Second Chance by Fate (Fated Apex Mates #3)

4. Steele

Chapter 4

Steele

I thought the first few tremors were my imagination, but now I realize we are in the midst of something more serious. Instinctively, I shift into my panther body as the ground under my feet shakes, danger swelling around me.

“Steele!” Enzo yells from somewhere down the hall, but I’m already pouncing forward, my sleek black paws catching air as the chandelier in the foyer trembles overhead. One crystal crashes to the ground and shatters into a million pieces.

My eyes burn. I land on the stairs, tongue lolling out, panther nose raised toward Violet’s room.

I knew it! She’s trouble!

As if sensing my suspicion, the witch and my brother emerge. The house is still vibrating as Jax throws on his shirt and Violet pulls on her jeans. Dumbfounded, I gape at them for a moment, understanding what transpired.

You idiot! I curse Jax, but before I can ream him out more, Enzo flies around the corner in his wolf form, gray fur flying everywhere. The four of us stare at one another, the house settles, and the servants come into view.

“Was that an earthquake?” one maid squeaks.

Enzo shifts back into his human body, and I reluctantly do the same, my glare still fixed on Jax and Violet. She hangs her head and retreats to her room to finish dressing, but I shoot up the stairs to confront them, disgusted.

“Stop!” Jax steps in front of me to keep me from entering the suite, but I push past him, throwing his hands off me.

“Me?” I bark. “What about you?” I whirl around to confront Violet. “You don’t waste any time, do you?” I snarl, throwing open the door to her room with such force, it smashes against the wall.

Violet tips her head back, unperturbed by my outburst. I’m almost impressed by her coolness. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“You don’t? It’s just a coincidence that the second you arrive here, the house goes crazy?” I retort. “I’m onto you. I won’t let you terrorize us again?—”

“Oh, please,” Violet cuts me off. “You can blame me for everything that’s going wrong around here, but you know full well that it’s going on, with or without me.”

“Funny how it’s so much worse with you, isn’t it?”

“Steele, shut up, man,” Enzo interrupts, stalking in behind me.

Jax follows him through the doorway, and he gestures for Violet to sit down and stop pacing, but she refuses.

“I don’t want to stay here,” she growls. “If you’re just going to accuse me of everything going wrong all the time?—”

“No one’s accusing you,” Enzo says.

“I am,” I counter, and he gives me a wary look.

“But you have to admit, this is suspicious. As soon as you get back here, weird stuff happens?” Enzo continues like I haven’t spoken.

“You’re acting like everything has been fine since I’ve been gone, and we all know that isn’t true!” she cries. “But I’m not going to stand here and justify every move I make to the three of you. I’m a grown woman, not a child. Stop treating me like one.”

Jax holds up his hands in mock surrender.

“You don’t have to justify anything to me,” he replies with a grin, and I almost hiss.

“You’re a disgrace to our Alphahood!” I snarl, advancing on the two of them. “Our parents would be ashamed of you.”

My youngest brother stands between Violet and me, but I’m annoyed. It’s not as if I would actually attack her. I can’t deny that I still have feelings for this treacherous witch, despite everything she’s done to us. How can I not? She shared our bed for years.

Enzo puts a hand on my shoulder.

“Look,” he says. “Why don’t we get some rest and talk about this tomorrow? Maybe you shouldn’t stay here after all, Violet, but you’re here now, and it’s late. We’ll figure it out in the morning, okay? In the meantime, try not to cast any more spells.”

“It wasn’t me!” Violet snaps. “I’m not messing with the power balance! How many times do I have to tell you guys that?”

“Yeah, right.” I roll my eyes and storm out of the suite, shaking with anger.

Enzo is on my heels, but so is Jax this time.

“You have to cut her some slack, Steele,” Jax pleads. “I don’t think she’s lying?—”

“Did you determine that before or after you let her seduce you?” I bark. “Gods, you’re so easily manipulated, Jax! Especially by her!”

Jax’s jaw stiffens. “I’m not. I just listen and use my common sense. This is Violet we’re talking about, not some random person on the street.”

I laugh bitterly, glancing at Enzo and thrusting a thumb toward Jax. “Are you hearing him? His common sense. Don’t you remember why we cast her out in the first place?”

“I was here,” Jax growls. “I remember.”

“Did we imagine when our powers started diminishing?” I demand. “Did we imagine it when other territories started moving in on us because they thought us easy targets?”

“No,” Jax admits. “But who’s to say any of that is Violet’s fault?”

