Marguerite frowned as Wren kissed her lips tenderly.
"I'm sorry I fucked up your life, Maggie," he said in a low tone as he pulled back to stare down at her. His eyes burned her with their sad resignation.
With regret.
He stroked her cheek with his fingers as he stared at her as if trying to commit her features to memory.
Then two seconds later, he vanished from in front of her.
The heat from his hand still lingered on her cheek while the rest of her felt cold from his sudden absence.
"Wren?" she called, looking around the room for him. Surely he would pop right back like he'd done a minute ago... wouldn't he?
"Wren? Where are you?"
Someone knocked on her door.
What is he doing now?
Sure it was him, she went and swung open the door to find Dr. Alexander standing on her front porch.
"Hi, Marguerite," he said. "I've been-"
"Not now, please, Dr. Alexander. I've got a serious problem."
"Is there anything I can do to help you?"
Disgusted, scared, and frustrated by what was happening to her, she spoke without thinking. "No. Not unless you know some way to track a vanishing tiger."
She saw the color drain from his face. "Then Wren really is here."
It was then she knew...
That was why Dr. Alexander and the others had shown up to bail Wren out of jail. "You know what he is?"
"Do you?"
His defensive vagueness was starting to piss her off. "Why are you here, Dr. Alexander?" she asked in a cold tone.
"You haven't been in class for four days and you haven't answered your phone."
Her stomach tightened in reservation. "How do you know that? You're not my advisor anymore."
His handsome face was grim. "No, I'm not. But I knew you were most likely the last one to see Wren and I have to find him."
"Why?"
"Because he's dead if we don't."
Marguerite shrieked at the deep voice behind her. She turned to see a tall, blond man dressed in black. "How did you get into my house?"
He didn't answer as he went to where Wren had been sleeping. "He was here," he said to Julian. "His scent is all over the place." The man pierced her with an angry stare. "Where did he go?"
"Who the hell are you?" she demanded.
"Fury," he snarled, "and it's not just a name, it's my temperament. So stop being defensive, human. I don't got time or patience for it. We're here to save your boyfriend before he gets himself killed."
Dr. Alexander cleared his throat in a warning gesture. "You know me, Marguerite. Believe me when I say that we're on Wren's side. Do you know where he is?"
She hesitated as she considered her options. Wren had called for Dr. Alexander and Bill when he'd been locked in jail. But then, he hadn't sought them out while wounded.
Did that mean they couldn't be trusted?
Or did it just mean that he had trusted her more?
Unsure of the answer, she decided that the only way to help him now was to take a chance and pray it was the right decision.
"No. He vanished a second ago."
"What did he say before he left?" Fury asked.
"I don't know. He told me I needed to run with him and I told him I can't just leave. He got this weird look on his face and then he apologized for screwing up my life. Two seconds later, he was gone."
"Shit," Fury snarled as he met Dr. Alexander's gaze. "He's headed you know where."
Dr. Alexander looked disgusted.
"Grab Vane and have him meet me there." Fury had barely finished those words before he, too, vanished.
Dr. Alexander cursed as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and pressed a button.
"Vane," he said after a few seconds, "we found where he's been. But we just missed him. Literally. I think he's headed back to Sanctuary to confront them."
Dr. Alexander frowned at her as he paused to listen. "No. I have the woman he's been with. I'll keep her with me for the time being. Can you and Fury handle the others?"
Marguerite chewed her nail as she waited.
"I'm taking her to Jean-Luc's. Let me know what happens." He hung up the phone. "Pack an overnight bag."
"Why?"
His gaze was severe and cutting with its intensity. "They know who you are, Marguerite. It's why I'm here. I checked with your professors, who told me you'd been missing classes. I was terrified that they'd already found you and were holding you to bait Wren. You're both damn lucky that they haven't tracked you down yet, but believe me, it's only a matter of time until they do. It's imperative that we get you to safety. Now."
Still, she wanted some answers. "Who are 'we'?"
"Look, I'll explain all this later. Right now, I need you to get the hell out of here before I have to kill people who I generally consider my friends."
He was right. She was being stupid when she'd already seen what they were capable of.
Nodding, Marguerite turned and ran to her room, where she grabbed a small bag that she quickly filled with a change of clothes, underwear, some makeup, and a nightgown.
By the time she returned, Bill Laurens had joined Dr. Alexander in her living room.
She arched a brow at the lawyer.
"Yeah, I know," Bill said. "I look like a mild-mannered corporate attorney. But I can wrestle a bear or tiger any day. C'mon, we need to get you out of here."
"How long will I be gone?"
Bill exchanged a nervous look with Dr. Alexander. "We don't know."
Agitated at how fast her entire life was changing and how powerless she was to stop it, she grabbed her cell phone and charger from the counter. She led the men out of her house, then locked the door.
"You don't really think Wren went to get himself killed, do you?" she asked Dr. Alexander as he led her to his black Land Rover.
Both men answered at once. "To save you? Yes."