Forever Touched (Touch of Vampire #5)

CHAPTER 20

20

EVERETT

As we left the lakehouse, I was still reeling from all that I’d learned about Adalyn this morning.

She had a mouse familiar named Pepper, and her social skills were adorably awkward. She fit into the family. Rather seamlessly, actually, like a glove. If I wasn’t so pleased by that fact, I’d almost be jealous.

But I was also troubled by her addiction to venom and the way she devoured food. Her build was naturally petite, but I could see it in her eyes now. The hunger. The desperation.

She was in survival mode.

She was good at hiding it, but our bond was growing stronger. I could feel her conflicted emotions more. Hear more of her chaotic thoughts. They were everywhere, bobbing and weaving as if in a boxing match. As if the match was between us , and she was doing everything in her power to avoid me.

I couldn’t blame her, though. I knew that claiming her had been a huge breach of trust. Our bond was still so fragile, so breakable , and I’d recklessly put it in jeopardy.

But when I’d bitten her, all I could think about was the countless males who’d tasted her. Who would continue to taste her. A wild and feral need had coursed through me, one that demanded I protect her from them. She wasn’t theirs. They didn’t deserve her.

She was mine. MINE .

Mine to keep safe from the cruel world she lived in.

I still couldn’t regret claiming her. Knowing that my scent was buried deep within her, so deep that any male who came near her would recoil in disgust, had calmed some of my frenzy. But the need to protect her continued to simmer in my veins. Each step we took from the lakehouse was an awful reminder that she was choosing to go back. To allow males into her bed that weren’t me .

This feeling was new for me. This feeling of wanting someone for myself. Hundreds of females had entered my life over the years, none of them staying long enough for me to care if they left. But none of them had been her . Even before I’d accepted that Adalyn was my soulmate, I’d wanted her. And now, she was all I wanted.

Which was why I’d practically begged Loch and Kade to join us on the drive to Faircroft Manor. They were the only two things stopping me from throwing Adalyn over my shoulder and locking her inside the lakehouse. When she chose to sit in the backseat, though, I nearly ordered them both to leave so she would be forced to sit up front with me.

Seeing my agitated state, Loch shot me a warning look from the passenger seat. I peeled my lips back in a silent snarl but eventually wrestled my instincts under control and started the car. No one spoke while I maneuvered down the long private drive, but when I turned onto the main road, I couldn’t help saying, “You can still change your mind, you know.”

I glanced in the rearview mirror in time to see Adalyn smirk, but there was no humor behind the action.

“No, I can’t. I have unfinished business.”

My grip on the steering wheel tightened. “And what’s that? Securing new clients?”

Her gaze shot to mine in the mirror. “Really? You want to have this conversation right now in front of your family?”

“They already know what you do.”

She scoffed. “Thanks for reminding me.”

“We’re kind of used to awkward family conversations,” Kade butted in from his spot directly behind me. “Just pretend we’re not here.”

She rolled her eyes. “Yeah, no problem. I’ll just openly admit to a car full of males I barely know that I have sex with strangers for a living.”

Kade made a choking noise but didn’t respond. Good thing too, or I’d probably bash his teeth in.

“Is it the money?” I pressed, ignoring Loch’s warning look this time. “If you need money, just say so. Do you owe someone a debt?”

A panicked look crossed her face. She quickly wiped her expression clean, but it was too late.

Heat surged through me, a growl threatening to tear from my throat. Barely able to focus on driving, I pushed, “A debt? Is that it? To whom? ”

She clenched her jaw, refusing to say a word.

“ Adalyn .”

She jumped at my raised voice.

“Everett,” Loch warned, staring daggers at the side of my face. “You’re scaring her.”

“I don’t care,” I growled back, the heat whipping into a wild frenzy. “She needs to tell me.”

“She doesn’t have to tell you anything .”

“Yes, she—”

“She’s being thralled,” Kade interrupted.

I jerked the car onto the shoulder and slammed on the brakes. Setting it in park, I twisted around to face Adalyn. She was pale, paler than I’d ever seen her. She stared at Kade in disbelief, like he’d just betrayed her.

“What do you mean she’s being thralled?” As the words left me in a deadly hiss, Adalyn visibly winced.

Kade threw her an apologetic look before saying, “I remember how Isla acted when she was being controlled by the sire bond and allure. Adalyn’s acting the same way. She’s not telling you because she can’t tell you.”

The heat turned to blinding rage. I focused on Adalyn again, but she was already scrambling out of the car.

“ Adalyn .”

I jumped out after her, prepared to chase her if she ran. She didn’t, though. She simply marched down the road at a fast walk as if she intended to reach Faircroft Manor on foot. I surged after her, only for Loch to block me.

“Get the hell out of my way, Lochlan,” I snarled inches from his face, baring my fangs at him.

He didn’t even blink. “Calm down, or I’m not letting you anywhere near her. She doesn’t deserve your wrath.”

“Of course she doesn’t,” I barked, trembling as the heat threatened to explode from me. “But whoever did this to her is going to suffer. I won’t rest until I know who that someone is.”

He stared me in the eye, realizing all too quickly what I intended to do. “ Don’t , Everett. You’ve already claimed her against her wishes. Abusing your soulmate bond will only lead to heartbreak and misery.”

I stubbornly clenched my jaw. “I need to know, Loch. It’s killing me. I need to know who did this to her.”

Surprise flickered in his gaze. “You truly care about her.”

“Of course I care about her,” I said without thought. Without hesitation. There was no use denying how I felt about her .

Seeing the truth of it in my eyes, he slowly relaxed his stance. “You might care about her, Everett, but you could end up destroying the soulmate bond if you push her too hard. For both your sakes, tread carefully.”

Recalling how I’d almost destroyed our brotherly bond, I reached out and gripped his shoulder. “I’m trying, Loch. I’m really trying.”