“What other witches did we let into our lives? Are you being serious right now? You’re acting like we didn’t talk this through before we banished her! You’re talking like it was some kind of executive decision on our part. You agreed to it, too!”

Jax lowers his eyes.

“Oh, now you remember?” I ask sarcastically. “I was starting to think you had memory loss.”

“And it didn’t fucking work, Steele! We’re still not as strong as we were! Our powers are not as strong as they should be, and we still have to fend off outside attacks!” Jax hisses back with uncharacteristic fury.

“Okay, that’s enough!” Enzo steps between us, holding up his hands. “Both of you are right. She’s here now, so we need a new plan. Either we exile her again…”

He trails off, and I gape at him. “Or what? Of course we have to!”

“No,” Jax insists. “We could keep her here. She obviously came back for a reason, even if she won’t say why. I think she came to help us.”

I scoff loudly. “More likely she’s come to put the final nails in our coffins. She’s here to finish the job. She got tired of waiting!”

“Steele—”

“You two are both blind. You’re too smitten by her beauty to see what’s really going on here. I don’t want any part of this. If you keep her here, Enzo, keep me out of it.”

I push past them to head into my wing of the estate, both my brothers calling after me, but I ignore them. I hate that I want them to be right, but the fact is, I just don’t trust Violet. If she’s not responsible for our downfall, who else could it be?

Sleep doesn’t come, and pacing around makes me more anxious. Instead, I decide to head out for a hunt in my panther form. I run into Enzo in the hall, and I realize he’s having the same issue as me, now that Violet is under the same roof.

“Seriously,” I growl again. “Why did you let her back?”

He sighs heavily. “What are my options here? Let her go where we can’t keep an eye on her or keep her here?”

“Where she causes more destruction?” I finish for him. “Look at what’s happening already.”

Enzo’s steely-gray eyes harden. “I know you were hurt by her betrayal?—”

I bristle at the characterization and turn away. “I wasn’t hurt. I should have expected it from a witch. We should have known better than to let her into our bed in the first place.”

“But we did,” Enzo continues. “And the damage is done. We learned to care for her—whether you want to admit it or not.”

“Speak for yourself,” I huff. “And whatever I might have felt for her before doesn’t apply anymore. She needs to go.”

Enzo ponders the dilemma. “I mean… I guess we could let her go now and stick a team on her.”

Unexpectedly, a jab of worry slices through me at the idea, and my older brother catches it.

“That’s why I said we should table this until morning,” he reminds me. “Let’s talk about it tomorrow. We’re all too riled up right now to discuss this rationally.”

I nod curtly and head out the front doors. There’s no sense in rehashing this over and over. We’re getting nowhere.

“Where are you going?” he demands, watching me leave.

“On a hunt.”

“Want me to join you?”

I consider his offer for a minute. It’s been a while since we’ve gone out together, but I shake my head. “No. I want to be alone.”

Enzo stifles a sigh. “Suit yourself. But leave Violet alone, Steele, please. We’ll regroup tomorrow.”

I promise nothing and head into the night, shifting into my cat form.

There’s not much to hunt in Dusty Woods, and my mind isn’t on a kill, anyway. I’m more out for a late-night run than anything, to clear my head and figure out what to do with this newfound problem. I have to admit that things haven’t gotten any better in Violet’s absence, and while I would never say it to my brothers or anyone else, I have missed her.

No one has ever gotten me as excited as Violet in the bedroom or anywhere else. As much as I’ve tried to move on with other lovers, I always compare them to Violet, and they’re never invited back for a second night. But that doesn’t change the fact that she’s no good for us. Unlike Jax, who claims to use common sense, I really do use my head to make decisions.

My paws pound faster over the sidewalks, leading toward the obscure areas of town. The few shifters outside bow and duck out of my way, leaving a clear path for me toward my free run, and I begin to sprint as if escaping my own thoughts.

Blood rushes through my ears, and I relish the feeling of power surging through me in the pseudo hunt of the Arizona forest.

Losing track of time, I let my senses guide me, the darkness blanketing me as I dart through the familiar landscape. Violet's presence under this roof is torture—her very nearness reminds me of what we had, stirring desires I've fought so hard to bury. I hate that she’s here, but the idea of letting her go is just as offensive to me.

Why the hell did she have to come back? It would have been so much better if she just stayed out of sight and out of mind… kind of.

By the time I circle back to the estate, I’m in no better mental state than I was before, and I realize I’m not going to sleep a wink. So much for being in a clearer headspace in the morning.

On a whim, I pad toward the side of the house, peering up at the second-floor balcony where Violet’s suite sits. To my surprise, the lights in her room are still on.

