“I’m going to make an announcement and command every single child, elderly or anyone who can’t fight to live in the hideouts for the next week. Everyone going in will be checked, and then the soldiers can go from door to door to check. The most important prize in this city is our people,” dad suggests, sounding firm on the idea. He is right, our people need to be kept safe from all of this.
“Agreed,” Alex adds with a sharp nod.
“I’m not going down there,” I say, and from the glare Alex gives me, I know he isn’t on board with this idea before I’ve even said it. “Shadow will keep me safe, and I have to get to Bethany. If anyone can stop this, it’s me. I don’t intend to get close to her alone, but I won’t sit hiding in the city when it’s my sister destroying lives.”
“Neither am I,” mum adds in. “People will need to see we are just taking precautions, or there will be mass panic. All of our people know what war is, and they will try to run from the island to hide within human cities.”
“Ana,” Liam says from my side. I meet his gaze and shake my head. “What about Phoebe and Skye? They need someone close to be with so they aren’t scared.”
“I have just the person,” mum adds in, annoying my guys and saving me from not having a good answer for that one. “I will go and get her.”
Mum leaves the room, and Mason leans down to my ear, lowering his voice. “This won’t be safe for you or our baby. What if you fall off Shadow in the fight? Please say you will stand aside and only come close if you are sure it’s safe.”
“I need to be there, but I will be protecting myself. Our baby will never be safe while Bethany is free, and I could never forgive myself if I’m not there at the end. I won’t run right into the middle of a war for anyone, not even Bethany. If she sees me, I bet she will follow me, and then we can surround her.”
“Alright,” Mason breathes out. “I don’t like it, but I have a funny feeling you wouldn’t listen if I told you not to come.”
“Nope,” I reply with a small, tense smile.
“How did they get past your barrier?” Alex asks my dad.
Dad looks at me. “A drop of our blood, or my children’s, would let you pass through. I imagine Bethany placed her blood on the front of the plane and on the birds.”
“That’s messed up,” I mutter, even though it does sound like something Bethany would do. Anything to win.
“Can you change the barrier, make it so she can’t do that?” I question him. He rubs his cheek.
“No.” His answer fills the room with tension. “I hoped she wouldn’t figure it out, but she has somehow. We have to be ready for war. My powers have grown weak over time, even the stunt I pulled with your helicopter was a lot for me. All my magic is going into the barrier and holding it. I’m afraid, other than fighting, I will be no use in the war to come.”
“We will be ready for a war then,” Alex tensely answers. “Mason, Liam and I are going to get to the warehouses. Are you coming?”
“Yes,” dad answers. They all say goodbye before leaving our hut and shutting the door behind them. I make myself a cup of tea and sit down on the sofa, watching the waves in silence, trying to calm my thoughts, but all I can think of is Bethany. Bethany. Bethany. And all of her messed up choices that somehow made everything so complicated.
Why couldn’t she have just let me talk to her?
Then again, maybe talking to her at this point would do nothing, and she would just try to kill me once more. The door is knocked once, and I turn as mum walks in, followed by someone I wasn’t expecting to see.
Grandma Pops.
She drops her bag onto the floor as I climb off the sofa and run to her open arms. She hugs me tightly as I breathe in how she smells like cookies and vanilla ice cream, as always. “You have changed so much. It’s in your eyes, you have grown.”
“I missed you,” I tell her softly, meaning every word. “And you look the same as you did the day I left on that train.”
“I cannot say the same for you.” She gestures to my baby bump, smiling. “If you need a babysitter, you know who to call.”
“Get in line,” mum playfully says, and we all laugh. “But Grandma Pops is going to watch Skye and Phoebe for us the next few weeks.”
“Thank you,” I tell her.
“No, I never got to tell you how much you three girls were a gift to me. I loved bringing you up, and I hope you can save Bethany. She has goodness in her heart, I know it,” she firmly tells me. I know she does, but I fear it is swallowed by the darkness, the light not having a chance to shine out anymore. I can’t break Grandma Pop’s heart by telling her the truth, so instead, I hug her tightly. For a moment, I pretend the world isn’t falling apart and taking my heart with it.
Chapter 20
Anastasia
We are written in our hearts.
My guys come through the door in a line, each of them looking more stressed than the next, and I’m not sure who to comfort first.
“Bad day?” I nervously ask. It’s been a week tomorrow since the plane landed, and we all know we are on borrowed time. The city is silent, most of its people in hiding, including Skye and Phoebe. Estelle and
