Page 8 of Dermot

Bastien shrugged. “You’re trying to do the right thing. No one would blame you if you were curled up in a corner hugging your knees and crying after what Parrish has done to you. Dermot is a Vila like you. He has to know what you’re going through.”

“I think he blames me because I bonded with Parrish.”

“He’s your mate. Why wouldn’t you have?”

“I think Dermot believes he wouldn’t have. As far as I know, he hasn’t met his mate yet, so maybe he doesn’t fully understand.”

Bastien swallowed. “Maybe he has met his mate.”

Celeste grinned up at him. “Are you fishing for information?”

“If I wanted to know if Dermot had a partner, I would ask him.”

“You’d have to catch him first. Don’t think I haven’t noticed he’s been avoiding you.”

“I don’t think he has. I’ve been spending most of my time with you.”

Celeste nodded. “And he doesn’t like me. It doesn’t mean he won’t like you, though. You just told me to be patient. Maybe you should do the same.”

“Why should I want him to talk to me?”

Celeste hummed. “I don’t know. Why do people want others to talk to them? Maybe you just think he’s pretty. Maybe there’s more. I have no way to know, and I don’t expect an answer from you. You don’t have to tell me anything if you don’t want to. I understand the situation is messy, but you have to remember that once it’s over, you’ll be able to live your life. Don’t build walls when you might not need them later.”

“Right now, you’re my priority, as you should be. I’ll be focused on making sure you’re healthy and that you heal, and on killing Parrish for you.”

Celeste’s expression turned sad. “I know it’s the best thing for everyone, including me, but I can’t help but wonder what’s going to happen to our bond when he dies.”

Bastien wished he could lie to her. “It’s going to hurt like hell. You’re going to struggle and feel like your world is ending. And in a way, it will. But it’s the only way for you to move forward. You’ll be able to heal from that pain. Parrish won’t be there to hold you back, and once you get over it, you’ll have your whole life in front of you to be happy. You don’t need your mate by your side to have a fulfilling life. Being with Parrish would be worse than being without him.”

“I know, but he’s still my mate,” Celeste murmured.

For the first time, Bastien understood where she was coming from. He knew that she wanted Parrish gone, but it made sense that she was worried about what would happen when he was. Their bond was very real, even though Parrish was a monster, and once he was gone, Celeste would be left behind to deal with the consequences.

But she wouldn’t deal with them alone.

* * * *

AS ONE OF THE VILA who was maintaining the shield around the village, Dermot could feel when something touched those shields. It was a safeguard he and the others had put in place so they’d know if anything happened, and he was glad they had. The moment he felt something touch the shields from the outside, he was up and running out of his house. He wasn’t the only one. He saw Tamsin stumbling out of his front yard, and together, they made their way toward the area where they could feel someone pressing at the shield.

“What’s happening?” Tamsin asked, panting. Dermot almost told him that he needed to do more exercise, but the situation was too serious for him to tease. “I know as much as you do,” he told him.

Tamsin grimaced. “Which is nothing at all. Great.”

“Whoever this is, they can’t get to us. They’re outside the shields.” It was where they’d remain until everyone could be sure they wouldn’t attack.

Dermot didn’t expect it to be Parrish or even one of Parrish’s people. The man might want Celeste back, but he was smart. He would try to get her back, but he wouldn’t do it by trying to get through the shields. He knew he wouldn’t be able to, especially with Celeste gone from his reach. He didn’t have access to her Vila magic because Dermot and the other Vila had made sure that he couldn’t touch it. It would have been hard for him to do so anyway with Celeste so far away, but Dermot had ensured that Parrish would never be able to use her again. The only way for him to do so was to get Dermot to lift the magic from her, and he wasn’t about to do that.

The two of them running caught people’s attention. One guard started running after them, while someone else headed toward Rowan and Clay’s house, no doubt to warn them. It was one less thing that Dermot would have to think about, and he was grateful. There was no way to know what they were about to find.

When they reached the spot where they both could feel the shields being touched, Dermot looked around. The only person he could see was a woman standing there. She seemed to be alone, but Dermot didn’t trust that. As far as he was concerned, it was possible that Parrish was there, waiting in the bushes. The fact that Dermot couldn’t feel the man didn’t mean anything. If Parrish was there, he wasn’t the one touching the shields.

The woman was.

She was tall and blonde, like a lot of Vila. Her eyes were green, rimmed in red, and one was so swollen that there was no way she could see anything through it. Her tank top was only held on by one strap, and there were bruises on her bare arms and legs. The shorts she was wearing couldn’t hide them. Her blonde hair was messy, standing up on one side as if someone had grabbed it and pulled. Tears were still rolling down her cheeks, and she had a hand pressed against the shields, looking like she was about to break down.

Dermot and Tamsin looked at each other. Dermot knew his friend well enough to be sure that Tamsin wanted to open the shield to let the woman in, but Dermot wouldn’t allow him to do that before asking questions at the very least. As sorry as Dermot felt for this woman, the clan and their safety was the most important thing to him. He’d already had to compromise over it for Celeste, then Bastien. He wasn’t going to do it again.

“Who are you?” he asked.