Chapter Four
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DERMOT WANTED TO FIX things with Bastien, but he wasn’t sure how to do it or even if he could.
He’d told Bastien that he believed his sister had willingly gone back to Parrish, and while he still believed that was a possibility, he could admit, at least to himself, that there was a chance that Celeste hadn’t done that.
With Rose being gone, there were two possibilities.
Either Celeste had used Rose, or Rose had used Celeste.
Dermot didn’t want to believe that Rose was involved because he could see himself in her.
Once, he’d been in her position, too. He’d been on the run all alone, hunted by Kudlaks.
He’d only survived because he’d found a group of people who’d taken him in and protected him.
In turn, he protected them, too, but even that hadn’t been enough.
It was why, when they heard about the village and clan, they’d decided to come.
They’d known it would make it easier for them to survive, and they’d been right.
Dermot and the other Vila had been able to stop running. Of course, Parrish was still out there, threatening all of them, but they were able to put down roots. As soon as Parrish was dealt with, they could focus on their futures.
But Parrish wouldn’t be dealt with if they couldn’t get Celeste back. He would use her magic to ensure he stayed free and strong, and he might even win the fight against the clan.
Dermot couldn’t allow that to happen. This was his home now, and he would fight to keep it. He’d already lost too much. He wasn’t losing his new clan and his home.
Not again.
It didn’t really matter what Celeste wanted or didn’t want, or what she’d done or had done to her.
He probably shouldn’t have trusted Rose, but it was too late for that now, and there was only one solution to this mess.
Celeste needed to come back, and Dermot would work with Bastien to ensure she did.
He didn’t even care if she was working with Parrish or not, although if she was, it would make things harder.
But she’d been hurt by Parrish many times.
Bastien didn’t seem to believe that she would go back willingly, and even though Dermot’s first instinct had been to believe that she would, he couldn’t say that he knew Celeste better than her brother.
He didn’t know her at all. The only thing he knew about her was that she was bonded to Parrish, but now that he’d met his mate, he had an insight into that, too.
Even though Bastien wasn’t talking to him or even looking at him, Dermot couldn’t deny that he felt drawn toward him.
He wouldn’t say that if Bastien asked him to do something, he’d do it without question, but they weren’t bonded yet, and Bastien wasn’t Parrish.
It was too easy to imagine how charming Parrish had been when he’d first met Celeste.
He probably couldn’t believe his good luck, having a Vila as a mate.
He’d known that he couldn’t let Celeste escape, which meant he’d probably put everything he had into seducing her.
He’d known he needed to get her away from her family.
Once he had, she’d lost her support system, and it had been easier for him to use her.
Once they were bonded, especially, there had been no way out for her.
Dermot already felt like there was no way out for him, and he and Bastien had barely spoken.
Their bond was in its infancy, and Dermot wasn’t even thinking about deepening it, but the thought of Bastien being out there somewhere made his skin buzz.
He wanted to find his mate and press against him, reassure him that everything would be okay.
“The council wants to be involved,” Rowan said, getting Dermot’s attention.
Dermot blinked. He probably should’ve been paying more attention to what was happening around him, but it wasn’t easy when his thoughts were busy with questions.
Was Bastien ever going to forgive him? He suspected that he might, but only after they found his sister.
That was one more reason to get Celeste back, wasn’t it?
“We can’t wait for them to get here,” Bastien argued. “You know that Parrish is hurting her right now. He might even kill her.”
“He won’t,” Dermot said.
Everyone turned to look at him. He felt his cheeks flush again, but that was his fault for losing track of the conversation.
His priority, as odd as it sounded, was Bastien.
Dermot had a hard time believing it because they’d met only a few days ago, but apparently, being his mate meant that Dermot’s world now rotated around Bastien, and since Celeste was part of Bastien’s world, she was part of Dermot’s world, too.
Bastien glared. “You can’t know that.”
“Parrish might be a monster, but he’s smart. Just ask Rowan. He’s been dealing with the man for a long time.”
“A long time is an understatement. He decimated my birth clan,” Rowan said. He sounded casual, but Dermot knew the pain that hid inside those words. He still felt that same pain himself.
