She left as soundlessly as she came, and I thunked my head on the tile. I had been dreading this conversation, so I’d put it off. I knew she’d be mad, but now I was too. Not a good combination. With a creak, I shut the water off and slowly towel-dried, donning my clothes. I would tell her, but I’d take my sweet time.
She was right outside the bathroom door, waiting. I breezed past her, heading for the stairs. “Let’s walk and talk,” I said over my shoulder. “I have to prepare. What have you heard and what do you want to know?”
“Wait—how is Haven?”
I grimaced. “Better. Now what have you heard?”
Reagan huffed. Oh, she was mad all right. “I’ve heard that you’re planning to make a run for the mansion. And I want to know why you left me out of this plan.”
Who had told? I swore under my breath. No one could keep their mouth shut in this place. I descended the stairs two at a time, leaving Reagan to scramble as she tried keeping pace with my longer strides.
“The last place you should be is under the same roof as Mordecai. This is simply a quick mission we’ve been planning. Grab as much crystal as we can and retreat before anyone’s the wiser. We don’t need you on this mission.”
“Okay, but Mordecai is still my problem. I can help. I know that mansion better than any of you could ever hope to.” She went silent for a moment. “I mean, do you even know where Mordecai’s armory is? He added guards to the mansion’s rotations. Are you going to be ready with dart guns as your only defense?”
I stopped dead in my tracks. Then picked up the pace again. No. She wouldn’t weasel her way into this mission. “What armory?” Crap. I needed superglue.
“The one filled to bursting with weapons that you need. The one he locks. Luckily, I know where the key is. But I can’t tell you everything, I suppose.”
My teeth clenched. Evil girl. We didn’t need weapons. Actually, we desperately did. Akeno’s peashooters were almost useless in a fight—they’d done nothing against Bushy. We had our wings, but that was like bringing knives to a gunfight. Shifters rarely used weapons, but if there were armed guards . . .
Crap.
Landing on the ground floor, I wove through groups of Fae lounging and dining in the common areas. Some threw curious glances my way, probably wondering why the lion shifter tailed me like a cat sizing up its next scratching post, but I ignored them.
I wished Reagan understood I needed space right now. If she insisted on talking, then I needed to blow off steam before I verbally blew up at her. She might give up on me for good if I did that, so I banged open the doors to the rec room and strode to the far corner. Pulling on gloves, I said, “Reagan, you’re not going.”
She threw her hands on her hips. “Like hell I’m not.”
I struck the punching bag, pretending the thick leather was my throat. If I couldn’t breathe, I couldn’t speak and say things I’d later regret. No such luck. “You’re staying here where you’re safe, and that’s that.”
Reagan laughed. “Oh, I’m sorry. For a minute there you seemed to think you have some kind of control over me. You can’t stop me from going, Tarik.”
“Oh yeah?” My eyes narrowed on her. “Call this settling the score for leaving the Safehouse in broad daylight without telling me first. No way are you going on another dangerous mission today. I’ll tell Rebel Leader not to let you go.” I threw another punch, harder this time.
“I specifically asked Benji if you were okay with me leaving and he said yes. He asked for help, do you really think I was going to say no?”
“What?” I caught the bag mid-swing so I could level her with an incredulous look. “I didn’t tell him it was okay for you to leave.”
“Regardless, I don’t need your permission to do anything. Maybe you could use a reminder that I’m my own person.” She scowled, crossing her arms over her chest. “In either case, that’s between you and me. You shouldn’t punish the others for it. A lion is awfully handy in a tight spot, especially when she knows more about what you’re trying to do than you do.”
“That may be, but I still can’t let you go. There’s . . . there’s too much at stake.” I gritted my teeth, hating how my words came out. Hating how she viewed me. But I couldn’t seem to say what really needed to be said. “You can help the Fae best from here.”
“I’m not some helpless little girl,” Reagan spat, arms trembling. “I’m not going to sit here and wait for the men to solve all my problems. I’m going. I’ll plead my case to someone who will listen if I have to.”
With that, she spun and stormed out.
I growled and punched the bag one last time, needing the shot of pain the contact brought. Yanking off the gloves, I pursued her. Faces blurred past but I saw nothing. Only a spitfire shifter with blue and black hair charging into the night. As I burst into the gardens after her, she disappeared from view. My heart plummeted.
This couldn’t be the end.
Not like this. It would wreck me. I wouldn’t be able to complete this mission with her hating my guts. I scanned the rows of fruits and vegetables, becoming more and more desperate with each empty row. Finally, I saw a glint of blue, and ran.
“Reagan!” I shouted, but she kept going. If she didn’t stop soon, she’d expose herself to the night sky. To Alec. Crap. I reached out and grabbed her arm, swinging her around.
“Let me go,” she growled. “You clearly don’t want to talk and I’m not staying behind.”
My breaths came too fast. I didn’t know what words
