hand. “Oh hey, small world. Sorry for tying up the bathroom, it’s all yours.”

“Seriously?” the siren demands, eyes alight with fury. “You’re going to try and sweep that shit under the rug? What the fuck is wrong with you!” Fists clenched, he spits, “Is that why you came here tonight? To pick your next victim to experiment on?”

Ever’s so pale I worry she’ll pass out, and hastily band an arm around her waist just in case. “Maybe you should lay off the beers, mate.”

Red creeps up his neck. “I know what I heard.”

I shrug. “And I know what I said. Guess it’s your word against mine.”

As his fury grows, Bellamy steps in front of me, like that will stop anything.

“Look, we’ve all had a few drinks and tensions are running high, so let’s accept this for what it is; a misunderstanding. My mate is a game developer and we were troubleshooting a kink with one of the characters in a project she’s working on. I swear, none of us are a threat to anyone.”

Speak for yourself, meat shield.

“Have a good rest of your night.” Following his lead, we head back to our seats as he murmurs, “Anyone they might mention it to will write it off on drunk ramblings. It’s fine, they can’t prove anything; the security cameras here don’t have audio.”

“How could you possibly know that?” I demand. “You didn’t know where we were going until two seconds before we arrived.”

Bellamy points at one of the cameras and rattles off some nerdy crap about models and capabilities that goes over my head, but sounds confident enough that I choose to believe him for my own peace of mind.

Doesn’t matter even if there was audio. Anybody lays a hand on my mate, I’ll cut it off. Problem solved. They only heard about her project anyway, they don’t know that she’s a mimic.

“Maybe we should get out of here,” my angel whispers, glancing nervously over her shoulder.

“No, it’ll make us look guilty if we run now.

Besides,” Bellamy brushes a lock of hair from her face, offering a wry smile before stealing her from me and tucking her under his arm, leading the way to our seats.

“I know what this place means to you. I’m not going to let a couple of nosey strangers steal your first real home away from you. We can still fix this.”

As soon as we’re back in our seats, Bellamy bursts my bubble by whirling around to hiss at me, “Aren’t you supposed to be some badass assassin or some shit? How the fuck didn’t you realize there was someone eavesdropping!”

Dick.

“Says the guy that practically waltzed into a man’s paneled van to be abducted.”

“They were my family,” Bell snaps. “Of course I didn't have my guard up that day.”

“You should have,” I growl. “Family is the most dangerous kind of threat. They can hurt you more than anyone because they know your weaknesses.”

His brow furrows, glancing between my face and Ever’s. “You know none of us would sacrifice you to save ourselves... right?”

My veins fill with ice as I freeze. “You fucking better.”

“What the hell are you talking about?”

“If our mate is ever at risk, you trade me in a fucking heart beat for her, you hear me? Zero hesitation.”

He gives up all pretense of fighting. “Only if you do the same.”

“I'd trade any of you for a single can of green beans if she was hungry. Maybe even if she wasn’t, groceries are expensive.”

“You know," my angel interrupts, “seeing as you're both obsessive stalkers, you’d think you’d get along famously.” She gives Bellamy the side eye. “One just prefers hacking my webcam, which I’ll definitely be taping over now, and the other skulks around in the shadows. You guys are lucky I like you, because you do realize how creepy that sounds, right?”

So he didn’t tell her about the hidden cameras.

She makes a good point, though. If we combined our talents, we’d have eyes on our mate at all times. That I can get behind.

Having more people that worship my mate the way she deserves isn’t the worst thing. Even if he uses up all the hot water.

We settle into our seats, watching five peaceful moments of anarchy play out below us before we’re approached by several men.

And, surprise surprise, they’re flanked by the new thorn in my side.

The siren’s lady friends are nowhere in sight, though.

A huge-ass motherfucker in a security shirt that’s straining to stay on rumbles, “You three need to come with us.”

“After how much tickets cost for this? I think not.”

Not like I paid for them or anything, but that’s beside the point.

Bellamy tries to de-escalate the situation.

“Look, he’s just mad because my mate rejected him after he hit on her earlier tonight.

Really, it’s him you should be throwing out.

The fact that he’s using his abilities on unsuspecting people is disgusting.

