note.
I think the Triune are compromised and aren’t really parts of the goddess.
All of their eyes grew as wide as saucers.
Tom’s mouth opened and closed a few times with no sound coming out.
Chelle huffed. “You know I could just share your thoughts with them, right? It’s much faster and more efficient than writing things down. I can open communication that will only be heard between you all.”
I sighed. “Yes, please. If I’d known you could do that, I would have just asked for that.”
She laughed. “You have much to learn about me, child.”
There was a pressure in my head and then I could hear all of the guys’ thoughts at once.
“Whoa,” I said aloud.
They all silenced.
“No more talking out loud,” I said telepathically and they all nodded their agreement.
We all sat on the ground in a circle so we could see each other easier.
“Why do you think they’re compromised?” Caleb asked.
“If they really are aspects of the goddess, how did they get knocked out by the Fae or vampires that night?” I asked. “And how did they not know Alfred was involved in the scheme? How did they not feel the vampires and Fae cross the border? Why did they let Alfred come here at all? Everyone knows he is a scumbag.”
“Lots of good points,” Gary grumbled.
“If they are compromised, why keep the charade up?” Nick asked.
“Maybe they’re waiting for something,” I suggested.
“Or someone,” Caleb said.
All of us sat in silence and stared at our laps.
“We need to be on our toes, just in case something happens and we need to leave,” Nick said. “Let’s pack emergency bags and keep them under our beds so we can grab them and leave.”
“Right, but we also have to keep the others in the dark that we think something is up. We don’t know who we can and can’t trust,” I reminded them.
“Not even Thornton,” Gary said.
I hated it, but I nodded my agreement.
“Where would we even go?” Caleb asked.
“I have a place,” Nick said.
We all looked at him in disbelief.
“You do?” I asked.
He rubbed the back of his neck nervously. “I wanted to find a place to take you that none of the others would find if you needed a break from the pack. It seemed like more and more you were stressed out and I thought a weekend away would do you good. I found a place that is in a free territory and not visited by anyone with magic often.”
“When did you find this?” Gary asked.
“Two months ago,” Nick answered.
My mouth dropped open. “That day you went to buy my birthday present?” I guessed. Thinking about my birthday made me realize we hadn’t celebrated his and I hadn’t given him his present. I’d left it at the house. I was a terrible friend.
He nodded.
“Okay, and what about cars? Whose are we going to use?” Tom asked.
“Yours is faster,” Nick said. “And gets better gas mileage.”
“And will fit everyone,” I added.
They continued making plans and although it should have made me feel better, it just made me sad.
I hoped that for once my feelings would not come to fruition and we could enjoy our time at Moon Academy a bit longer.
We went down for dinner and I sat with a group of guys I hadn’t talked to much yet. They were some of the largest guys, the most intimidating-looking, and I rarely ever heard them talk. Two of them were shifters and three were Fae.
“Can I sit with you?” I asked them with a smile.
They looked at each other and then the largest shifter waved his hand at the empty spots.
I sat and ate a spoonful of mashed potatoes before looking at them. They were all silently eating. “You guys don’t talk much,” I said softly. “Is there a reason?”
The Fae next to me touched his throat and then shook his head.
“Mute?” I asked in a whisper.
They all nodded.
Whoa.
“I had no idea. Is that why you keep to yourselves?”
One of them made a motion with his hand, shaking it back and forth.
“Sort of? Is the other part that most of the others are loud and obnoxious?” I asked with a smirk. “Because I could totally get used to being away from that.”
They smirked and nodded.
“Do you guys use sign language or anything?” I asked as I cut a piece of chicken up.
One of them nodded, but two others shook their heads. The others didn’t respond.
“Chelle?” I called softly. Thankfully, I didn’t need to yell for her since we were connected.
She jumped