CHAPTER 364: I WILL TURN YOU INTO RAT (II)

Not at all bothered by his threat, Tracy rolled her eyes at him. "Because, number one: You cannot kill me. You can try but you are not going to succeed; this is something that you need to understand. And secondly, I am teaching you how to be a gentleman, you absolute buffoon with the tact of the size of a pea."

"Buffoon?" Tao whispered from somewhere around the corner, where the door was. His voice was filled with so much dread as if someone were about to die. He must be scared for his alpha because there’s no way in hell he was worried about her. There had been people who came before them and now the grass on their graves was taller than her, and yet she was alive and well. These motherfuckers were the same. They would come and go and yet she would still be here. Steady and unchanging. Like always.

Enough with the bitter sentiments.

She clapped her hands and attracted the attention of every person in the room, startling everyone. Maybe the brief slip of magic in the air was the cause of the sudden turning of eyes into saucers but whatever. "Charming to see you slipping your alpha vibes in the air. Really charming. But you cannot lose your temper when someone is teaching you how to behave. I mean, oh my gosh. This is baby stuff. You rejected her; she lost her wolf. She moved on with someone else. You cannot expect her to stay in the same place and wait for you? Correct? So why bother with the mess? I hope you will learn how to behave better."

She then turned to look at Killian. "Back to the rescue team. There is no need. I will go and see what I can do. It will be quicker that way; at least I can vouch for the safety of the people trapped inside the research facility."

Killian frowned.

"This matter is under the jurisdiction of the shifter council," said Killian with a hint of a furrow between his brows. "If we leave this matter in your hands—"

"Those who are alive will die as well," Tracy finished for him. "I can take care of this matter and be done with it by the time you all even finish rounding up all your enforcers. And what can the shifter council do at this point? Other than lying, of course. I bet they will say that these shifters got involved in some freak accident which landed them connected and conjoined with multiple limbs."

Dominic winced behind her.

"I should go too," said Inez, as she turned to look at Tracy. Those words slipped out before she could stop them. There was no conscious thought behind these words. Or maybe it was the thought that because of her, those people were left behind to suffer even longer. Maybe their families didn’t even know where they were or that they were alive. And it was all her fault.

It’s not your fault.

Nerina whispered within her and Inez knew that she was right but somewhere, the guilt factor —the survivors’ guilt made everything twice as heavy as it was and Inez didn’t like it. It was clamping on her heart, making it hard for her to breathe.

"Absolutely not!"

More than six voices rang out in the office and Inez stepped back.

"Are you an idiot? Was this much adventure not enough for you?" said Scarlet while nursing an ice pack against her cheek.

"You are no help at all; unless you can crack arrays... you will be pretty much useless." Tracy reminded her, her voice gentle but firm.

"You are going to get in the way," said Laxus, his arms crossed over his chest as he stared down at her like a door guard. Like he would drag her back if she dared to step outside.

Killian, Dominic and Tao didn’t say anything but the three of them seemed to have the same thought process as the rest.

Inez didn’t want to agree. She had gone through shit tougher than this and she could probably sneak inside the hideout of the witch but given that her back was hurting and her shin was throbbing so badly that she could feel the humming in her bones. But deep down, she knew.

Even if she was completely safe and sound, Inez knew that she might not be of much help. Especially when her wolf had disappeared. So even if she was strong and agile, she would still be in the way.

"Sorry, I should have known better."

Laxus nodded while Finn turned and looked at Killian. "Are you going to stay here?"

Killian’s jaw worked. He considered Inez and then his gaze darted to Dominic and Tao before he stated, "Yes. I am not the only one who works for the council. He does too; he can go with you guys. Take him along with you and I will stay here."

"Why are you staying behind?" Dominic questioned as if he didn’t understand a word that Killian had said.

"Because I am her mate," Killian snapped. "I am done going back and forth with you on this, Alpha Cherith. We have talked about this and we are done. She is mine; she doesn’t want you. End of the story."

Dominic didn’t say a word but he pressed his lips so tight that they turned white. His fists were clenched tight like he was about to hurl a punch but before he could act on that very impulse, Tracy glared at him and stated, "If you cause any trouble, I am really going to send you to mars."

She then turned to look at Inez and said to her, "You can sit down now, sweetie. You took your stand and it’s not on you if someone is being stupid." She shot a really dirty look to Dominic before glancing at Tao. "You better ask your alpha to follow me nicely or else I am going to turn him into a rat."

"She is saying the truth." Veronica shuddered from the side as she shot a furtive look at Dominic. "She will really turn you into one if you don’t listen."