But he did. Somebody was trying to get him out of wherever he was, so at least there’s that. Even still, it’s nearly impossible to just continue sitting here and do nothing. What if he gets hurt before I have the chance to try to make things right between us? “He wanted to come here. Come get me. I told him no. To stay there and find somewhere safe.”
A heavy hand curls around my shoulder. “Which was the right thing to say, Chloe. As much as I know this has been . . . tough on the two of you, he’s desperately needed there.”
There is so much blood on the TV. So much pain and suffering.
“What if—”
“He’ll be fine.” Coming from Karl, it sounds like it’s the promised truth. “You think he’s going to let somebody take him down now that he knows you’re coming home? Please. He’s got a fire under his ass now. Kuergal is going to turn into the happiest place in all the worlds. Just you wait and see.”
Jonah’s in a warzone. A freaking warzone, risking his life so he can help people. And here I am, like a coward, in Alaska, with blonde hair and a fake name, shirking her duties, and I have never, ever felt more worthless in my life.
Something in me hardens. That girl? That stupid, pointless, coward of a girl? She’s gone. Dead.
I will never, ever be her again.
I’m seconds out of the bathroom, towel around my wet hair, when Will comes to tell me I need to come out to the living room. Cameron and Karl are already out there, talking to the Elvin nurse practitioner that patched me up the other day.
Thank goodness I’ve been wearing sweats to bed.
“It’s bad,” Erik is saying. “People are scared. Nobody knows what to do. There’s talk of splitting up the colonies, at least until things die down. We thought this was over, but it’s starting anew.”
Karl’s brows are drawn down, like he’s caught between being pissed and worried. Cameron’s obviously concerned, too, but his frown attempts to hide behind his beard. “There’s safety in numbers, Erik. I think it’s best to stay put.”
I pull the towel off and comb my fingers through my hair. “What are you guys talking about? What colonies?”
There’s a strange look in Erik’s eyes when he regards me. When he was sewing me up, or helping me through alcohol poisoning, he’d been cool and professional. Now, there’s a bit of fear and distrust mixed in with concern. “Can we truly trust her?” he asks Cameron. And then, motioning toward Karl, “Them? Their sort isn’t known for being sympathetic to us, after all.”
Both Karl and I bristle. “Look,” Karl bites out. “You can’t hold any of this against Chloe or me. It’s not like we were aware of the situation.”
This angers Erik, who flushes red under his brown skin. “Your people chose to ignore our plights for years. Pardon me if I’m not too eager to lay my faith in a group of people who believe I’m an abomination and treat me worse than the dirt on their shoes.”
Whoa. “I don’t think—” I begin, but Karl’s already on this.
“If Annar knew and ignored it, then that’s definitely something that needs to be addressed.” He’s obviously trying to keep his temper in check, but his hands have curled into fists. “And I vow to you, it will be. But instead of bitching about hurt feelings, know you’ve got two high-ranking Council members who happen to also be on the Guard listening now. Neither of us will turn our backs on you.”
It’s an overly generous thing of Karl to say about me, considering I’d done just that on Annar and my loved ones back home six months prior. This promise of his only steels my resolve to be a better person.
A better Creator.
A better Chloe.
“You’re here to take the Creator home.” Erik’s sneer is ugly. “Which is all well and good, considering she’s most likely the reason this is happening!”
“What’s going on?” I try again. I mean, if the dude’s going to blame me for something, I at least deserve to know the reason why.
Will snaps his fingers. “Everyone, just shut up for a moment.” His hands form a tee for time-out. “Cheers. Let’s catch Chloe up.”
Cameron gives me a small, tired smile. “Hen, the shape shifting monsters—”
“Elders,” Karl quickly corrects.
Cameron nods. “The Elders have attacked and killed several Métis recently, including one on the outskirts of Anchorage earlier tonight. People are scared.”
Uh . . . “Métis?”
The sneer Erik gave me moments before has nothing on the one he’s angling toward me now.
“Erik,” Cameron says quietly, “do not take your anger toward Annar out on Chloe. As Karl has just explained, she is ignorant of all of this, which shouldn’t come as a surprise as our communities have made supreme efforts to keep Magical-kind just so.”
Erik gives a tight nod, and then another to me in reluctant apology.
“Hen, the Métis are what the people and families I told you about earlier—the ones like me and Molly and now Will—are called, where there is Magical blood but no powers in children from mixed unions. Many of our kind have either married into the Métis or are children of Magicals.”