Page 34 of Tempting Shadowed Hearts
The sound of my balcony door sliding open wakes me. I hadn’t even realized I’d fallen asleep. Flying out of my bed, I head for the living room. Who would dare come in here without my permission?
I walk down the hall, preparing for a fight, but I stop dead in my tracks. Standing before me is the woman who hasn’t left my mind. She’s in her harpy form with what looks like silver lightning streaks spread across her exposed skin. Her platinum blonde hair perfectly matches the feathers of her wings, which are currently wrapped around something in her arms. I take a step closer and realize that it’s actually a woman curled up against her chest, covered in a blanket.
My heart leaps into my throat. “What are you doing here?”
“Let’s wait for Avyanna,” she says.
At the mention of my mimic, my heart skips a few beats. “Who’s that in your arms?”
“Put two and two together, Adrestia. I know you can.”
I purse my lips. “Why did you bring the gorgon here?”
The woman in question shifts in Vaelyn’s arms. “Believe it or not, this is the safest place for me right now. I want to be here just as much as you want me here.”
“I have no problem—” I begin, but another figure walks in through the front door that apparently didn’t get closed when I came in earlier.
The hair on the back of my neck stands, and I prepare for the worst. When the person steps into the light, I come face-to-face with… myself? What the fuck?
Vaelyn huffs out a laugh. “It’s just Avyanna.”
My front door slams shut, and the woman parading as me steps forward. Every single piece of her looks just like me, all except one single thing—an all too familiar beauty mark on her cheek. As I look her over, the woman slowly starts to change, her features becoming ones I know like the back of my hand.
I shake my head. “Why did you choose me?”
Avyanna shrugs. “No one would question your walking into your own building. I’ve never been here, so that would be a little suspicious, especially not being chaperoned by someone who does live here.”
“That’s fair,” I say. “Can someone please tell me what you’re all doing here?”
A shimmer flashes over Vaelyn, bringing her back to her human form. She eyes me as she folds herself up on the couch with the gorgon still in her lap. It’s an interesting sight, seeing as Vaelyn is several inches shorter than the gorgon.
The gorgon adjusts herself in Vaelyn’s arms, and Avyanna takes a seat beside them, placing a hand on the gorgon over the blanket. There’s a heavy tension hanging around them. What the hell happened between the time we all left that alley and now?
I take a seat in the chair across from them, placing my elbows on my knees. My eyes drift over each of them, starting with Avyanna. Her eyes shift from me to the door every so often while she rubs small circles with her fingers over the blanket covering the gorgon. She’s trying to portray a calm exterior, but those ice-blue eyes swirl with a mix of emotions I know how to read all too well. Being here is making her uncomfortable.
Beside her, Vaelyn is glaring daggers at me. Her stormy grey eyes haven’t left me since she walked in. And she’s gripping onto the gorgon like her life depends on it. Why?
Speaking of the woman in Vaelyn’s lap, she’s curled up so tightly that I’m not sure she’ll be climbing out anytime soon. Avie looked pretty protective of the gorgon when we were in the alley, so I wonder why she’s attached to my harpy now.
We sit in silence for a few more moments before I’ve had enough. “Someone tell me what the fuck happened.”
Avyanna’s jaw clenches. “We needed somewhere safe to bring Roxi after she was abducted off the street and raped by three of her father’s guards. This is where Vaelyn suggested we come. We suspect the guards have been following us since she left, so I didn’t want to go back to my apartment.”
“Why the hell does her father have guards?” I ask.
Avyanna scoffs, while Roxi shifts in Vaelyn’s arms so she can face me. “He hired them after I was born—because of what I am. Who knows if he was protecting me from the world or if he was protecting the world from me, though. When he died a few decades ago, the guards just stayed. They’ve pretty much left me alone until last night. That’s when Avyanna got me out of there.”
“That’s strange,” I say. “I’m sorry for what’s happened to you. We should look into these men and figure out what their prerogative is with you, why they’re trying to find you when your father isn’t even technically employing them any longer.”
“Honestly, I’m really fucking tired right now and would love to get some sleep,” Roxi says with a yawn.
“I have a guest bedroom in the back with a bathroom attached. You’re welcome to use those while you’re here,” I say.
Vaelyn stands with Roxi still in her arms. “I’ll get her settled back there. I’m quite tired myself.”
Avyanna moves to follow, but Vaelyn shakes her head, so Avyanna sits back down. My mimic crosses her arms over her chest and sits back. I mirror her movements, pursing my lips because I’m not even sure what to say to her.
“Our dear friend Alaric sends his regards,” she finally says.
