“Are you serious about not knowing what a caster is?” Evrin questions.

I want to stare at his tattoos, ask why he’s covered himself in them. It dawns on me that maybe they’re not tattoos at all. They could be like my markings, filled with power and ability. I bite down on my questions when Lachlan gives a rude huff at Evrin’s query. I’ve had enough of this guy.

“I’m done answering your questions. Run along now. It wasn’t a pleasure meeting you, and good luck dealing with the dick.”

I flip Lachlan the bird over my shoulder as I turn around and start the long walk towards civilization. If Talon calls, he can pick me up on the side of the road.

I ignore the part of me that’s screaming to turn around and see if these guys have any answers about why I’m different and can do the things that I can. They called themselves paladin, could I be one of those too?

Lachlan seemed to think I was...what was it...a caster and Aydin said something about making weapons out of magic. Could that be what’s inside of me? I’ve always called it power or energy for lack of a better word. Referring to it as magic makes me feel like some delusional Hogwarts wannabe.

I scrub a tired hand over my face and adjust the strap of my bag across my body, so it’s more secure against my back. Pushing through my exhaustion, I start jogging down the black deserted pavement. I run for about thirty minutes before headlights appear behind me.

I’ve fallen into the comfortable rhythm of a fast-paced run, while all the crazy events of the night play on a loop inside my head. I swerve off the warm blacktop of the road and onto the dirt of the surrounding dry landscape, to allow the vehicle to pass.

A silver SUV slows down next to me, and immediately my defenses are up. The back window whirs as it rolls down, and Aydin’s auburn beard and pale skin peek out of the shadows of the back seat.

“Are you seriously going to run all the way back into the city?”

I look over at him and shrug, picking up my pace a little.

“Get in. The least we can do is drop you off at home after you saved most of our lives tonight,” Aydin says with a smirk.

I weigh the danger of accepting a ride from these strangers, versus running in the dark out in the middle of nowhere. I’m, like, ninety-seven percent sure I could take these guys, so I decide a ride doesn’t sound like such a bad idea.

“Okay fine, but if you guys do anything shady, or if you get too rude and annoying, don’t blame me for what happens to you. It’s clear whoever said respect your elders didn’t know you assholes.”

Aydin laughs, and I hear a couple more chuckles bounce around the interior of the SUV. The vehicle crawls to a stop and Aydin unfolds his big ass out of the back seat. I’m worried they expect me to squish back into the small third row, which makes me rethink this ride decision, but thankfully Silva moves back there and gets himself situated.

I’m sandwiched between Aydin and Evrin as they manspread across the back seat. We ride in silence for a bit, and I’m starting to relax, the sounds of the tires against the smooth road beginning to make me sleepy.

“So, what’s your name?” Evrin asks me, breaking up the quiet atmosphere.

“Vinna Aylin.”

As soon as my name leaves my lips, the car comes to a screeching halt. I slam forward and thank fuck for the seatbelt, or I’d be flat against the windshield right now.

“What the hell?” I shout.

“What did you say?” Lachlan growls at me from the driver’s seat.

Everyone stares at me like I’ve grown a second head.

“What, my name?” I ask, confused.

Lachlan gives a terse nod.

“Vinna Aylin,” I repeat.

Aydin whispers, “Holy shit,” and Lachlan turns to Keegan in the passenger seat. They share a loaded look that I can’t decipher.

“Does my name mean something to you guys?” My eyes jump to each of them. “You’re all acting super fucking weird right now.”

Lachlan turns back around in the driver’s seat, and I stare at his back while no one answers my question. The silence in the car has a seriously uncomfortable weight to it, and I feel the sudden need to escape. I move to take my seatbelt off, but the car starts moving again.

Why would my name freak them out so much?

“Can you tell us a bit more about yourself?” Evrin encourages, and I look at him, hesitant and on guard.

“There’s not much to tell.”

“How old are you?” Silva queries.

“Twenty-two.”

“Have you always lived here?” Keegan prods.

“No, I moved a lot when I was little, but I’ve been in Vegas for the past eight years.”

“What’s your family like?” Aydin throws out there casually, but the tick in his beard covered jaw betrays his tone.

The rapid-fire Q and A session stalls while everyone waits for me to answer Aydin. I wrestle with how vague I should be about how I grew up, but my gut tells me to lay it all out there. I go with my gut.

“Until I was fifteen, I was raised by a monster of a woman named Beth. There wasn’t a single moment where Beth let me forget how much she despised me. I had a sister. I was five when Laiken was born--.”

I choke on the words in my throat as I’m hit with the sudden sadness and grief that always slams into me when I think about Laiken. My heightened emotions send a flash of magenta and orange energy down my arms, and I grit my teeth in an effort to control my emotions and the power.

“You okay?” Aydin asks me, and I notice he and Evrin leaning as far away from me as possible.

I tighten the stranglehold on my emotions and start again.

“I’m fine. Strong emotions feed the power,” I offer vaguely. “Beth and Laiken were murdered when I was eighteen. Beth was always mixed up in some shit, and Laiken paid the price. I’d probably be dead too if Beth hadn’t done me the favor of kicking me out of the house at fifteen. I’ve lived on my own ever since.”

I decide not to say anything about Talon. These strangers know enough about me as it is and talking about Talon feels like it should fall into snitches get stitches territory.

“That’s about all you’re going to get out of me until you tell me what’s going on.”

Veiled looks are passed back and forth at my demand, and just when I think they’re not going to say shit, good ol’ Evrin breaks the silence again.

“Um…you know you’re not human, right...Vinna?”