Chapter 68
Seri sat there on the side of the bed, biting his right thumbnail, while doing his best to not panic as he waited for Severo to finish showering.
It would be fine. He was sure he was just overreacting…maybe.
He flinched when the door to the bathroom opened and Severo walked out. A towel wrapped around his waist, he was using another to dry his hair.
The Dweller stopped in his tracks on catching sight of him, the man’s brow raising in question as he asked, “What’s wrong?”
“Possibly…nothing?” Seri winced.
Severo slowly walked over to him. After tossing the towel he’d been using for his hair onto the bed, he grabbed hold of his hands and lightly traced a thumb over one of his poor gnawed-on nails.
“Well, whatever it is, problem or not, it’s obviously making you anxious.
So, tell me, and we can decide together if anything should be done, hmm? ”
As the Shadow Dweller smiled carefully down at him, Seri relaxed slightly. “Remember Emmet Finley?”
“I do. You met with him about five weeks ago, didn’t you? Around the time shit went to hell at the Bureau,” Severo said, before frowning and adding, “I am also now remembering that you mentioned something about possible illegal experiments and him likely being in danger.”
“I think…” He swallowed. “I think something’s happened to him.
He won’t answer, I even tried calling. I wouldn’t have brought it up, and I probably wouldn’t have thought anything was wrong if this was back when we first started talking.
Because back then, it usually took days for him to text back.
But the thing is, after meeting up that one time, that changed.
Emmet started answering back within minutes. ”
“How long has it been since you’ve heard from him, Seri?”
“Four days… I’ve sent multiple messages each day, and…
nothing. I would have asked Killian to track his phone, but…
he’s not here anymore, so…” Seri bit his lip, not wanting to admit, on top of everything, that he missed the Siren being there.
He still talked to the man, but he wasn’t sure how much computer access the Cryptid had at the moment, so it hadn’t felt right bringing it up.
Severo pursed his lips. “While I don’t want you to sit here worrying, I don’t think him going suddenly silent is a good sign.
Write down everything you know while I get ready for work.
Text it to me. I’ll make some calls as soon as I can.
” The Dweller pressed a kiss to his forehead.
“I promise you, I will do everything in my power to make sure he is found.”
Seri nodded, even as he worried about what state Emmet would be in when he was found. If he was found…
Why hadn’t he said something that first day? He shouldn’t have waited so long…
Severo eyed the message from Seri, his frown deepening as he read it. The full details were concerning, yet vague. At least, there was an address. Regardless of if it had been properly registered, there would be documents to find, and a trail of some kind.
Walking into his office, he spun back around when the door slammed shut, and found Brom Grimm standing there, blocking the exit. Dressed in business casual, the Fate’s hair was perfectly styled, while the jacket the man had on seemed to bulge on his muscular form.
At a little over seven feet tall, with a hawk-like nose, Brom’s irritation was clear in the flush on his pale cheeks, his clenched square jaw, and slightly narrowed reddish-purple eyes.
“I do believe this would be considered entrapment.”
“I’d hardly call me waiting for you in your own office entrapment,” Brom drawled. “Now, we both know why I’m here.”
“Oh, so you do realize it’s my office, and you entering while I’m not here is out of line?”
“I am your boss now.”
“Mm, and you have been for five weeks. What about it? Or rather, what about today makes you think I will say shit to you about two men who don’t fucking work here anymore?
“Actually, you know what, I think I want to file an HR complaint. You know, about a superior trying to cross personal boundaries, and making harassing phone calls. Not to mention, the threats towards volunteer workers who also happen to be family of staff. Any of that ring a bell?”
The Fate’s eyes narrowed. “You know where they are and who they are with, don’t you?”
“Again, that sounds very personal, which means I don’t have to say shit.”
Brom let out a growl. “It’s time you inform his family of where he is!”
Severo laughed. “Oh no, his family knows where he is. And I believe they told you to fuck off, multiple times, in some very colorful ways, I might add, as Vivian Grimm has a rather wonderful way with words.”
“I could just take the information from you the hard way,” Brom sneered.
His eyes narrowed at that, his body tensing. “You try and I’m out of here.”
The Fate slowly smirked. “Do you really think you could stop me?”
Severo chuckled darkly as he began to reach out for the darkness.
“I know I can, and you know it too. But I am getting tired of the threats, Brom.
I'm tired of this fit you're throwing over you fuckers not getting your way. So how about you get the fuck out of my office, and rethink yourself before you do something that will end with you losing another Department Director, hmm?”
Severo watched the man’s jaw clench, and then he saw resolve.
Well…it was more that he saw the shift in his eyes, changing from a dark reddish-purple to blood red.
The second Brom’s muscles tightened, and he began to reach out, Severo slipped into the shadow realm, leaving a puppet behind in his place.
Severo laughed as the Fate touched the shadow puppet and flew into a rage, kicking over his desk in anger on realizing it wasn’t really him. While Brom continued to destroy the room, his laughter slowly dropped away as the seriousness of the situation slid home.
When they were younger, Cyrus had once told him that if one of his relative’s eyes ever changed to blood red, and they reached for him in the way the man just did, he was to run. Because they were trying to rake his mind, and that person could not be trusted. So, run he did.
So much for his new job—fuck…