Free Speak (Witches & Warlocks Book 1) by R. M. Webb Page A

her guardian her whole life — appointed by people way more powerful than you.”
    “You and I both know she doesn’t deserve what’s happening to her.”
    “You have no idea what she is.” It would have been nice to hear something other than venom in Becca’s voice.
    “The real tragedy is that she has no idea what she is.”
    What the hell? I shuffle a little closer and I swear I hear them both gasp and turn towards me.
    “She’s here,” they whisper in unison. How did they know? What’s happening? If only I could think even kind of clearly right now. Becca’s heels come clicking towards me, the rhythm off beat and syncopated as if she’s staggering. There’s no way I want her to find me eavesdropping, not after that, although maybe she already knows I heard. This whole thing is hard enough to figure out without the too many drinks floating around in my system, making my thoughts all murky. And now I’m feeling draggy, tired, worn thin to the bone. I push off the wall and round the corner toward the bathroom and run straight into Becca.
    “You so do not want to go down there,” she says, her words slurring again.
    I don’t know what to say so I say the first thing that comes to my mind. “I don’t feel so good.” It’s the truth. The conversation I just overheard is mixing with the alcohol and that’s all jumbling up with this sudden exhaustion and my stomach is lurching under the onslaught of adrenaline.
    The tiger nudges me down the hallway towards Noah but I definitely don’t want to run into him. I have no idea what I’d say. My indecision paralyzes me until Becca grabs my arm and tugs me towards her. “Babe.” She hisses the word into my face, a heavy whisper dipped in beer breath. “Noah’s down there. You don’t want to go down there now.”
    She pulls me back towards the pool table and I let her. If I ever had any fight in me whatsoever, it’s gone. Caput. I’m Zoe, Becca’s doormat, ready to bend to her every will. No, that’s not fair. Becca looks out for me. Or at least I thought she looked out for me. I thought she was my seeing-eye dog, but maybe she’s more like my guard dog.
    “Oh, no!” Luke even manages to make concern sound sexy. “What’s wrong?” He tucks me into his arm and some of the exhaustion melts away, like he leeches it from my body with his.
    “I just saved her from a near tragic run-in at the bathrooms. The last guy Zoe hung out with is a bit of an ass.”
    No, he’s not. Apparently Becca’s the ass. Apparently I am something that I’m not allowed to know about and she’s been appointed my keeper by someone who’s very powerful. I don’t even … I can’t …
    I want to go home.
    My senses have decided that now is the time for me to have to deal with even more information and I’m seeing and hearing and feeling everything. Strange look between Carter and Becca, Luke’s heart beating in his chest, the rough skin on his hand tickling my shoulder, people laughing, plates clinking, TV’s yammering, pool balls colliding, drinks slamming into tables, waitresses in their tight little uniforms swarming the joint like ants …
    “I need to get out of here.” I say it as I think it and I mean it with everything that I am. I can’t handle all this. There’s too much to process and I’d stretched myself to my very limit this evening before I happened to overhear the weirdest conversation between my so-called best friend and the guy I really thought I wanted to know better.
    Becca looks mortified and Carter just scowls. “I’ve had way too much to drink to drive.” She says it like an accusation.
    “That’s fine.” I’m nudging my way towards the door, pulling out from under Luke’s arm. When I say it’s fine, I really mean it’s fine because let me tell you, I don’t think I want any alone time with Becca right now. I don’t know what I’d say or how I’d say it or… well, let’s be real. I know what I’ll say. Nothing.
    ‘Cause I’m