Page 78 of Jinx

“That’s preposterous,” Earhart snarled. “If you care so much about her station as a Heart, you wouldn’t be so willing to abandon her to this pack of abominations. Not even the gods would condone such desecration.”

Alpha Noakes turned on Earhart as well. “Don’t presume to know the will of the gods,” she warned. “She may be their Heart, or she may not be, but it is not up to us to decide.”

Hassan turned back to me and immediately softened his tone again. “How did you come to find these men, Cordelia?”

I tried not to fidget under the expectant stares weighing me down. At least it was a question I could answer truthfully without damning us. “Honestly, I just felt drawn here. Like this was where I was supposed to be.”

“She’s been brainwashed,” Alpha Kasteel butted in with a superior tone. “Coached into saying what they think we want to hear.” His haughty glare turned on Alaric. “To think you could try and subvert the will of the gods like this is a blasphemous attempt at self-preservation.”

His words swirled in my head, and I felt dizzy. The weight of this damned necklace was dragging me deeper into the gaping wound it had created where my heartstrings should have been. Was he really trying to say that I might not be their Heart? I knew it was impossible, but even so, fear surged through my veins. Then the final words in his statement registered.

“Wait. What do you mean ‘self-preservation’?” I looked at Alpha Earhart even though the words had been Kasteel’s.

“Father.” Alaric’s tone was sharper than I’d ever heard it. “Don’t.”

Alpha Earhart narrowed his eyes and pointedly ignored his son’s warning. “Without a Heart to anchor them,” he said, “gryphons become feral. Dangerous. They become like beasts⁠—”

“That’s enough, Everard,” Alpha Noakes said, sounding tired.

“—and they’re put down like beasts. This embarrassing pack of broken rejects won’t see the new year.”

Acid burned in my throat and the world spun, making me stumble back a step. The guys had just told me how Lucian was treated, and it still wasn’t enough to soften the blow.

“You would murder them? You would murder your own son?”

“He is no son of mine.” Earhart’s words dripped with hatred.

I turned to Alphas Hassan and Noakes, our only allies in the room, but their expressions didn’t comfort me.

“It’ll be alright, little Heart,” Hassan said, even though his tone said the exact opposite. “Have faith in the gods.”

You mean the gods that I believed were pure myth up until a few days ago? Okay.

Kasteel made a rude noise. “With any luck, the gods will put her with a drift that can teach her some respect.”

“Get. Out.” Alaric’s words shook with barely contained rage.

“You dare⁠—”

“He’s right.” Alpha Noakes’s steady voice rose above the maelstrom of testosterone and animosity. “We’ve done what we came here to do and taken enough of this drift’s time and hospitality.” She offered me a sad smile and nodded at Alaric before making for the front door. Earhart and Kasteel followed her, and Hassan hung back a moment to speak with Alaric.

I was stuck, though, a sculpture of ice on the verge of shattering. I don’t know how long we were alone before I felt a tentative hand on my shoulder.

“Pixie?”

I sucked in air, like I hadn’t been breathing the whole time. Maybe I hadn’t been. I spun around to be met by Alaric’s carefully guarded expression. It told me nothing, and I needed everything. I needed them back, all of them, inside my heart.

“Get this off,” I gasped, tearing at the black pendant on its chain around my neck. “Get it off me!”

Before I could damage the necklace, Ric captured my hands so Bellamy could undo the clasp with quick fingers. As soon as it was off, everything surged back in like a tidal wave. I welcomed it as it ripped through me—regret, hope, grief, anger, fear, devotion. It overwhelmed me, and I let it, thankful that I could feel again.

I threw myself at Alaric, and he lifted me into his arms, his heartstring as wild and desperate as his kiss. Rami moved against my back while Lucian and Bel flanked my sides. Each of them touched me, kissed me, reminded me of the truth. Even Quinn took my hand for a brief moment before pulling away again.

Once our racing hearts had calmed and our writhing bonds had been soothed, I resurfaced from the haze to find that Ric moved us to the couch. Rami sat next to us, Lucian perched on the arm, Bel settled on the coffee table, and Quinn stood near his twin. I shifted into the space between Ric and Rami, nuzzling into them and taking Ric’s hand.

“Why does he hate you so much? You’re his son!”

Ric’s jaw was tight, a muscle fluttering under his trimmed beard. “I was his son,” he corrected. “We become aware of our beast in our teens, but the ability to take their form isn’t granted until we attend the academy. Can’t have a bunch of impulsive teenage gryphons running around.” His lips twitched like he wanted to smile, but he couldn’t quite get there. A heavy sigh left him instead, and he visibly collapsed under the weight. “I shifted when I was sixteen, without the Oracle’s intervention.”