Chapter 18 Felix #2
“Freddy scurried up my leg into my coat pocket, because I had some more cookie for him there, in case he was pesky on the walk here.” Wren shifted against his restraints.
“I was going to shout out for you guys, then I saw your freaky doll thing at the reception desk. I didn’t know you’d fucking threaten me with a knife and tie me to a chair just for stopping by and saying hey.
Else I wouldn’t have come.” His voice turned bitter.
“Don’t you all have work to be doing, like, say, renovating the hotel? ”
Seb’s eyes narrowed. “Yes, indeed.”
I leaned closer to Priya and whispered, “Do we think we can let him go now?”
Before she could answer, Theo knocked and entered. “Flynn’s checked all the camera feeds. Freddy let him into the hotel. The front door wasn’t secured properly.”
Kit would be fuming if he was here. The front door should have been triple-locked, with the secondary bolt engaged. The thought of his scowl reminded me all over again that he wasn’t here. That we still had no idea where he was or what had happened to him.
At least Wren had nothing to do with it. Seemingly.
Seb’s expression turned thunderous. “We’ll have to review security protocols.”
Wren blinked at Theo, recognition dawning across his features. “Hey, aren’t you a cop? I have a serious complaint to make against these guys!”
Rory snorted. “Good luck with that, mate.”
“Well, this turned out to be rather a hilarious misunderstanding, didn’t it?” Priya said brightly, clapping her hands together as if we’d all been playing a delightful game instead of traumatising an innocent barista.
Wren looked distinctly unamused.
“I could make you a lovely cup of tea?” Priya offered hopefully. “Earl Grey? Chamomile?”
“I need to get back to work,” Wren said flatly.
Seb produced a knife from somewhere and sliced through the zip ties with one swift movement. Wren rubbed his wrists, red marks circling where the zip ties had bitten in, shooting dark looks at all of us.
“Don’t expect any more free upgrades after this,” he said, standing and straightening his coat.
Rory had the audacity to groan.
“And don’t let Freddy come to Fat Cat’s without you again.” He paused, studying the zombie ferret nestled in Rory’s arms. Freddy’s yellow eyes glowed faintly in the harsh fluorescent light, patches of grey bone visible through his matted fur. “What… what is his deal, by the way?”
“What?” Rory clutched Freddy closer to his chest, defensive.
Wren opened his mouth, then shook his head. “Never mind.”
He headed for the door, movements fierce with anger.
“I’ll walk you out,” I said quickly, wondering if our friendship would survive this complete disaster. The others thankfully let us walk alone, though I could feel eyes tracking our movement down the corridor.
My trainers squeaked against the polished floor as we descended the stairs. When we reached the lobby, I tried to salvage what I could.
“I’m so sorry. They’re all so paranoid. We have, um… expensive equipment here, and nobody else is allowed on site.”
Wren laughed, the sound hollow and bitter. “Sure, Felix. Suuuuure.”
“What?!”
He shook his head, something sad flickering across his features. “We still on to meet later this week?”
My heart sank. With Kit missing, there was absolutely no way I’d be able to focus on anything else. But I couldn’t exactly explain that without raising more questions.
“Um, possibly.”
At the door, Wren took my arm, his fingers gentle despite everything that had just happened. His expression shifted to something approaching concern.
“Felix, you know you can ring me at any time, for any reason, right?”
The weight behind his words made me wonder if Emma had been talking to him. It would make sense—they worked together at Fat Cat’s. Had she told him about her suspicions? That everything Priya had told her was a lie?
I forced a laugh, trying to brush off the moment. “Sure!”
But all I wanted was for Wren to leave so I could get back to the basement. Back to the cameras and the searches and the horrible, gnawing fear that Kit was somewhere out there, hurt or worse, while we’d been playing kidnapping games and making everything worse.
The door clicked shut behind him, and I paused there for a moment, staring at the brass handle. Dolly watched me from her place behind the reception desk, her painted glass eyes offering no comfort.
I turned to her and sighed heavily. “Well, that was fun, wasn’t it, Dolly?”
Someone cleared their throat behind me. I spun round to find Theo leaning against the doorframe, his expression uncharacteristically gentle.
“I just wanted to check if you’re okay.”
I squirmed under his scrutiny, heat creeping up my neck. “Right. Yeah, I think Wren will be okay…”
“Not because of Wren, Felix.” Theo’s dark eyes held mine with an intensity that made my heart pound. Too meaningful. Too knowing.
“What do you mean?” I said stupidly.
Theo looked bemused. “Please remember I’m a telepath.”
“I thought you didn’t listen to our thoughts!”
“Kit’s very loud thoughts about you have been rather hard to ignore for the last two years.”
Ah. Yes. That would do it.
I must have been grimacing because he stepped closer, his voice softening. “I can only imagine how hard this is for you. If Rory was missing…”
“We’re not like you and Rory,” I accidentally snapped, the words tumbling out before I could stop them. “We don’t have a bond. Not… not yet. So it’s not the same!”
Guilt seeped through me. I shouldn’t be taking this out on Theo.
But if Kit and I were properly bonded, maybe I’d be able to sense where he was.
Maybe I’d know if he was hurt, if he was alive, if he was thinking of me.
Instead, I had nothing but this gnawing emptiness and the terrible certainty that something was wrong.
Theo, who had clearly read every panicked thought racing through my head, reached out and touched my arm. “Listen, it doesn’t work quite like that,” he said quietly. “The only difference would be that you’d be in incredible pain right now.”
My throat tightened. “But I am in incredible pain.” The words came out as a whisper.
The vise around my ribs squeezed tighter, and I pressed a hand to my chest, trying to ease the ache that had been building since yesterday morning.
Every breath felt laboured, every heartbeat a reminder that Kit’s heart might have stopped beating altogether.
Theo very tentatively pulled me into a hug. His arms were warm and solid, and for a moment I let myself lean into the comfort of another person’s presence.
“We’re going to do everything we can to find him,” Theo murmured against my hair. “Kit’s strong. He’s a trained soldier, Felix. He’ll be fighting tooth and nail to get back to you. He’ll be thinking about you every second you’re apart.”
I nodded against his shoulder, not trusting my voice.
When we pulled apart, I forced myself to meet his gaze to ask, “What’s it like? Being bonded to a wolf?”
Theo’s lips twitched up into a smile as he winked at me. “Incredibly hard work.”
“But that’s just Rory, though.”
“Yes,” Theo said, his grin widening. “I suspect so.” He paused, his expression turning serious again. “But Felix… when you do get Kit back, you’ll understand that the pain of separation is nothing compared to the joy of being completely, utterly known by someone who loves every part of you.”
I nodded, and for a moment I let myself imagine it—Kit coming home, Kit safe, Kit and I finally both brave enough to reach for what we wanted. The thought hurt almost as much as his absence, but it was a different kind of pain. One worth holding onto.