Jax probably went back there, that treacherous jerk, I muse with annoyance, but I wonder if I’m not jealous of his brazenness. He had no shame hooking up with her, even though we don’t trust her. He put aside all our previous wariness and let his desires take control. Just like I desperately want to do, too.

But I won’t. I can’t. Yet I can’t help myself from checking in on them now to see if my suspicions are right and if my brother ignored Enzo’s order to leave Violet alone.

Scaling the side of the trellis, I stealthily make it to the balcony and land on the second floor, pushing open the door with my nose. To my surprise, I find Violet alone in her bedroom, sitting on the center of the bed. Feeling ashamed of myself, I fall back on my haunches, ready to leave, when I hear her speak.

“I won’t say anything,” she moans. “Please, don’t hurt them.”

Blinking, I pause, cocking my head as I sniff the air around her. I sense no one else in the room, but she’s clearly communicating with someone.

Violet’s hazel eyes glow, and I realize she’s using magic to communicate. But with who?

“I haven’t said a word,” she swears. “I know what’s at stake.”

I stalk forward to make my presence known, but in the distance, I hear Enzo’s howl to action. The hairs on the back of my neck rise, the panic in my brother’s war cry familiar and deadly.

I can’t confront Violet about what I’ve seen now. We’re under attack.

Lurching off the balcony, I land on the ground gracefully and take off through the gardens, but when I look back over my shoulder, I catch a glimpse of Violet watching me from the railing of her room, her mouth agape.

She knows I’m onto her. Good. She better be worried.

I find Enzo in his office, pacing with his earbuds in. Jax leans against the wall, eying me nervously as I enter and shift back into my human form.

“What’s going on?” I demand, looking from one brother to the other.

On cue to my question, the lights explode, shattering glass everywhere in the room. The three of us raise our arms to shield our faces, and Violet races inside, gasping in horror. Glass crunches under her bare feet, and Jax instantly rushes to move her away.

“Oh, my gods!”

“Get her out of here!” I shout. “She’s doing this!”

“Shut up!” Enzo hollers at us, pointing at his ear. “I’m on the phone.”

Gritting my teeth, I lower my arms, backing away. Violet rushes to Jax to tend to his cuts, and I realize I’m bleeding from my arms.

“Where?” Enzo barks as I pick shards of glass out of my forearm.

“Let me see,” Violet urges, grabbing my hand.

I try to pull away, but she’s stronger than she looks with her tiny stature, and she waves her free hand over me. Warmth rushes through me, and the tiny cuts close under the heat of Violet’s warm eyes.

“Stop being so damn stubborn,” she mutters, releasing me. “I’m not trying to hurt you.”

“Oh, no?” I scoff. “This is all some big coincidence, is it? I heard you in your room. Just now. I heard you talking to your coven.”

She pales at my accusation and looks back at Jax, but he’s fixated on Enzo’s conversation.

“I don’t know what you thought you heard?—”

“Just save it, Violet. You’re trouble.”

“No, Steele. You’re in trouble,” she counters, spinning away.

Enzo turns to us worriedly, disconnecting his call. “The west side just got viciously attacked.”

I stare at him blankly. “By who? New Mexico again?”

He shakes his head. “I don’t know.”

Now we’re all gaping at him.

“You don’t know?” I repeat. “What does that mean?”

“It means that there is a trail of dead shifters, and no one is taking responsibility for it. I have no idea what’s going on, but we need to get over there.”

He stalks toward the door without waiting to see if we’ll follow. Jax is on his heels, but I remain in place, trying to understand what’s happening. I know that Violet can’t be responsible for a massacre, not only because she has been here, but because she’s Violet. For all the distrust I have for her, I know she is not someone capable of such extreme violence.

But if not her, then who? And why does this coincide with her arrival?

A warm hand slips into mine, shaking me out of my reverie.

“Steele, we have to go,” Violet urges me.

I pull away from her, scowling.

“You’re not going anywhere,” I tell her furiously. “You’re likely responsible for all this.”

Sadness touches her face, but she’s not deterred by my order. “I’m coming because I’m not staying here without one of you. It’s clearly not safe around here.”

I almost laugh at her reasoning, but Jax circles back to bark at us. “Are you two coming or what?”

Violet doesn’t wait for me this time and heads out of the study after Jax, leaving me no choice but to head into the night with my brothers and the witch, who is once again wreaking havoc on our household.

But why? Why would she do this? And what did she mean when she said, “Don’t hurt them”?