Before her, the four companions she had known all her life, and travelled with stared at Leonard.
It wasn't a friendly stare.
Far from it.
The air between them crackled with challenge and suspicion. Tessa had a bad feeling about this. If things continued the way they were going, someone was going to throw the first punch, and knowing this group, that would quickly escalate into broken bones—or worse.
"Who are you, and what are you doing beside Tessa Snake?" Valen demanded.
His face was puffed up with annoyance, his arms folded tightly across his chest. Although he kept his distance, it was obvious he wasn't backing down.
Tessa sighed.
Here we go again.
Leonard didn't bother answering.
Instead, he simply looked at Valen with complete boredom, as though the merman wasn't important enough to deserve a response.
Valen nearly exploded.
"Did you see that look?" he complained. "That snake is one vicious person. Never trust snakes."
Julian completely ignored the argument.
