“I was.” Jax pushed off the door frame and sauntered into the room.
Would I ever stop being shocked by how similar these two were? Or how gorgeous?
“Sean called. They’re on the move.” Jax’s gaze darted in my direction before landing back on Trent. “Figured you’d want some back up should they get here before you two get out.”
Tendrils of fear spread through my limbs and squeezed my heart. “Who is they?” I looked to Jax, who didn’t answer me, so I turned to Trent. “What’s going on? What does he mean we need to get out?” My voice steadily increased with panic.
Trent rubbed the back of his neck, and my stomach sank. “Those things I mentioned… the things you needed to know…”
I stepped away from him. “Someone better tell me what’s going on.”
Crashing back into my life like he had, learning the horrid truth about my father and my lineage, walking away from another home and family… Wasn’t that enough? What more could I be expected to endure?
“One of you had better start talking. Now,” I bit out.
Jax laughed but quickly covered it with a fake cough, his eyes sparkling. What was wrong with him? I knew he’d gotten my threatening text messages. Of course, I should’ve guessed he wouldn’t take them seriously. I was nothing more than a joke to him.
“This is why I’m here, Chloe.” Trent took my hands and guided me to sit on the bed. He kneeled in front of me. The look of concern that blanketed his face didn’t do anything to calm me. “There’s a coven of witches looking for you.”
“What? They’re looking for me? Why?”
But I didn’t really need an answer to that question—I knew why they wanted me. They must have figured out who I was and what I could do for them. Did he know that, though? I doubted it, because if he did, we’d be having a very different conversation right now. And I knew Jax would have a lot to say, too. He wouldn’t be holding back; he never had before.
Trent shook his head. “We’re not sure.”
I was. And I had to tell him. I had no idea how to do that, though, or what his reaction would be. I’d made the decision to be with him, but I was undecided about turning into a vampire. Would he force me to do the one thing I didn’t want to? Before I confessed, I needed to know what they knew.
“You think it’s Isach?” I asked.
“Who else would it be?” Trent tilted his head, studying me.
I lowered my head, uncomfortable with his scrutiny, and shrugged. The Zoya would do anything to make sure the curse wasn’t broken—including kill me. Which meant if this coven knew about me, then the Zoya probably did, too, which made me a very wanted woman.
“We haven’t seen or heard from Isach since he took off after…” Jax frowned.
“Yeah, I remember,” I snapped. “And could you just shut up? The sound of your voice makes me want to stab you.”
Jax’s eyes widened, and he held up his hands in a show of surrender.
I pulled my hands from Trent’s and stood. “So, now what?”
“We hide.” Trent rose and placed his hands on my shoulders. “Just until we can figure out how to stop them.”
“You just expect me to run away with you?” I crossed my arms.
“It’s either that, or you can wait for the Zoya to find you,” Jax said. He moved to stand next to Trent, both of them now in front of me. “And not even God knows what they’ll do to you this time.”
Maybe he really did need a tutor, because clearly, he had no idea what shut up meant. But his words caused me to shudder, and I rubbed my arms to rid them of the sudden goose bumps.
It’s not like I had any intention of going back to my father’s house, but I had planned to head to Keene Valley. Aunt Beth and Uncle Dean would be thrilled to have me back. But I was not going to lead trouble their way.
“So, this explains why you came back,” I said to Trent before turning to glare at Jax. “But why are you here?”
“He’s here because I asked him to be here,” Trent said and rubbed the back of his neck. “Nothing about this went according to plan.”
I huffed. “And what was your brilliant plan if I hadn’t remembered everything?” My hard stare landed back on Trent.
Holding my gaze, unflinching, he said, “Kidnap you.”
My jaw dropped, and my arms fell to my sides. “I can’t just disappear. What am I supposed to tell people?” I said, my tone a mix of shock and resignation.
“We’re not cutting you off from the world,” Jax said, amusement coloring his tone. “You can still check in with your friends and family, but as far as they know, you’re spending the summer traveling.”
I glared at him.
“But in reality, you’ll be with me, some place safe,” Trent said.
Jax’s expression hardened. What was that all about? He was probably angry that he had to spend his summer babysitting me. Why did I even care what he thought? He meant nothing to me. Not anymore. He didn’t have to stick around, not as long as Trent was with me. And honestly, the idea of spending the summer with Trent—just the two of us—was exciting.
“Okay,” I said with a sigh. “When do we leave?”
Trent raised a brow. “That easy?”
I nodded. It wasn’t like I had many other options. I was officially a wanted woman, and what better protection was there than two vampires?
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE:
Road Trip
TRENT RUSHED AROUND THE ROOM, PACKING his belongings. Everything I wanted was crammed into my backpack and one suitcase, so I stood near the door, out of his way. Everything about this seemed so surreal, but I was toting around a shoebox full of evidence that I couldn’t ignore.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Keene Valley,”
