Anchor of Secrets by Tessa Hale

10

I stared at the door,frozen. I had no idea how much time passed, but I couldn’t have moved if the house was on fire and I was about to go up in flames. I was a fool. So caught up in my own pain I hadn’t stopped to consider the agony of those around me, what they were living with each and every day.

My heart cracked at the knowledge Colt had left me with. I’d seen photos of his mom. He got his wild, multi-colored hair from her. God, she’d been beautiful. Even just in the pictures I’d seen, I knew she loved him with everything she had. And now, I knew it for a fact. She’d given up everything for him.

I understood his father never being the same. I understood Andrew wanting to protect me because of what had happened to his wife. And now, Colt was carrying that same guilt because he’d brought me here and I’d been hurt.

The door I was staring at opened. I had to blink a few times to bring the figure into focus.

Declan took one look at me and picked up his pace. He sank to the mattress, hands framing my face. “Hey, what’s going on?”

“I’m a monster.”

His brows pulled together. “What are you talking about?”

“All I could see was my own hurt, but Colt’s been dying inside.”

Declan pulled me against his chest, arms wrapping around me. “Leighton.”

“I didn’t stop to think that he might have had his reasons. That they all did. I just thought they didn’t want me.”

My voice broke on my last words, the pain breaking through them and into the air around us.

“Colt gets it. We all do. You were alone for so long. No one knew how bad it was, or they would’ve intervened.”

I swallowed hard. “I let Chloe get in my head.”

Declan pulled back, frowning. “What do you mean?”

“It was her and Damien that told me. She said that the only reason Colt and Ronan came when they did was that they were worried the abuse was so bad the cops might get involved, and they didn’t trust what my mom would say.”

Declan’s teeth ground together. “That fucking bitch. She lied. No one knew about the abuse. I swear to you.”

I nodded. “I know.” All it had taken was one moment of seeing Colt completely vulnerable to know that. We’d all made mistakes, but I knew with everything I had that he loved me. That he always had. Because I felt the same. I just didn’t have the first clue about how to fix it all. Too much was broken. There was too much to overcome.

Declan reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. “We’re going to figure this out. I promise.”

Before I could say a word, a soft knock sounded on the open door.

Dash stood in the entryway, a tray balanced in one hand. “I’ve got soup. Is it okay if I come in?”

My heart twisted as if someone were wringing it out. There was still a glimmer of hope in Dash’s blue eyes, but there was hurt in them, too. Hurt that I had put there.

I nodded. “Thank you.”

Dash strode across the expansive space, Briar greeting him with a hiss. He set the tray on my bed. “Just text me if she needs anything else,” he murmured to Declan.

Dash turned to leave, and there was a sharp tug in my chest.

“Dash?” His name slipped from my lips with a desperate edge.

He froze, slowly turning around.

“Do you want to stay?” I asked hesitantly.

The corners of his lips tipped up. “Sure.”

I scooted back against the pillows, pulling the tray closer to me so that he could sit on the end of the bed.

Dash lowered himself to the mattress, studying me. “How are you feeling?”

My stomach rumbled as if to answer.

He chuckled. “Hungry, I guess.”

I nodded, looking down at the tray. There was what looked like a simple broth and then bread that was still steaming. He’d also brought water, ginger ale, and apple juice.

Declan pushed the tray even closer. “Baldwin made the bread fresh.”

“It smells amazing.” I broke off a piece and popped it into my mouth. I closed my eyes, unable to help the moan that escaped my lips.

When my eyes opened, it was to find both Declan and Dash staring at my mouth. My cheeks heated.

“Sorry,” I mumbled.

Declan grinned. “Never have to apologize for enjoying your meals.”

“Amen to that,” Dash muttered.

I looked up at him. “Did everything, uh, get dealt with?”

A shadow passed over Dash’s expression, but he nodded. “Lucien’s gone. The Assembly has him in custody now.”

“What will they do with him?” I still didn’t quite understand The Assembly’s role in the supernatural world.

Dash seemed to understand that my question held more than I’d given voice to. “They are responsible for trying every supernatural who violates the terms of our peace treaty.”

“So, like a court for supernaturals?”

“Pretty much,” Dash agreed.

“They also play the role of advisors,” Declan explained. “They are supposed to help guide the leaders of our kind so that we can continue in a time of peace.”

“That’s why they have a say in the anchor you bond with?” The question slipped free before I could stop myself.

Dash’s expression gentled. “They can share their opinion, but they can’t force us to do anything.”

“But if you don’t have an anchor that’s powerful enough, you could go insane.”

Declan’s fingers wove through mine. “We’re going to find a way. The most stable bonds are when your anchor is also your true mate. We’ll figure this out.”

I stared down at my soup. Even if we could heal the rift we’d all created, I still didn’t have the power they needed.

Dash’s fingers slid beneath my chin, lifting my face so that I had to meet his eyes. “The fates gave us you as a mate. A gift I’ll be forever grateful for. The fates are going to show us the path to be together. I believe it with everything I have. You just have to have a little faith.”

But every time I’d held on to that faith before, it had been ripped out from under me.