Page 20 of Those That Defy the Realm

“I have no idea what you mean.” Ah, there’s the denial.

He chuckles. “Ty, then. He’ll thank you as well. Assuming he and Rory actually try to claim back their lands like they were talking about before they left.”

I jump on the chance to sidestep the topic. “Still no word from them?”

Mum had asked that they call her the moment they had solid plans. It’s been weeks and we haven’t heard from them.

“No. Which means your mother is having to risk certain things to find out for herself. Ty’s a stubborn idiot at times. Doesn’t believe he’s worthy of the help.”

“I’m sure he’d do anything to protect Rory.”

“Yes, he would. And we’re hoping that means they haven’t figured out a safe way back to Froan yet.”

CHAPTER 8

CLAIRE

Icannot stop the squeal that erupts from my lungs as I pull my best friend into my arms. She’s alive and well and finally home.

Honestly, when Bree called me to say she’d simply ran into Rory in the capital, I couldn’t believe it. It was impossible. Then Bree had launched into the whole story, and I really did have the rug pulled from beneath my feet.

Vampires still existed. Rory was one. As was Ty, who had been upgraded from boyfriend to mate, somehow, and they were both on the run from the secret pack of vampires living here in Froan. It’s mindboggling.

But none of that matters in this second, because Rory is hugging me back just as tightly as I am holding on to her. We hug it out for way longer than is normal, but it’s very much needed at this moment. And then I also hug Ty, glad that he is safe as well.

My happiness, however, is quickly doused the moment I step back from the pair of them. I’d been aware that they were not alone when I’d opened the door but only now do I take in the two other men with them. I guess I should call them males really, as they’re also supernaturals. It isn’t the fact that these males are strangers that has my stomach suddenly wrapping around itself and coiling. No, it’s because one of them isn’t a stranger at all.

In fact he looks exactly like the picture he used on the app where we’d spent weeks talking to one another.

“Claire, this is Henry Knox,” Rory makes the introductions and confirms what I already know. Hearing his name adds cement to my knotted insides. Cement that heats instead of cools as my anger over how he ghosted me reignites.

I’m scrabbling for some witty reply about how no greetings are necessary, when Henry steps forward and offers me his hand to shake. The politeness of the gesture throws me totally off, and I find myself unable to speak.

Before I can recover, the fourth member of their party introduces himself. Antares is a beautiful male. Clearly with a ton of Fae heritage, and confidence to boot, he draws my attention for long enough that my moment to correct Henry passes and moves into a time where it would just be weird if I admitted to knowing him now. But my eyes keep flicking back to the tall giant, who looks even more handsome in real life.

Does he not recognise me? I may have used a different name, but come on, it wasn’t that different. And my picture was recent. My hair might’ve been freshly washed and tousled instead of clipped up and I might have been wearing a tad more make up than the very basics I went with today, but that picture was clearly me.

My cheeks flame as I shoot him a look that dares him to acknowledge that we know each other. Whether it's anger or embarrassment causing the flush, I’m not sure. There’s an awkward beat of silence before I remember I’m the host and we’re still in the foyer.

“Good to meet you,” I finally manage to utter. “Come on, I’ll show you where you can put your things.”

Brain still reeling, I turn on my can-do attitude and make sure everyone is settled. Unfortunately, Rory isn’t staying. We’ve spoken on the phone a couple of times since she ran into Bree, and they’ve filled me in on what seems like a highly dangerous plan. I can’t fully understand, try as I might, but Rory is leaving in just a few hours to infiltrate the pack that forced them to run.

We get a couple of hours together, sharing mugs of freshly brewed coffee like none of the last year has happened. Except we’re talking about my best friend having fangs and about to embark on a scheme that feels like it should be the plot of a movie.

Taking her in, really taking her in, I can see how much of a shadow she’d become since the accident almost two summers ago. I hate myself a little for how much I’d dismissed her complete dissociation as grief. I’d told myself that entire autumn term that Rory was just adjusting and trying to knuckle down in her work, when really, looking at her now, I can see just how much of a shell she was. I wish we could go back and I’d not leave her alone as much as I had.

The person sitting in front of me still has an air of sadness about her, of trauma not yet fully healed, but there is a lightness too. An aliveness that has grown from the spark that Bree and I saw reignite when Ty started hanging around. She’s regained her confidence and moves with a grace that says she’s not afraid to be seen. Before she disappeared, it was like she wished to be invisible the whole time. Whatever has occurred in these last months has clearly had a positive impact on her.

Smiling along as Rory answers questions I never thought I’d get the answers too, I can’t help feeling all jumbled up. I’m so pleased that she’s safe and well. Happy that she’s returned to Froan and is talking about staying here forever if their plan works.

But I also feel a darkness. It seems Rory has gone off and found herself again whilst the rest of us were broken by her disappearance. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve not had to live through half of what my best friend has had to, but her vanishing from my life had consequences I’ve spent the last year trying to undo.

I’m back living with my parents, I dipped in my final assessments at university, meaning I didn’t have the best portfolio to start applying to design and architecture companies with. I’ve had to work hard at an internship which pays fuck-all instead of being able to compete for the best opportunities.

Granted, I do now have an interview at one of the most prestigious design houses based here in the city coming up, but I should’ve been able to apply for it a year ago.

Time is slipping away, however, so I push all the negative thoughts into a box to be sorted out later, once I’m alone.