Chapter 39
“How is it possible that there’s been no sign of her?” Colt asked. He was trying his best to keep his voice calm and even as the security team reported in on their search for Chloe, but his words vibrated with fury.
One of the guys paled. “It’s like she just disappeared.”
“Between her and Damien, you should be able to find something,” Ronan bit out.
“I’m sorry, sir,” the guy said with a dip of his head.
I pushed to my feet from the living room couch. Dash moved as if to spot me, and I fought the urge to snap at him. It had been over a week since my attack, and even though the majority of my strength had returned, they were still treating me as if I were made of the most delicate glass.
The guys would touch me with gentle caresses or soft kisses, but that was it. Every time I tried to take it further, they completely shut me down. I was annoyed, sexually frustrated, and about to snap at the next person who told me to lie down and rest.
I pinned Dash with a stare and then turned to the security team. “Thank you for all you’re doing. I know it’s not exactly an easy task.”
The guard’s expression gentled as he looked at me. “We’ll do anything we can to help. We just wish we were having more luck.”
Declan sighed as he leaned back in his chair. “The Assembly has an alert out for her. All the clans are supposed to be looking.”
Trace scoffed. “Like the dragons and vamps would actually help. The vamps are probably the ones harboring her.”
He had a point. In all likelihood, Alister Laurent had squirreled Damien and Chloe away somewhere we’d never find them.
Colt jerked his chin at the guards. “That’s all. Make sure we have enough reinforcements to continue the extra patrols.”
The guys weren’t taking any chances with my safety, especially since we didn’t have the first clue what Chloe had turned into.
The lead guard bowed his head in Colt’s direction and led his team toward the door.
Once they were gone, Colt turned toward Dash. “Anything new?”
Dash’s expression was pained. “Nothing concrete. I found some extremely old reports of dark ones attacking villages. I’m trying to discern if it was shadow demons or this kind of hybrid we think Chloe has turned into.”
“Did you send that to The Assembly?” Ronan asked.
“Of course.”
The Assembly hadn’t been convinced of what Chloe had turned into. While Saoirse and Delphine believed us, having seen my recovering wounds, the rest were skeptical at best. And Chloe’s parents were putting extreme pressure on them, saying their daughter had likely been kidnapped.
The guys continued their back and forth, the conversation taking on a bickering air. It was too much for me, so I crossed toward the back door.
“Where are you going?” Trace barked.
I stopped, slowly turning around and pinning him with a withering stare. “I’m going to get some air.”
“I’ll go with you.” He started to move in my direction.
“No.”
Trace’s steps faltered. “No?”
“That’s right. A two-letter word that means cease what you are doing and do not pass go.”
He frowned at me as if this didn’t compute.
I sighed. “I love you all, but you’re driving me mad. I just need a few minutes without someone hovering.”
Instantly, the guys all took on a guilty look.
I was an ass. They hovered because they cared. But right now, I just needed to breathe. So instead of assuaging their guilt, I headed for the back door and into the chilly sunshine.
Breathing in the fresh sea air, I walked further toward the pool and grounds.
“Where’s your five-man security detail?”
I jolted at Cillian’s voice. I hadn’t seen him there, but it was no surprise. He lay on one of the pool loungers, facing away from the house. His eyes were closed, face tipped up to the sun and hands laced behind his head.
“How did you know it was me?”
“You have a distinct scent.”
“Oh,” I mumbled.
“Don’t be weirded out. My dragon isn’t interested in you like that.”
I lowered myself to the lounger next to his. “Your dragon tells you when it, uh, likes someone?”
Cillian chuckled, his eyes opening. “I don’t like people, Princess. I’m not five.”
My cheeks heated. “You know what I mean.”
His lips twitched. “My dragon has a strong, visceral reaction when I meet a woman who could be a potential mate. If it were my true mate, it would be even more…extreme.”
Curiosity pricked at me, and I rested my elbows on my knees. “Extreme how?”
Cillian shrugged. “It would be compulsive. I wouldn’t be able to stop it. The need to keep her safe, to make sure she had everything she could possibly need, would be all-consuming. And the call to claim her…it would be torture.”
His words swirled in my mind as I thought back to the twins’ past behavior. “That makes me understand Declan and Ronan a bit better.”
Cillian shook his head. “They need to do a better job of explaining things to you, of preparing you.”
I huffed out a breath. “They’d rather lock me away in a tower somewhere.”
He grunted. “Dumb fucking move. They should make you a weapon.”
I stilled at that. I’d tried to get back to training all week, but the guys had flat-out refused. No hand-to-hand. No magic. Nothing.
“I don’t know that I want to be a weapon, but I do want to know how to protect myself.”
Cillian eyed me for a moment and then sat up. He stood, grabbing my hand and tugging me up. “Come on, Princess.”
“Where are we going?”
He shot me a mischievous grin. “I’m going to train you.”