Sanctuary and Speculation

I carefully crouched beside Landon, who was still doubled over and dry heaving after our teleportation. Despite our complicated history, I couldn't help but feel a pang of sympathy. I remembered my first jump all too well.

"Deep breaths," I instructed, awkwardly patting his back. "The nausea passes faster if you don't fight it."

Isla wasn't faring any better. She'd managed to stop retching but remained curled up on the floor, tears streaming down her face. The compulsion had worn off during the teleportation, leaving them both confused and terrified.

"What... what just happened?" Landon gasped, looking up at me with wide eyes. "How did we get here? Where even is 'here'?"

I glanced over at Kaelen, who gave me a slight nod. Permission to explain the basics, at least.

"You just experienced teleportation," I said matter-of-factly. "And as for where we are... let's just say it's a safe house."

Isla finally pushed herself to a sitting position, her mascara creating dark rivers down her cheeks. "That's impossible. Teleportation isn't real."

"Says the girl whose eyes were glowing blue ten minutes ago," I countered.

That shut her up. She touched her face as if she could feel the residual glow, then looked at Landon with confusion and fear.

"You've both been experiencing strange things lately, haven't you?" I asked, keeping my voice gentle despite my lingering resentment toward them. "Things you couldn't explain?"

Landon nodded slowly. "For about a year now. I thought I was losing my mind." He looked at Isla. "You too?"

She nodded reluctantly. "Objects moving when I get angry. Dreams that come true. I... I thought it was just stress."

"It's not stress," I explained. "You're Greys. Like me. Like all of us here." I gestured to my bonds standing nearby.

"What the hell is a Grey?" Landon demanded, some of his color returning.

I looked over at Kaelen again. "Mr. Vance can explain it better than I can."

Kaelen stepped forward, his presence immediately commanding the room. "We'll have time for full explanations later. Right now, we need to move you both somewhere secure. Those men who tried to take you weren't acting alone, and we have reason to believe others may be looking for you."

"Because we're... Greys?" Landon asked, the word sounding foreign on his tongue.

"Precisely," Kaelen confirmed. "You're valuable to certain people. Dangerous to others."

I felt a gentle hand on my shoulder and turned to see Rhys smiling down at me.

"You were magnificent out there tonight, Little Bird," he whispered, his thumb stroking my collarbone. "The way you handled those Sterlings... I've never seen anything sexier."

I felt my cheeks warm. "I just reacted."

Silas appeared on my other side, his glasses slightly askew but his smile wide. "That's what makes it impressive. Your instincts are getting sharper." He glanced over at the still-disoriented Landon and Isla. "So... these are your former friends?"

"Ex-boyfriend and the girl he cheated on me with," I clarified quietly.

Silas winced. "Awkward."

"More than awkward," I muttered. "But if they're really Greys..." I trailed off, considering the implications. If they were developing powers, they needed guidance just like I had. Even if I wasn't thrilled about the prospect of playing tour guide for the two people who'd hurt me most.

Silas squeezed my hand. "Don't worry about that now. A team is on the way to take those Sterling goons into custody." He nodded toward the two bound men who were being guarded by a stone-faced Jaxon.

"And what about us?" Isla demanded, having overheard. "Are we prisoners too?"

"No," I assured her. "You're... guests. For your own protection."

Silas turned to address everyone. "Let's move to the sitting room. It's warmer there, and I think we could all use some comfort after tonight's excitement."

He guided our strange procession through Kaelen's home—and what a home it was. I hadn't had a chance to fully appreciate it during my previous brief visit. The high ceilings, the gleaming wood floors, the tasteful artwork that probably cost more than my entire education—everything screamed wealth and power.

The sitting room featured an enormous stone fireplace with a fire already crackling away, casting a warm glow over plush couches and armchairs. Landon and Isla stayed close together, looking around with expressions of awe and apprehension.

"Make yourselves comfortable," Silas told them, gesturing to a loveseat far enough from the rest of us to give them some privacy.

I sank gratefully onto a large sofa, my body suddenly remembering how exhausted it was. Between the dancing, the fight, and the teleportation, I felt like I'd run a marathon.

Kaelen approached me, a soft blanket in his hands. My heart did a little flip as he carefully draped it over my shoulders.

"You need to rest," he said, his voice softer than usual. His fingertips brushed against my neck as he adjusted the blanket, sending shivers down my spine. "I'm proud of how you handled yourself tonight, Hazel."

The simple praise made my eyes sting with unexpected tears. When was the last time anyone had said they were proud of me? I couldn't even remember.

"Thank you," I whispered, meeting his intense gaze.

Something flickered in his eyes—warmth, perhaps, or something deeper—before his professional mask slipped back into place. "I need to go secure our... guests. Try to get some rest."

As he walked away, Rhys slid onto the couch beside me, lifting my legs to rest across his lap. Silas took the spot on my other side.

"Your feet must be killing you after dancing in those shoes," Silas observed, gently removing my boots and beginning to massage my aching feet.

I groaned with pleasure as his strong fingers worked out the knots. "You're a saint."

Rhys chuckled, brushing a strand of hair from my face. "A saint with magic hands. Don't hog him, Little Bird."

"Too tired to share," I mumbled, already feeling sleep tugging at me as Silas's magical fingers continued their work. The last thing I remembered was Rhys gently guiding my head to rest on his lap, his fingers stroking my hair as I drifted off.

---

I woke with a start, disoriented and parched. My throat felt like sandpaper. How long had I been asleep? The fire had burned lower, casting the room in soft shadows. I was still on the couch, but now I was sprawled across Rhys's lap while Silas slept sitting up beside us, his head tilted back against the cushions.

Across the room, Ronan was curled up in an armchair, looking impossibly sweet in his sleep. Even Jaxon had succumbed to exhaustion, stretched out on another couch with one arm flung over his eyes. My gaze drifted to the loveseat where Landon and Isla sat huddled together, both asleep but with tension still evident in their postures.

Seeing Landon there brought back a flood of memories—both good and painful. We'd once been so close, sharing dreams and plans for the future. Then he'd shattered it all in one night of betrayal with Isla. I'd been devastated, furious.

But now, watching him sleep, I felt something different. If he and Isla were truly developing Grey abilities, they were connected to this world—my world—in ways I couldn't have imagined. Would we end up as friends again someday? Dance partners, even? The thought wasn't as absurd as it would have been a few months ago.

My tongue felt swollen with thirst. I needed water, desperately. Carefully, I extracted myself from Rhys's lap, moving with exaggerated slowness to avoid waking anyone. Rhys stirred slightly but didn't wake.

I tiptoed across the room, pausing at the doorway to look back at my sleeping bonds. They looked so peaceful—even Jaxon's perpetual scowl had softened in sleep. My heart swelled with a fierce protectiveness I was still getting used to feeling.

The hallway outside was dimly lit with small wall sconces that cast a warm glow on the polished wood floors. I padded barefoot toward what I hoped was the kitchen, guided by an archway at the end of the corridor that looked promising.

I couldn't help wondering where Kaelen had disappeared to. Was he still dealing with the Sterling men? Or was he somewhere in this beautiful house, perhaps just around the corner?

The thought of running into him alone, in the quiet darkness of his home, sent a little thrill through me that had nothing to do with fear.