“I know you are,” he said, then pulled me into a tight embrace. “But she needs space , Ev. Trust me. The choice has to be hers.”

Leaning into his support, I blew out a pent-up sigh before confessing, “I don’t know if I can do this. I did everything wrong with her.”

“I made my own fair share of mistakes with McKenna.”

“Not like I have. I treated Adalyn like a whore. Like she was nothing more than an object for my selfish pleasure. I’ve screwed up so badly.”

He pulled back to look me in the eye again. “Maybe you have, but you can still make things right. You forget how far you’ve come, Everett. You spent the better part of a century being cold and cruel to anyone outside our family. You barely even tolerated Kade, despite the fact that you chose him to be my drothen. But you’ve started to let others in again, first McKenna, now Adalyn. If you truly care about your soulmate, let your heart guide your actions.”

I nodded, allowing the last of my rage to fade. “Thank you, brother. I will.”

He let me go then. Let me hurry to catch up with the female who’d entirely taken over my world. Kade had been following her from a distance, but he easily stepped aside at the sound of my approach.

“Thanks,” I told him, actually meaning it. I didn’t often give him the credit he deserved. He’d been nothing but steadfast and loyal to my family for over a century, and I could already sense his desire to include Adalyn in that circle.

He turned to stare at me as if startled that I’d acknowledge him. “No problem, man.”

“And thanks for being there for my brother when I couldn’t,” I added before I lost the nerve. “You’ve been a good drothen to him.”

His mouth fell open as I swept past. Still, I heard him mutter under his breath, “I like this new Everett.”

A smirk crept onto my lips. Pretty sure I agreed with him. A newfound purpose had filled me since meeting Adalyn, and I had every intention of holding onto it. But Loch was right. I needed to tread carefully where Adalyn was concerned. She might come across as confident and fearless, but she felt lost right now. Lost and terrified.

“Adalyn,” I finally called, my long strides quickly eating up the ground between us.

She visibly stiffened before calling back, “Glassport isn’t too far away from here. I’ll just walk back. I need time to think anyway.”

“About what?”

She threw her hands in the air. “About everything . Things are really screwed up right now.”

“They are, but that’s nothing new for you, right? How long have you been under thrall?”

She barked a laugh. “You know I can’t answer that. I am literally tongue tied.”

“Fine. Then let me guess. Six years ago when you went to live with the Faircrofts?”

She was silent for a long beat. Then, “That’s a good guess.”

Hope and anger swelled in my chest, but I chose to focus on the hope. She was speaking to me. Not in definite terms, but I could work with this. “Okay, next question. Did the Faircrofts thrall you to stay with them? ”

A pause. Then, “Not such a good guess.”

Frustrated, I racked my brain for more clues. “But you owe them a debt?”

I watched as her spine went poker straight.

“I’ll take that as a yes. What kind of debt?”

“I can’t tell you.”

Uttering a curse, I fought to remain calm. We were making progress, albeit slowly. At least she was trying . Something finally came to me, and I said, “Your father died in the battle six years ago. Were you there too?”

She stayed silent for so long that I didn’t think she would answer. Then she slowly nodded.

“Oh, baby girl.” She would have been young. Too young. The horrors she must have witnessed. Had she seen me that night? So much happened that I couldn’t remember if I’d seen her. Everything had been chaos. “How old were you?”

“Fourteen.”

Sadness pierced me. “I’m so sorry, Adalyn.”

She suddenly whirled to face me. Tears glittered in her eyes as she forcefully said, “You can’t keep saying stuff like that. Every time you apologize or make me feel better about myself or stand up for me, I get confused . You’re supposed to be my enemy, Everett. I should hate you for everything I’ve lost, but I don’t, and I hate that I don’t. My dad never should have been there that night, and I shouldn’t have either. Everything changed after that, and I’ve been paying for it ever since. If only he hadn’t ki—” She paused to grip her throat as if it had seized up. “I . . . I can’t . . .”

She gasped for breath, and I realized that it had .

“Adalyn!” I lunged and caught her as she started to collapse. “Don’t try to speak. The thrall is forcing you into silence. Just breathe, baby girl. Good. That’s really good. Breathe and focus on my voice.”

The words were soft, but they shook, my rage returning tenfold. Whoever had done this to her was going to die slowly. Painfully . They’d rue the day they chose to mess with my soulmate.

As her breathing slowly returned to normal, I said, “I can fix this, Adalyn. If my thrall is more powerful than theirs, then I can break its hold on you. Just look into my eyes, and I’ll have you freed in no time.”

But when I tilted her face up toward mine, she struggled to pull away and cried, “No, don’t .”

An ache built in my chest when I saw how hard she fought. She was desperate. Terrified .

“It’s only the thrall. Whoever did this probably told you to resist having it removed,” I tried to reassure her.

I reached for her again, but she shoved my hand away and shouted, “No!”

Surprised by her vehemence, I didn’t stop her from wrenching free of my arms and stumbling back.

“No,” she firmly repeated, her eyes wide with fear. “It’s more than that. Any attempt to break . . . You can’t , okay? Pepper needs me. I won’t leave her all alone like this.”

As I struggled to understand what she couldn’t say, she clenched and unclenched her fist. But only her right one, like she was unconsciously sending me a message.

A thought struck me, a terrible one that immediately filled my stomach with dread.

“A pactum. You’re bound by a pactum.”

A lone tear slipped down her cheek, and I knew I was right.

“Oh, Adalyn. Come here, precious.”

When she came to me with a sob, I gathered her tightly in my arms, offering her my strength and comfort. She shook against me, crying into my chest without restraint.

“It’s okay,” I whispered. “We’re going to figure this out. You’re not alone anymore.”

She only cried harder.