“Seriously, I’m fine,” I said. “Now, will someone please tell me how we’re going to find Trent?”
Jax’s gaze lingered on me as if he were worried I was going to collapse on the floor right there in front of him. Finally, he returned his attention to everyone else.
“We’re going to need more help than what we have standing in this room,” Jax said.
“More help?” I raised a brow. “Who else is supposed to help us? There’s only one other person who knows about Trent, and she’s a weak, helpless human just like I am,” I snapped.
All eyes turned to me, and my shoulders sagged. Probably not the smartest thing I could’ve said, but it was the truth. The only other person I knew who could help us was Abby, and what good would she be? Not much more than me right now.
“Chloe,” Sean said. “A moment, please?” He nodded toward the sliding glass doors.
With a sigh, I followed him out onto the back porch, which was a mistake. The sight of the pool below had memories of the night Trent and I had gone skinny dipping bombarding me. I turned my back to the pool and leaned against the railing.
“I know this is incredibly difficult for you,” Sean said. “But you’re not to blame.”
I stared at him. “You’re kidding, right? Of course, I’m to blame. I couldn’t do anything to save him, Sean. When it really mattered, I was worthless. I’m the reason your son is missing.”
“Do you think that’s what Trent believes?” he asked, his tone calm despite the severity of our conversation.
“I—” I snapped my mouth closed, knowing there was nothing I could say to that.
Trent wouldn’t for one second blame me for any of this. If anything, he was probably blaming himself for what Dante had done to me, for how Trent got himself captured and left me behind. I shifted on my feet and bit the inside of my cheek to stop from crying. How did I even have any tears left?
“Exactly,” Sean said softly. He rested an arm on the railing and faced me. “What happened wasn’t your fault, and it wasn’t Trent’s, either. But it happened, and now we have to fix it. And we will.”
I nodded.
Sean gently placed his hand on my arm, his touch hesitant. “Believe it or not, I do remember what it was like to be human.” He smiled faintly. “I remember feeling weak and helpless, but you’re a lot stronger than you give yourself credit for.”
“Yeah, well, I don’t feel very strong right now.” I reached up and wiped away tears.
“I know,” he said. “But you are. If I know anything about Trent, it’s that he loves you more than anything, and it’s that love that’s giving him the strength right now to keep fighting.”
I swallowed the emotion clogging my throat.
“Don’t let him fight for nothing. Keep loving him. Stay strong so when he does come home, he can come home to the same woman he left.” Sean squeezed my arm, then dropped his hand. “And I promise you, no one in there blames you, either.”
“Thank you.” I blew out a shaky breath.
He nodded and smiled. “You’re not alone in this, Chloe. We’re all here for you.”
“I know,” I whispered.
I had more family now than I had when Mom died, more people to rally around me and lift me from the depths of my own despair.
“Good. Now, let’s go figure this out.” He opened the sliding doors, and I walked back inside.
Thankfully, no one asked me if I was okay or how I was doing. I settled on the couch, feet tucked beneath me, and nodded for Jax to continue.
But it was Isach who spoke up. “I’ve been trying to do a locator spell, but I keep getting blocked, which means Dante and Yolanda are working with witches.” He dragged his hand through his hair. “I just don’t which coven, or why they’d have witches helping them in the first place. Our kinds don’t exactly get along.”
“I’m not surprised,” Colt said. He’d been standing quietly in the kitchen. “Dante’s always working with witches for one reason or another.”
“Which is why we need extra help,” Jax said.
And then it all clicked in my head. “Ivy,” I said. “You want Ivy to help us?”
Isach nodded. “Me, Ivy, and her coven can easily break through whatever protections have been put in place around Yolanda. Once we do that, we’ll be able to figure out where Trent is.”
“You really think she’s going to help us?” Whitney asked. She stood near the front window, arms crossed.
“Yes,” I said. “She’ll help us.”
“How can you be so sure? What’s in this for her? Because we all know that woman doesn’t do anything without some sort of payoff,” Whitney said.
“I’m the payoff,” I said, frustration and anger burning through me. “I’m always the payoff for her.” I stood, unable to sit still another second, and paced behind the couch. My nerves were frayed and jittery. “She knows Trent is the only one who can change me, and if’s he missing—”
“He can’t change you, and the curse won’t be broken,” Isach finished.
“Exactly. She’s got a vested interested in getting Trent home,” I said, clutching the back of the couch.
“All right. I’ll go see her,” Isach said, digging his keys from his front pocket. “With any luck, when I come back, I’ll know where Trent is.”
Hope flared in my chest. Finding him was the biggest hurdle. Once we knew where he was, it was simply a matter of going to get him.
“Thanks, Isach,” I said, gratitude thick in my tone.
With a nod, he headed for the front door.
“Wait,” I said, and he stopped. “Before you go… My family still thinks I’m on my honeymoon, and I want to keep it that way until we find Trent. There’s no way I can explain this to them.”
“What about Abby?” Isach asked.
I shrugged. “I’m not sure yet.