That’s predator behavior right there. Someone should talk to his dates away from him to see if they’re actually here under their own free will. ”

The siren’s face tints red. “You want to add slander to your charges?” Yanking his phone out of his pocket, he taps a few times before the three of us turn to stone, Ever’s voice crackling over the recording.

He missed the first chunk of our conversation, but caught enough that the evidence is damning.

“That woman’s a threat to everyone here,” he loudly declares, drawing the eyes of several curious people.

To the guards, his voice takes on an alluring lilt.

“Think of how impressed your boss will be that you apprehended such a dangerous myst. I’m sure he’ll insist on giving a raise to the one that captures her. ”

One of the younger guards is so earnest to prove himself, he barks over his shoulder, “Call the gargoyles, they’ll want to interrogate them themselves.” To Ever, he says, “Ma'am, you need to come with me,” and grabs her upper arm in a bruising grip.

I don’t think, I just react. One second the suicidal bastard has his hand on my mate, the next, it’s laying on the ground.

He cries out, clutching his bloody stump of a wrist to his chest and babbling incoherently around his sobs. Ignoring his sniveling, I stare down the rest, their gazes torn between the blood dripping down the knife in my hand, and the calm expression on my face.

“You think being human is bad? Try being skinned alive.”

While a couple of them hesitate, most are too locked under the siren’s spell and charge us anyway.

I’m about to snap up Bellamy and Ever and shadow walk them away from danger when a stream of fire hones in on Bellamy.

He dives out of the way, snatching the man’s abilities, but doesn’t turn them back on him so he doesn’t expose himself.

Wrapping a shadow tendril around him, I yank Bell off the ground before another can stomp on his face, but the momentary distraction costs me.

“Look out!” my angel shouts, my heart skipping a beat as I see the hulking gorilla-sized fist flying towards my cheek.

Only for Ever to shove the behemoth’s chest and send him flying.

He’s flung at least twenty feet, skidding across the metal benches until crashing into a cement pillar, a chunk breaking loose and tumbling down on his stomach.

The entire arena has screeched to a stunned halt, silently gaping at the fight breaking out in the stands.

When he goes to shove the debris off, it doesn’t budge, and true panic fills the guard’s eyes, clearing away the haze of the siren’s influence.

“What the hell did you do to me, you crazy bitch? ! I can't use my powers!”

As he starts to hyperventilate, the peaceful bubble bursts and people start screaming, rushing out of the stands towards the exit.

I don’t give a shit that they look at me like I’m a monster. I care that they’re looking at my mate like she’s one too.

Devastation has her face crumbling as Bellamy wraps an arm around her waist to support her, jaw clenched as he watches the shit show encore of tonight’s event. “We need to get out of here.”

“He was right,” another guard breathes, fumbling his phone out of his pocket. “I don’t know how you snuck past the barrier, but the gargoyles will-”

Bellamy snaps into motion, dislocating the guy’s arm from its socket before he can radio for backup, and smashing his phone for good measure. He grimaces. “Won’t buy us much time, but long enough to get her home.”

“See? If you’d have let me kill the siren when we caught him eavesdropping, none of this would have happened.”

Bell groans. “Empathy is overrated. Next time, you have my blessing.”

“As sweet as this is, can we go? Please? ” Ever begs, eyes wide and scanning the raging crowd in fear, and my hackles raise.

She’s my dream girl. It’s my responsibility to deal with anything that scares her.

My shadows snap out in a riot of furious whips, scooping up every person in a fifty foot radius and flinging them into the arena.

Some land on the tops of the trees or scrambling to hang onto the ledges above sheer drop-offs.

Others fall into the pit of quicksand, and the more they struggle and panic, the faster they sink.

Scooping my mimic babies close, I take a moment to reattach the springy toddler leash to Ever’s wrist juuuuuust in case she has any new tricks up her sleeve.

Daddy Ledger is already going to be pissed when he hears what happened tonight, the last thing I need is to lose our mate in the shadow realm on top of everything else.

Finding Bellamy eyeing her wrist, I make a mental note to get him one too. Maybe metal for him, though.

Can’t crash my next date if he’s chained up in the basement.