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Instead, my mind had drifted.

She hadn’t looked surprised. It only confirmed my suspicions. But regardless of the truth, I was still locked away.

Why? Would I ever see the others again?

Finally, the room had cleared out, leaving us alone. She pulled over a small chair and faced me as she sat, crossing her legs and folding her hands into her lap.

“Bianca.” Her voice was deceptively mild, considering the turmoil in her eyes. “Can you tell me what you’re feeling right now?”

Annoyance shot through me, electrifying my nerves. Before now, I had been numb and tired. But an anger was beginning to swell in my chest.

How dare she ask me that.

“You lied to me.” I forced the words out through my fury. “How could you do that? You’re my doctor.”

How could I ever trust her again?

Dr. Reed grimaced. “You’re not wrong.” She looked away nervously. “But there are difficult circumstances involved. And concerns regarding your physical and mental health. Those issues go beyond your abilities. This is not about you being the Xing.”

That didn’t matter—she still should have told me. Everyone waswrong. I opened my mouth to tell her so, but she continued. “Have you heard the voice again? The one that used to come to you in your dreams.”

The question startled me out of my anger, but she wasn’t finished. “Are you ready to talk about your past? You’ve been with the others, and I know you’ve stopped taking your medication. It’s dangerous for your abilities to go unchecked, and we need to monitor you. How long has it been?”

My nails dug into my thighs, panic causing my breathing to turn shallow.

“W-w-what?”

Thevoice. The woman who used to haunt my dreams. I only mentioned her to Dr. Reed once, and it didn’t seem as though she cared very much.

So why bring her up now? Had she been judging me for that this whole time?

And my past…

That had nothing to do with who I was now. She’d tried to talk about my foster homes before, but I’d always brushed her off. There was no reason to discuss it. It wouldn’t change anything.

I didn’t even know where to start.

Dr. Reed’s frown softened. “First things first, I suppose. Let’s discuss the voice from your dreams. Have you heard her lately?”

I didn’t understand. Was she searching for a sign I was mentally unstable? I wasn’t stupid. Hearing voices wasn’t a good thing, but I had been too stupid to keep quiet. On top of everything else, of course they would use my imagination against me.

Besides, I’d been a child. I’d outgrown it already.

“No,” I answered, slightly hesitant. “I haven’t heard anything. It was just an imaginary friend. So it doesn’t matter. Why do you care?”

She hummed but didn’t address my question. “There’s another thing I’ve been wondering about. Just how close are you with the boys?”

“T-t-the boys?” I’d been around a lot of boys lately, but I doubted she meant Bryce. Sure, I didn’t loathe him anymore. Nor did I dream about making him disappear mysteriously into the night. Still, I hoped she, too, wouldn’t fall under the spell of trying to make me be nice to him.

It would never happen.

“I am referring to Damen Abernathy, Julian Kohler, Miles Montrone, and Titus Ducharme,” she responded, confirming my suspicions. “How long have you known them? How did you meet? What is your relationship like?”

Why should I tell her? She wasn’t my friend. She wasn’t even a good therapist.

“I stopped my medication two weeks ago,” I told her, not really answering her question. “I met them about a week ago. They already told me everything.”

Dr. Reed raised an eyebrow.