“I heard about the Harper clan,” Bastien murmured.
“I don’t advertise it, although a lot of people do know about it. It’s why Parrish has been so focused on this village and clan. He wants to kill me, too, so he’ll be able to boast that he wiped out the entire Harper clan.”
“Don’t forget that you have a cousin,” Clay said before sipping on his coffee.
Rowan shook his head. “If Parrish doesn’t already know about Emory, I hope he never finds out. Emory’s safe.”
It was the first time Dermot had heard about this Emory. “He’s not part of our clan,” he said.
“No, he’s not. He lives with the Whitedell pride, and I want things to continue that way. He has a mate and children. I won’t involve him in this.”
“He’s already involved,” Clay said. “And through him, the pride is, too. The pride is our best opportunity to win this fight, Rowan. They know that once Parrish is done with you, he’ll turn his attention to Emory, and they don’t want that to happen.
Bastien isn’t wrong when he says that if we involve the council, it’s going to take too long, but what about involving the pride?
They sent us people last time, and it was fast. Some of the pride members are council members, right? ”
“I can’t ask them to do us a personal favor,” Rowan said.
“Why not? It is personal.”
Dermot wasn’t involved in this conversation, and he was glad he wasn’t.
He understood Rowan’s point of view, but also Clay’s.
The two of them could bicker for a few minutes.
Dermot was sure they’d figure things out in the end because they always did.
In the meantime, maybe he could try figuring things out with his own mate.
He moved closer to Bastien. His mate wasn’t paying attention. He was staring down at his cup of coffee, a frown on his face, clearly thinking about his sister. Dermot needed to apologize.
He just wasn’t sure that Bastien would accept that apology.
Maybe not, but Dermot had to try. He had to show Bastien that he wasn’t as much of an idiot as he’d led him to believe.
“The council just wants to know what we’re dealing with before doing anything,” Rowan was saying.
“And I agree. We need to know what we’re walking into, and since I want Parrish to die, spying on him and his people will be the easiest way to get rid of him.
The council wants to get rid of Parrish as much as I do.
They know he’s a danger to everyone he comes in contact with. ”
“Are you saying they’re going to send someone to kill him?
” Dermot asked, temporarily distracted. He wanted that.
Some people would think him callous, but he’d seen too much death and lost too many people.
Most of them hadn’t been killed by Parrish, but Parrish had terrorized Dermot and the rest of the Vila for decades.
His name was whispered in the darkness, as if there was a chance he might hear.
He was the bogeyman, except that he was very real.
Rowan nodded curtly. “They do want to send someone to kill him. Him having Celeste is making things a little more complicated, though.”
“Because he can use her magic to defend himself.”
“And he might kill her if we get too close,” Bastien snapped. “But it’s not like you care about that, do you? You believe that she joined him because she wanted to.”
Dermot swallowed. Now definitely wasn’t the time to try to talk to Bastien, but when else was Dermot supposed to do it?
As soon as the council got involved, everyone would be too distracted and focused on getting Celeste back, especially Bastien.
No, if Dermot wanted a chance to explain himself, he needed to take it now.
* * * *
BASTIEN DIDN’T KNOW what was going on in Dermot’s mind.
Just an hour ago, he’d told Bastien that he believed Celeste had left because she wanted to be with Parrish and that she’d dragged Rose along with her.
Now, he sounded like he wanted to get Celeste back.
Why did he care? Was it only because of the bond he shared with Bastien?
Or maybe he just wanted Celeste away from Parrish so Parrish couldn’t use her.
If Bastien had to guess, Dermot didn’t care about helping Celeste.
He just cared about helping his clan, and it would be easier to do that if Celeste wasn’t with Parrish.
Bastien couldn’t even blame him for that.
Of course Dermot cared more about his clan and the people he considered family than he did about Bastien’s sister.
Even though he and Bastien were mates, they didn’t know each other.
From the way things were going, they might never get to know each other.
Bastien wasn’t sure he could forgive Dermot for what he thought of Celeste, at least not right now.
He didn’t even want to talk to his mate.