“Vane wouldn’t give it to me. He said there’d be nothing left when he was done. He was right,” she said in a whisper that had both Ivar and I tensing.
“Drake handled him,” Ivar promised. “From what I saw as they took him out on a stretcher, he was broken to the point it will take months to recover.”
“Why is he alive?” I growled. The man deserved so much worse than whatever Drake did to him.
“Will Drake get in trouble?” Harlow asked. She shifted in my arms so her back was pressed into me and she could face her demon protector better.
“No, Vane isn’t stupid enough to tell them what happened,” he promised. “And he’s alive because Drake and I both answer to someone more powerful than we are.”
“I answer to no one,” I said. That earned a small chuckle from Ivar who nodded approvingly.
“So, now that you have a whole group of misfits at your side, what next?” Ivar asked Harlow. She gave a weak chuckle that quickly shifted to a sob.
“Nothing because I’m fucking useless. Hel didn’t need me, she’s wrong,” she said around her tears. Every offer of protest we had was met with more tears so we stopped. I pulled her closer and held her through it.
By the time Drake returned, she was quiet and, I knew from her lack of talking, numb. He looked relieved to see her awake until he took in my grim face.
“She’s having a hard time. Whatever they convinced her of in there, she believes it,” I explained. Drake handed me the tray before picking her up far too easily and settling back down with her in his lap.
“Vane was trying to break you, Harlow. But you’re fucking strong. So snap out of this. You’re going to get him back for this, right? Don’t let him win,” he ground out. I was going to protest at his brash delivery, but she let out a sniffle and sat up a bit straighter. Apparently, tough love worked on her this time.
“It was you guys. Hiro, Roman, Crew, Layne, and you that told me for days that I was useless, trash, unattractive, horrible, awful things for hours on end,” she admitted. The thought of her having to hear that was awful, but from our mouths? Unforgivable.
“It wasn’t us,” Drake promised. “If I have to fuck you here and now to prove it, I will. I bet Roman would join right in.”
“I would if you weren’t too weak for that,” I argued. But the laugh it pulled from her had my fury draining right away.
Monty let out a growl but it was half hearted. We were all just relieved she was awake now. He did, however, convince her to take her medicine before the conversation could continue.
“Eat,” Drake ordered as he reached for the sandwich and pushed it into her hands. Her nose wrinkled as she forced it up to her mouth and took a bite, but the moment she chewed, she finished the rest in less than a minute, eating so fast I knew she’d regret it. I slid the tray away so that her stomach could settle, instead massaging her foot that was hanging off of Drake’s lap to distract her.
“What did I miss?” she asked as she leaned against Drake’s chest.
“Us losing our minds,” I explained with a rough laugh. “We looked everywhere for you after Drake checked solitary and didn’t find you.”
“Where was I?” she gasped. “I thought it was solitary.”
“No, it was a secret wing off of the faculty hall. Fifth floor. And you weren’t the only patient there. I’m going to get that taken care of when you’re better though.”
“I knew you were a good guy,” she teased around a yawn.
“Take your medicine before you sleep,” Ivar said. He came over and dropped something in her mouth before I grabbed her drink and held the straw to her lips. She took them without protest.
“I’m not a good guy, Harlow. I’m a half breed that feeds just like a demon and more than that, I liked hurting Vane. I’d have killed him, if Hel had allowed it.”
“She keeps getting us confused with good men,” Ivar added with a small laugh.
“I’d say you view yourself a bit too harshly,” I told Drake. “Without you, she’d still be there.” We fell silent as Harlow slipped into a deep sleep. Drake settled her on the bed while I filled in the journal and Ivar disappeared again. It was going to be a long night, but I hoped when she woke up tomorrow, she’d know that whatever image of us she’d been subjected to was fake. That we’d never hurt her. Even the demons she saw the good in were wrapped around her finger. She’d changed Dark Haven forever, the moment she walked through the door, and I had a strong feeling our biggest battles were yet to come.
ChapterSeventeen
Harlow
Monday Late Afternoon
Courtyard
The fresh air had enough of a chill that I shivered and tucked myself into Hiro’s side. He didn’t complain as he wrapped an arm around me.