“Elizabeth, shall I walk you back?” Henry asked softly.
The doctor had been quiet in the shouting. “Um, no, thank you. I think I will stay, if that’s all right, Ella?”
Ella swiped her hand over her damp cheeks again and spun around, surprised her friend would want to stay after all the shouting. She nodded at the doctor, not risking her voice. She didn’t think she could manage any words.
Marcus charged toward the front door with Jake close on his heels. He stopped as he held the handle and looked back at her. “This is temporary, Ella. I’m giving in to you right now because I made a huge mistake, but don’t think for a second I will not do whatever it takes to make this right between us.”
She didn’t respond.
Jake peered at her, shock and hurt obvious on his pinched face. “I expected better from you, princess.”
His sharp words hit her right in the heart and she all but collapsed right there, fearing she had made the biggest mistake of her life.
Marcus twisted around and his hand shot out, grabbing Jake’s arm and tugging him out the door.
“Well, good night, ladies. Thanks for dinner. It was—entertaining.” Henry offered his hand and she shook it. He was being polite, and in the circumstances, she appreciated his silence on the evening’s proceedings.
“Thank you, Henry. Take care,” she said as he nodded and left the house.
No one spoke for a moment. The doctor fell back into the couch, obviously having trouble staying awake and shocked by the proceedings. Isabella turned and walked toward her.
“Did you get what you wanted?” Isabella asked, rather subdued.
“Yes or no, depending on which way you look at it. I thought I would feel better, but instead I feel sick,” she said.
“I’m sorry for the part I played. I didn’t know what Marcus would do—honestly. He swore me to secrecy. I didn’t know about your brother. You did say you were taking time off, but I presumed after what happened with Nate, you merely wanted to spend time with him. It seemed understandable. I’m sorry. Marcus made a mistake, but he loves you, Ella, and I guess the thought of losing you terrified him.”
Ella blinked. A tiredness weighed her down and she couldn’t think straight. “Well, he has lost me anyway. I realize I was hasty in wanting to search for a man the professor said is my brother. I wouldn’t trust anything that man says, and I understand how Marcus must have felt. But rather than discussing it, he took over. Could you remain in a relationship like that?”
Isabella rubbed her hands. Her emerald eyes were back to their normal bright shade. “No. I want an equal relationship, built on mutual love and respect. Of course, I also want someone who will put up with my peculiar quirks, give me space to be who I am, who has a wicked sense of humor, a gorgeous body, and one who knows exactly how to give me pleasure.”
“An easy list of requirements then.” Ella’s shoulders relaxed and she patted Isabella’s arm. “I know you didn’t want to take part tonight, but thanks. I just don’t know what to think anymore. I feel empty right now,” she said, teary-eyed again.
Isabella stepped closer and hugged her. Ella couldn’t help but rest her head on her friend’s shoulder. The strain of the last couple of days was catching up.
“I’m sorry. I won’t let you down again, Ella. I’m not used to having friends. Not that that is an excuse, but it’s true. My sisters and I are different, but I promise, I will always be loyal to you,” the witch said.
Ella stepped back and examined her friend, who yawned and pushed her long hair off her shoulders. “I hope so, because I will not forgive you again.”
“I understand. Look, I need to go. I feel exhausted. But what about the doctor?”
Ella glanced over at the couch, where Elizabeth lay fast asleep, snoring. She moved away to open the door to the cream-painted cupboard and withdrew a fluffy woolen blanket.
“I’ll let her sleep.” She covered her in the gray blanket as the doctor continued to make small snorting noises. Both women looked at each other, smiling. She opened the front door and let Isabella go, wondering whether anything would ever be the same again.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Marcus sipped his strong coffee and eyed Jake over the mug as he chatted with Henry in the ops room. He had gathered the team to discuss the insertion of the secretary into the Padre’s world, but another task pressed on his mind—Ella’s brother. After a sleepless night, he decided he needed to seek out and discover all he could about this ghost of a man. A soul-shifter who betrayed his own kind. But that meant talking to the professor, a man he could kill with his bare hands, and feel nothing but relief.
“Jake, I haven’t got all fucking day. I need to check on Steel and interview the professor. What’s taking so long?”
Jake broke away from the men who surrounded him as others worked at their stations. One team was watching a live feed of the Padre in New York City at some swanky charity gala in the Natural History Museum. Another team was observing the rescue and extraction of a wealthy client’s daughter, who had been abducted while on holiday in Paris. A terrorist cell had attempted to extract blood money with threats of beheading their victim. He sent a new squad with several ex-SEALs alongside a shifter known only as Lion. The man was huge and fierce like his name suggested.
“Sorry, boss. Team two is extracting the package as we speak, sir. I was discussing their possible route home, which became hot as they were surrounded on
