The True One

Chapter 27

Verity

It's a good thing I had a manicure scheduled for tomorrow because this time—the second occasion tonight that I found myself in this situation—a nail broke as I used my hand like a mechanical claw to extract Alek from Chip.

"Stop it!" I yelled at Alek, but internally, I was more upset by the jagged line cutting across my fingernail than by the fact that Alek had again chosen violence. It was Chip, after all, and if Chip weren't already obnoxious, him dangling crucial and sensitive knowledge in front of Alek was enough to catapult him into the land of pure assholery. Still, I had a reputation as a moral person to uphold, and that meant Alek couldn't be allowed to stain my father's light grey sofa with Chip's nose blood.

Alek felt tense under my touch. Under different circumstances, I would have enjoyed running my hand over his taught bicep as I grasped onto him. Under these circumstances, all I could do was hope he would get himself under control. I tried to signal to him telepathically, but his wall was up and as fortified as a castle gatehouse. The yelling had its desired effect, however, and after a moment of deep breathing, he put up his arms in a gesture of acquiescence.

"I need him to tell me everything he knows," he said to me. "We both need that."

"Yes, but let's use our words to get that result," I weighed my strategy here, then pushed Alek to the side and stepped over to where Chip still sat next to Norvin. "Chip, if you're really my mate—"

"Of course, I am."

"Right." My mate. Saying those words linked to Chip made my mouth go dry. "As my mate, doesn't that mean you want to help me?"

Alek made a guttural noise I took to mean he was most displeased with the way this conversation was going.

"That's all I've ever wanted to do, Verity," Chip said. "My whole life is dedicated to being your helpmate."

More grumbling emanated from behind me.

"Well then, you'll want to tell me everything I need to know. Including what Aurum Venari did to turn you into a werewolf, what they did to me... and what they did to Alek."

"Chip..." Norvin reached across the couch and clamped a hand down onto my fake mate's shoulder.

Chip ignored him. "Why do you care about Alek so much?"

Aware that Chip might break through my psychic defenses at any moment, I kept my true thoughts about Alek closely guarded. "He's a player in this. I need to understand all the players to understand the game."

"Careful!" Norvin warned Chip, who squirmed under his grasp.

"Leave me alone, Norvin."

"That's not how this works, remember?" Norvin said. "Go ahead, then. Tell your little stories to them. Maybe they'll even believe you."

Chip let out an exasperated sigh. "Why wouldn't they? It's the truth."

"Remember, gifts can be given, but they can also be taken away." His voice lowered. "You've been given a lot of gifts, haven't you, Chip?"

"What does that mean? What gifts?" Alek's disgust spilled over into words laced with venom. "Jesus, Norvin, I can't believe this. Seriously. You're a traitor to everything I ever thought you stood for."

Norvin's right eye began to twitch. "If you understood..."

"You've never wanted me to understand! You've wanted to keep me in the dark. And this asshole..." He pointed to Chip. "This sorry piece of shit knows why."

"Maybe I do. Doesn't mean I'm going to tell you," Chip scoffed.

This conversation was going off the rails soon if I didn't steer us back to the topic at hand. "Remember, Chip, I need you too. It's important. For our.." I swallowed and then forced out the rest of the sentence. "For our relationship. Strong relationships like ours need to be built on trust and full transparency, right?"