Chapter 50
Harlow
The shrill ring of a cellphone cuts through the silence. One of the female guards pulls it from her pocket, her expression shifting as she listens to whoever is on the other end.
“Yes.” She makes a noise of agreement. “Understood.”
She ends the call, putting the device back in her pocket.
“Drake is on his way,” she says to the other guard. “He wants to deliver the bad news in person.”
Bad news?
No. Please.
My chest tightens, and I have to force myself to keep breathing.
The one who took the call turns to me now, and the smile on her face is vicious. “Looks like you’re going to be deported, after all. Councilor Drake is coming to say goodbye.”
No. No, no, no.
“They’ve finally made the decision?” My voice comes out small and broken. I’ve been waiting to hear. It’s taken forever.
“Oh, we’ve been in the know for a while now,” the first guard says, crossing her arms. “The vote was just a formality. Everyone knew you were guilty.”
I sink back onto the mattress.
“I feel so bad for Drake,” she says.
“He doesn’t deserve this,” the other agrees. “Not someone as sexy as he is.”
“He’s the sexiest,” her companion agrees. “Those eyes. That body.” She fans herself dramatically.
“Do I look okay?” The first guard applies lipstick, checking her reflection. “I want to look good when he gets here.”
“You’re wasting your time,” the other tells her. “Drake doesn’t date. He’s too focused on his career.”
“Well, he won’t be a Councilor anymore after this,” the first one says, smacking her lips together. “Maybe he’ll finally be available. I’d love a shot at him. He’s one of the most eligible bachelors on this island.”
“Was,” the second corrects. “Until she ruined him.”
They both look back at me, their expressions filled with contempt.
I tune them out, pressing my palms against my eyes. This can’t be happening. This can’t be real. Is Drake coming to say goodbye? Does he think I betrayed him, betrayed everything we—?
The sound of footsteps in the corridor makes my head snap up
The guards straighten, smoothing their uniforms. The one with the lipstick touches her hair, making sure every strand is in place.
Then he appears, and my breath catches in my throat.
He’s as beautiful as ever. Tall and broad-shouldered, his long dark hair pulled back, his eyes scanning the area. He’s wearing all black, his tattoos visible on his arms.
“Councilor Drake,” one of the guards says, her voice suddenly sweet and professional.
“Open the cell,” he tells her.
The guards exchange glances but comply, one of them unlocking the door while the other steps aside.
Drake walks in, and as soon as he lays eyes on me, he smiles.
“What happened?” I whisper, my voice cracking. “Why are you smiling? Am I being deported?”
He doesn’t answer. Instead, he steps right up to me, so close I can feel the heat radiating from his body. Then his hands cup my face, and his lips are on mine.
He’s kissing me.
In my cell. In front of the guards. In front of the cameras that I know are recording every second of this.
For a moment, I’m too shocked to respond. Then I hear the gasps from outside the cell, the sharp intakes of breath from the guards who were just talking about how sexy he is, how eligible he was.
“What are you doing?” I whisper against his mouth, pulling back just enough to speak. “Are you crazy?” I glance at the guards, whose mouths are hanging open, then at the camera mounted in the corner of the cell. “Everyone is going to know about this. Everyone will see. Have you lost your mind?”
“I don’t care,” he says, and his voice is determined. “I’m done hiding. I love you, Harlow.”
Then he kisses me again, deeper this time, like he’s trying to prove something to the world.
“No,” I say, pushing against his chest, stepping back. “You can’t do this. I’m going to be deported. You’re ruining things even more than they are already. Your career—”
“You’re not going to be deported.” His hands find my shoulders, grounding me.
“I’m so sorry I couldn’t tell you how I felt before.
I couldn’t tell you that I trusted you one hundred percent.
That I was going to fight for you…for us.
” His eyes search mine, and I can see the emotion swimming in their depths.
“We found the real culprits. We know who was responsible for everything and who planted the cell phone.”
Then his expression shifts, and I see pity there.
“I know that Jordyn was involved,” I say quickly, before he can tell me. “I saw the phone in her hands. I know she did it.”
Drake nods slowly. “I’m sorry, Harlow. I know she was your friend. That you cared about her. That you thought she cared about you, too.”
Even though I already knew this, even though I saw it with my own eyes, hearing that it’s been proven hurts more than I thought it would. It makes it real in a way it wasn’t before.
