Page 3 of Wicked Ties
My mother snuggled in next to my father and looped her arm around his back and leaned her head on his shoulder. “See? I told you I was telling you the truth.”
I sat there speechless, unable to say a word. Ophelia walked by with a plate of steaming veggies in her hand. “Dude, any of us would give a left tit for parents like that. Just accept it and let’s keep it rolling.”
Just as the step-monster reached the front door, Grayson sauntered through. He stopped and watched her walk out the door. Once she was gone, he shook his head and walked farther into the room. His hair was windblown, and when he peered at me with those wide mahogany eyes, I knew something was wrong.
I popped to my feet. “Grayson, what are you doing here?”
“There’s a problem with Tilly . . . and Maze. We gotta get going.” He walked around the table, examining everything Ophelia had laid out.
My heart leapt in my chest. “What happened?”
He met my eye. “All I know is she’s in trouble . . .”
My eyes shot to Beckett’s. “Portal, now.”
Grayson pulled out his phone and flashed the screen to Beckett. “Oi, Maze sent me the location.”
Beckett gave him a single nod. Then he threw his arm out and a portal opened up right beside the table. Blue magic swirled within the portal, and I headed toward it. The sound of chairs scraping the floor drew my attention and I paused, looking at the rest of the crew over my shoulder as they all rose to their feet.
“I can handle this.”
Zinnia gave me a half smile and wound her thick midnight hair into a messy bun on top of her head. “Yeah, but the beauty of this is you don’t have to. We’re here to back you up.”
Ophelia grabbed two knives off the table and slid them into the black apron around her waist. “So many pockets.”
I turned for the portal and felt a strong wave of magic at my back while the rest of them followed me. Beckett moved to my side, and we walked through his swirling blue magic. Gone were the days of his turbulent rides. This was like walking through warm bath water, calm, and secure. A moment later we popped out in a dark alley. Freezing rain poured down on me like tiny blocks of ice that stung my skin. I squinted my eyes, looking deeper into the alley, when a flash of lightning lit up the whole scene. Tilly hunched over, leaning against the wall like she was injured or incapacitated in some way. A huge man stood before her with his hand wrapped in her long soaking curls. He yanked her hair back, tilting her head at a painful angle. Fury raged within me, and my magic pooled in the palms of my hands. Behind me, I felt the power rolling through my group of friends.
“O, give me a knife.” Zinnia snapped her fingers, motioning to her sister for a weapon.
I took a step forward, ready to rip his head off, then I froze. She smiled up at him. Her eyes went from slow and dull to sharp and calculating. The man stiffened for a second and his face fell into confusion. His brows furrowed and he pursed his lips. When he gave her head another sharp yank, I felt everyone stiffen behind me. I held my hand up, stopping them.
Tilly struck without a hint of what was to come. She shoved her arm forward. The palm of her hand struck him right in his sternum. A loud cracking sound filled the dark alley, and the guy soared backward, his body arching and twisting in midair. He landed on the hood of the car just outside the alley. The metal dented under the impact of his body. He lay there in a daze, groaning softly, pressing his hand over his chest.
The other four men ran at her all at once, reaching for her. But she was too fast. She spun and kicked one in the stomach, sending him hurtling into the brick wall. It, too, buckled under the impact, and tiny crumbles of brick fell on top of him. The other guy pulled a gun from his waist and Tilly’s fist shot forward, punching him in the thigh. His leg snapped at a weird angle and the gun went off, firing a shot into the asphalt.
Enough of this.
I held my hand out and golden magic exploded into the alley, grabbing the other two men about to attack her. I shoved them away from her, pinning them to the walls.
Ophelia whined, “Party pooper.”
Tilly spun toward me and hissed. Her chest heaved with deep breaths, and she narrowed her eyes at me.
I slowly walked into the mouth of the alley. Golden magic swirled around me, lighting up the alley like Christmas. I stopped a few feet from her. “What the hell are you doing?”
She growled and began to pace back and forth. She threw her hair out of her face and shook her arms out hard, snapping the fabric of that oversized trench coat. Maze dropped down from one of the rooftops and landed on a fire escape. His eyes locked on Tilly, and he made a show of slowly walking down each of the steps. The metal creaked as he moved, yet he said nothing to her. When his feet touched the ground, I walked up to stand next to him. The others silently spread out behind me. I knew they were setting up to keep her contained, to keep her here, where she couldn’t hurt anyone else. But the Tilly I knew wouldn’t have done this. She wouldn’t have endangered her own life. This wasn’t the Tilly I knew. This was someone else, and I missed my sister—the one with the wild smile and playful soul. I had to help her, but I didn’t know how. It was a constant ache in my chest that never ceased. This is all my fault. She followed me into this world, but I let her stay. Now, this is where we were.
“Til, you gotta talk to me.” I wanted to walk up to her, to put my arm around her shoulder the way I used to. But even I knew she could throw me through the wall with one hand if she wanted.
She stopped pacing and stared at me. Rain covered her skin and hair. Dark circles hung under her eyes, and she pressed her fingers into her cheeks like she wanted to rip them off. She growled in frustration and spun away from me again.
“I can’t help you if you don’t tell me what’s going on.” She hadn’t spoken to me since her return. I hadn’t heard her voice or her laugh in forever. “Come on, Til. Just talk to me.”
“I can’t!” Her words broke through the night. She shook her head and turned her back to us. Her whole body quaked.
“Don’t push.” Maze hissed under his breath.
“Screw that. You think you know her, but you don’t. I do.” I stepped toward her. “And she needs to start talking now.”
