Chapter 27 #2
I smiled at them, and Tammy raised her eyebrows and rolled her eyes at me.
I mouthed, “Sorry.”
I didn’t mean to be so obvious. Tammy genuinely liked Adrian and was afraid to be his one-night stand girl.
“Anna,” Torin said as a warning.
“Torin,” was all I said.
Tammy shuffled next to me. “She’s not going anywhere with you, jerk. Will you compel her the way you did to me?” she shouted.
“Tammy, he can’t compel a witch. Calm down,” I said.
She blinked and then blinked again. “Oh, I didn’t know that.”
Adrian’s eyes narrowed and aimed at Torin. “So you compelled my guest?” His voice sounded menacing.
He referred to Tammy, and it didn’t escape me how Adrian glanced at me.
“A witch, huh?” he said.
“Half witch, half werewolf,” I said. “But it changes nothing, Adrian.”
The hunter leader seemed thoughtful for a moment. Was he thinking about what to do about this new information?
“You can tell me more about the witches later, Princess,” he said and focused his gaze on Torin again.
Adrian started walking toward the Alpha, and a cold chill ran down my spine. Would a fight break out?
“Adrian, stop,” I shouted. “Torin only did it to help Tammy after the vampire’s bad compulsion.”
Adrian halted in his tracks and turned around to face Tammy. With a gentle smile, he crossed his arms and cracked his knuckles, the tension in his body easing. His eyes lingered on my best friend, softening at the edges as if silently appreciating her presence.
Tammy shrugged. “I’m okay. See? But I want Bree to be okay too.”
Adrian nodded at her and turned but didn’t advance.
“Jason.” He looked at one of the hunters.
I didn’t know what passed between the two hunters, but the hunter stepped closer to Torin and punched him in the stomach.
“You’re lucky that I didn’t punch you. It would have hurt more,” Adrian said, walking back to Tammy’s side.
But Torin didn’t even flinch. A small grunt, as if the air in his lungs had escaped his throat, and that was it.
“Tammy, Princess Breanna,” Adrian said and started walking toward the elevator, “follow me.”
The hunter leader left his men to keep Torin surrounded and threatened so he wouldn’t follow us, I guessed. But what was Adrian’s plan?
Once we were out of hearing distance, Adrian turned and looked at me.
“The train station is the closest. Jogging distance. I don’t know your plan, Princess, but I won’t be able to hold the Alpha restrained much longer without hurting him. And if he attacks one of my men, I’ll have no choice but to take the Alpha out.”
I gasped. Was he going to kill Torin if he shifted?
“I’ll leave, Adrian. I didn’t mean to bring my issues to your HQ. Thank you for having us,” I said. “But why didn’t you hurt Torin as soon as he appeared? After all, you hunt both werewolves and vampires.”
Adrian gave me his sincere smile that I remembered from the day before. Then he shook his head slightly. “Believe it or not, this Alpha has shown mercy to my men in the past, so I’m returning the favor.”
I recalled how Torin tore apart the limbs of the thugs who’d attacked me in my office in London. He’d been ruthless with them, but then again, those men meant me harm, and the hunters had always been kind to me before.
I looked at Tammy. “As much as I want you to be next to me right now, I’m not sure if it’s a good idea.
I’ll try to lose Torin for as long as it takes me to open the magic book, and then I will return to the kingdom.
I have to be back there, Tammy. The vampire Queen may show up at any point, thinking that Torin is still in the kingdom or just wanting to attack us, regardless. ”
Adrian’s eyes settled on Tammy. “Your friend will be safe here, if she wants to stay for a while. She’ll be treated nicely,” he said, and I almost rolled my eyes.
But I wanted Tammy to make her decision. I couldn’t expose Tammy’s life to such danger. It was one thing to face human hunters in a dark alley with a taser and pepper spray, but facing the vampire Queen and her silver sword was different.
Tammy embraced me, and after letting me go, said, “I know I’ll slow you down. Go now, and I’ll wait for your call when you’re ready to have me at the kingdom.”
I smiled at her, but then an unsettling feeling knotted my stomach. “You better keep her safe, Adrian.”
He smiled. Tammy had won over the hunter leader right away. He was instantly fond of her. But a disturbing thought crossed my mind. Adrian had a werewolf father and a human mother, so he was part supernatural.
“Is my best friend your mate, Adrian?”
Tammy sucked in a sharp breath, but it went wrong, and she coughed several times.
Adrian watched her with amused eyes. “Tammy is not my fated mate, Princess. But I’m attracted to her, and I like her.”
My best friend swallowed hard and then choked and coughed again. Her face was the shade of beets.
Adrian chuckled. Tammy was unusually shy around him, and Adrian was unusually gentle around her.
Maybe there was nothing to worry about, leaving her with him.
“Then who is your fated mate, hunter?” I asked.
“Bree…” Tammy looked at me with narrowed eyes. “This is a personal question,” she said in a low voice.
“I need to know if I’m leaving you here with him. I don’t want you involved in more mate drama. It’s enough that I’ve made a mess of my life.”
The last thing I wanted was for Adrian’s mate to be around and sense that Adrian liked Tammy. Then the jealous mate would make Tammy’s life miserable. And I wouldn’t let Tammy get hurt, emotionally or physically.
Adrian’s gaze darted between me and Tammy, but he kept his genuine smile on his lips. “Fair enough, Princess. I understand your concern. My fated mate is your cousin, Layla.”
I gaped at him. “No.”
He nodded. “Yes. Remember when you were younger, and you found me in the forest?”
Adrian referred to our first meeting when the hunters attacked Dad and his men at the annual winter hunt. I’d saved Layla’s life when the hunter leader pointed his arrow at her chest. He must have recognized his fated mate at that time.
What a cruel destiny.
Had Layla recognized him back as her mate? She’d never said anything about him, but why would she talk about the hunter leader when he wanted to kill her, and he was our enemy? She wouldn’t want to advertise this fact.
“Your bully cousin? That moron who tried to kill you?” Tammy looked at me as she shrieked then turned to face Adrian. “Please don’t tell me your mate is such a bad person.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. If something developed between Adrian and Tammy as they lovingly gazed at each other, it’d be very bad for Tammy.
Layla, even if she didn’t like Adrian, would attempt to harm Tammy, not only because she was my friend, but also because Tammy got the attention of Layla’s fated mate.
“This is such a mess,” I muttered, shaking my head.
“Bree, I’m fine. You have to go.” Tammy nudged me.
Adrian gave me the names of the streets that would lead me to the train station and pointed to the back door of the apartment building.
“It’ll be easier if you’re the next Queen,” Adrian said, smiling. “Looking forward to working with you in the future.”
I smiled back at him. Had I made an ally of the kingdom’s number two enemy?
“I’ll call you, Tammy,” I said and glanced at the hunter. “And somehow I have the feeling we’ll be seeing each other again, Adrian.”
I’d discovered that some fates are knotted together even when I did my best to untie them. There was a purpose behind everything that had happened until now, and I had to follow the clues to their final destination.
I clasped the straps of my backpack as if to reassure myself that the two magic books were still there. Then I made a mad dash toward the exit. I ran on the sidewalks, only slowing down to read the street names, and finally arrived at the train platform.
But I couldn’t slow down my breathing. My heart felt like it was shrinking to a miniature size. The goose bumps on my neck pricked, and I frantically looked around the tracks.
There could be other supernaturals around here, minding their own business, and I couldn’t see Torin anywhere.
I crossed my fingers that Adrian would hold Torin hostage until I boarded the train.