Drake must see something in my expression because he says, “Let’s get out of here.”
He walks us to the cell door, and the guards scramble to move aside, their earlier confidence completely gone.
“Sorry,” one of them mumbles, not meeting my eyes. “We thought you were guilty.”
“Yeah…um…sorry,” the other adds, her face flushed. “We’re huge Drake supporters, and we thought you’d ruined his career.”
I step out of the cell and take Drake’s hand, lacing our fingers together. The action feels defiant, but so good.
We walk down the corridor together, our hands clasped tight.
“Did they give you a hard time?” Drake asks, his voice low and concerned. “I can put in a complaint if you want.”
“They treated me like I was a spy, so not very nice at all,” I admit. “But they didn’t hurt me or anything.”
His jaw tightens, and I can see him fighting back anger.
“They shouldn’t have treated you like that. Not without proof. Not without—” He stops himself, taking a deep breath. “I’m sorry. This should never have happened to you.”
“It’s not your fault.”
We step outside, and the natural light is blinding after my time in that windowless cell. I have to squint, holding up a hand to shield my eyes while they adjust.
Movement catches my attention. Three people are being escorted inside by guards. Being led in the direction we just came from.
The first is an older male shifter who keeps his eyes on his shoes, shoulders hunched. The second is an older female, clearly a shifter as well. She looks furious, her lips pressed into a thin line.
The third is Jordyn.
Seeing her hurts. She looks terrible. Her blonde hair is a mess, her pretty face blotchy and swollen from crying. When she sees me, her expression crumples completely, and she starts crying all over again.
“Can I speak briefly to her?” I ask Drake.
Drake hesitates, then nods. He signals to one of the guards escorting them, and they stop. The guard brings Jordyn over while the other two prisoners are held back. Drake moves away.
“I’m so sorry, Harlow,” Jordyn sobs, the words tumbling out in a rush. “I’m so very sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you. I really was your friend. I didn’t lie about that, I swear.”
“You didn’t mean to hurt me?” I can’t keep the incredulity out of my voice. “You set me up, Jordyn. I was destined to go back to the Mainland. I was going to be thrown in jail for years. Those aren’t the actions of a friend.”
Her eyes widen, genuine shock crossing her face.
“Years?” It’s obviously the first time she’s hearing about her own future, about what happens to spies on Draig. “Oh no. No, no, no. That can’t be.”
“It’s where you deserve to go,” I tell her, and I mean it.
“All I did was give information about what was happening here,” Jordyn says, her voice rising. “Basic stuff. I did what Councilor Tairn told me to do. He’s a Councilor. I thought…I thought it was okay. I thought—”
“Don’t talk shit. It was information that could cause Draig harm in the wrong hands,” I interrupt.
“There must be a good reason why the shifters don’t want us humans to know what’s going on here.
I can only imagine it has to do with the protection of the Draig occupants.
You’re a smart person, Jordyn. You would have known it was wrong.
That what this Tairn person was asking you to do was wrong.
All the sneaking around. The lying. Framing me.
” My voice hardens. “You can make all the excuses you want, but you belong in jail.”
Her face transforms, tears giving way to anger. Her eyes narrow.
“Okay, fine, I did it for the money,” she snaps.
“You have no idea what it’s like not to have anything.
No future. No hope. You went to a good school, got a college degree.
You probably got a fat inheritance from your parents when they died.
I needed the money. I’m sorry you got implicated, but there was no other way. ”
I snort. “You don’t know anything about me.
And clearly, I don’t know a thing about you either.
For one, I didn’t know you were such a selfish liar.
And I certainly didn’t realize you had such a defeatist attitude.
” I step closer to her, letting her see the anger in my eyes.
“For your information, I didn’t inherit anything.
Not a red cent. My parents used most of their money to have me.
They emptied their savings account on IVF treatments over all those years.
They cleaned out all of their savings. They even mortgaged their house.
They were both still working when they died.
I barely had enough to pay for their funerals.
Just so you know, I still owe money for my fancy college degree.
” I shake my head. “There is always another way, Jordyn. What you did was disgusting and wrong on every level. I hope you get exactly what you deserve.”
I turn away from her, not waiting to hear whatever excuse she comes up with next. Drake’s hand finds the small of my back, steadying me.
He is smiling. “You’re kickass, you know that? You handled that perfectly.”
“I wish she hadn’t done it.”
