are evil,” Polo interjects softly, and I spin towards him, vitriol spewing from my eyes.
“No,” I agree with a glare. “But it was still a Blood who killed my father.”
Without giving Nana or the others a chance to stop me, I shove my feet into a pair of shoes, sans socks, and storm out of the house.
Chapter 28
I don’t know where to go.
Hell, I don’t even know where I want to go. My body feels like an orchestra, but every musician is brutalizing their instruments with their bows. There’s no harmonious music. It’s simply…chaos. Pure and absolute and dissonant chaos. The instruments don’t play music; they scream their souls to anyone who will listen. Every note is brutal and fierce and unrelenting.
I feel irrevocably altered, and I can’t tell up from down. Left from right. My entire world is shaking on its axis, and I’m helpless to keep my feet planted. I quake and tremble, but it’s like an earthquake is rippling just beneath the ground, threatening to throw me off-balance.
Christian, Gabriel, and Polo…
I know that they claimed they never killed anyone, that all of their victims were willing, but a niggle of doubt echoes in my mind that doesn’t just whisper at me…it screams. And I can’t help but think that the scream sounds an awful lot like a young girl being sacrificed on an altar.
Fuck.
I begin to walk aimlessly down the driveway, the wind whipping at my bare arms. It rained last night, and numerous puddles line the sidewalk, which I stealthily attempt to avoid. There’s a spell I can perform that can warm my frigid body up, but I don’t have the energy or mental capacity to do it. I just feel…tired. So incredibly tired, the exhaustion permeating my mind and body, weighing me down.
My phone in my sweatpants threatens to burn a whole in my pocket. I try to resist, I honestly do, but I can’t stop myself from taking the phone out and dialing Mom’s number. Did she know? I would imagine that she did, considering that Nana is her mother. Why didn’t she tell me? I know that history is naturally horrid, dripping with secrets and lies and deceit, but I never expected this.
When Mom’s voicemails pops up, I all but growl, ending the call and shoving my cracked phone back into my pocket much harder than necessary. Emotions rampage through me, battling and warring, but I have no idea which one will win. I just want to…want to what? I don’t even know anymore.
Escape?
Run?
Cry?
Do I want my mommy to comfort me and tell me everything is going to be all right?
I could scoff with how ridiculous I’m acting. It’s not like it was them who murdered my father, just their species. And honestly, it’s not like I even know the man. He’s just someone who got my mother pregnant…and then died, leaving me alone with a woman who despises me. But fuck, hearing the triplets confess to being Bloods opened up old wounds, and suddenly, I’m grieving a dad I never met all over again.
Quickening my pace, I realize I’ve gone in the opposite direction of the school and am coming up to the downtown area. Only then do I slow my pace, perusing the various storefronts nestled on a cobblestone street lined with artificial trees and benches. There’s everything from a toy shop to an antique store to a cozy restaurant. For the first time since I heard the news about the triplets, my lips twitch in the beginnings of a smile as a memory assaults me. But unlike all of the others, this one doesn’t leave a sour taste in my mouth or suck the air from my lungs.
“Come out, come out, wherever you are!” Lucas’s cold voice wafted to me, chasing away whatever remaining warmth I felt. I tugged my arms tighter around my chest as I peeked over the top of the garbage can I was hiding behind. I could hear Cassian’s jovial laugh followed by Karsyn’s holler, and Elias’s slow, almost lazy chuckle. But despite hearing them, I couldn’t see them, and that only amplified my fear.
“Why are you hiding?” I jumped ten feet in the air, straightening from my crouch to see a tall, handsome man standing behind me. He appeared to be maybe ten years older than me in his early twenties, with honey-blond hair, vibrant green eyes, and a crooked grin. “Are you okay?” The smile slipped from his face as he took in my