“I know.” He puts an arm around me and tucks me into his side. For a moment, I let myself lean on him.
“Who are the other two?” I ask, straightening up. We start walking toward the chopper.
“Council members,” Drake says.
“What? Both of them?” My mouth falls open. I stop walking, staring at him. “Really?”
“Really.”
A helicopter sits waiting in the distance, its blades beginning to spin. I hope desperately that it’s taking us back to the flight school, back to something resembling normal life.
“It turned out that two of our Councilors were spies. They were very much against my initiative to bring peace between the two islands. Tairn was pushing for more Tributes and shorter training times. Let’s just say that none of what he envisioned was good for you guys.
He wanted me gone. Wanted one of his cronies to take over. ”
“He sounds like a piece of work. More Tributes… Really? Was he behind my framing? I’m assuming that Jordyn didn’t act alone. In fact, she mentioned this Tairn person.”
“Yep, he was behind everything. Tairn tried to destroy evidence, but we found proof that he’d been in contact with the cellphone found in your bedroom.
It didn’t take our new and fantastic head of the technical department long to find the messages.
The deleted ones all implicated Jordyn, not you.
None of them led back to you. Everything pointed to her. ”
He stops walking, turning to face me fully. “You’ve been found not guilty, Harlow.”
The words wash over me like a wave. Not guilty. Free.
It feels amazing.
“I told Reed and Vector about us,” Drake tells me. “That we’re together. That it’s serious. Very fucking serious.” He takes my hand, threading his fingers through mine.
I flinch. “And? It’s only the end of your probationary period tomorrow. You should have waited.”
“They weren’t happy at all,” he admits. “They said that they will need to take a vote in the coming days. It will decide my fate.”
“No.” I feel myself deflate. “So you could still be asked to step down.”
He nods.
“No, Drake. Why did you do that?”
“Because you are everything to me. You’re more important than being a Councilor. I didn’t want to hide anymore.”
Drake pulls me into his arms, and I go willingly, burying my face against his chest. His heart beats steady and strong beneath my ear.
I lift my head and we kiss. It’s filled with relief and joy and promise all wrapped together.
“We’ll figure it out,” I tell him as we pull apart.
“Of that I have no doubt.”
“What about the other woman?” I ask. “The Council member.”
“Ex-Councilor Ember,” Drake says. “She’s been working with Tairn. We found evidence on a second cellphone device. They’re both spies for the Mainland government.”
“Spies?” I shake my head, trying to process this. “What does the Mainland government want? Surely, there are those within the government who know about you guys being shifters and what happens here on Draig Island, even if the general population doesn’t?”
“It’s a long story,” he says, taking my hand again as we start walking toward the helicopter. “One I’ll tell you once we get home.”
Home.
The word fills me with warmth.
“I love the sound of that,” I tell him.
A realization hits.
“Now I know why Jordyn was pushing so hard. She wanted me to start a sexual relationship with you. She pushed and pushed.” I shudder, remembering all those conversations. “I’m sure they were hoping to get rid of you the same way they got rid of Ash.”
“But you didn’t tell her anything,” Drake says.
I think of all the times I was tempted. All the moments when I wanted to confide in her, to share my feelings, to talk about Drake. I shudder again, so grateful I kept my mouth shut.
“No,” I say. “I said I wouldn’t, and I didn’t.”
He lifts me up, and I wrap my legs around his waist, not caring who sees, not caring about anything except this moment.
“I’m so happy. I thought I lost you, Harlow Santos. I love you so much,” he says against my hair. “I can’t wait to spend forever with you. Every day. Every moment. I want all of it.”
“I can’t wait either,” I whisper. I pull back, looking into his eyes. “And I love you too.”
Drake goes still. “Say that again.”
“I love you too,” I repeat, and the words feel right. They feel true.
“That’s the first time,” he says, his voice rough with emotion. “The first time you’ve said them to me.”
“Well, you’d better get used to hearing them because I’m going to say them a whole lot more. Sorry it took me so long. I mean, you can’t blame me for having trouble trusting people,” I tell him. “And with good reason.” I widen my eyes.
“You can trust me with anything,” he tells me. “In time, you’ll come to realize that. I’ll spend every day proving it to you if I have to.”
“I already know.” I give him a smile. “I already do trust you, Drake. I trust you with my heart, and I’ve never given that away before. You have it.”