Chapter 25 Dex
DEX
Dex gripped Luc’s neck as he flew them toward the cliffs north of the city. “I know I can’t come with you, but I hate this.”
His stomach flipped, and he clutched Luc tighter.
It wasn’t flying that had him in knots. Soaring through the air wasn’t too bad as long as Dex didn’t look down. He was safe in Luc’s strong arms.
But Luc was making his move against the Eternal Realm, and Dex wanted to tell him to wait. It had come around so quickly, and felt like walking into a black pit, not knowing what lay within.
What if Luc’s plan didn’t work and Dex had to live the rest of his life knowing it was Luc or his parents?
“I hate it, too, Dex. But everything we need is in place.”
“What if you don’t come back?” Dex closed his eyes. He hated this fear more than Luc going without him. Fuck. Losing someone he loved—or was growing to love—was the same old worry that had plagued him for years.
“There’s nothing to indicate that the council wants me trapped anywhere but on Earth. Remember, I’ll do everything in my power to come back to you. And my power isn’t small, even if it’s not all-encompassing.”
Why wasn’t that as comforting as it should be?
“I know, but I don’t want to lose you. Dammit. I thought I was getting better at dealing with this.” Maybe playing with fear wasn’t more than a trill. Luc had spoken of mastery, but Dex didn’t feel a shred of confidence anywhere inside him.
Luc’s hold tightened, his wings beating faster.
“You are getting better at dealing with fear. You’re facing it.
Completely banishing a fear isn’t the only way to conquer it.
That’s not always possible. But you’re talking about it, asking me to help you through it, and not trying to hide.
As tempting as it seems, we can’t have complete control of life.
Most of the time, there’s no guarantee, even if we wish there was. ”
Dex swallowed, his throat dry. “You say that like I’m not the only one wishing.”
“You’re not. My desire for guarantees got me into a hell of a lot of trouble, and I’m slowly letting go of my urge to control outcomes.
I’d rather channel that desire into positive outlets, like taking charge of you when you need it and want it.
” Luc took a deep, shuddering breath. “I can’t control anyone who doesn’t want me to, regardless of what magic allows.
That’s a dark path, doomed to fail. But I can try my best to make things happen.
Not being in control doesn’t mean I’ll fail. ”
It didn’t, though Dex supposed he’d been acting as if it did for years, and it sounded as if Luc had too.
Dex couldn’t do anything about losing friends or loved ones, and on some level, he’d assumed that helplessness made him doomed. He couldn’t stop death, couldn’t control it, and he’d let fear of inevitable loss overwhelm him, living as if the loss was already happening.
Dex cleared his scratchy throat. “You’re right. We have to try.”
“We’ll try our hardest and focus on hope. That’s all we can do.”
The words could have sounded defeatist, but Luc was determined. Confident. As strong as his arms were around Dex, a strength Dex took comfort in. Luc stood with him. He couldn’t control everything like he did when they played, but this was enough.
Luc reached the cliffs and soared through the trees to land on a deck attached to a large home Dex swore hadn’t been there a second ago.
Luc inspected the area as if he’d never seen it before either. “It’s probably overkill leaving you here for protection, but none of us like having our mates out of reach.”
Dex had the next few days off work after shifting his schedule around. Just in case. Though hopefully, he wouldn’t be at Dante’s house for more than a day.
“Overkill doesn’t bother me. Besides, Harper made me promise to come over and keep him company.”
Harper’s plea had nearly been convincing, except for the fact that he was better friends with everyone—except Ollie—than Dex. He suspected Harper wanted him to feel welcome.
There’d been a ton of coordinating over the past few days. Ash was venturing to the Eternal Realm with Luc, Onyx, Valac, and the vampires, leaving Harper and Nico behind. Apparently, everyone had decided Dante’s house was the safest place to wait.
Luc set Dex down, keeping an arm and a wing wrapped around him. A small flock of gray birds circled overhead, then suddenly swooped down to inspect them with sharp, beady eyes.
“I still can’t believe he let me in.” Luc laughed, low and bitter.
Dex frowned at the birds. Their behavior seemed unusual. “You mean Dante?”
Luc nodded, stroking his chin. “I spoke to Ash and Onyx, and they didn’t give much away, but I assume Dante isn’t coming with us. He supports the cause, of course, but doesn’t share Ollie’s optimistic view of me.”
Dex felt the pain in Luc’s words. “Inviting you here has to be a sign he’s considering forgiving you.”
“I hope you’re right.” Luc gave Dex a small smile. “Let’s go in.”
The glass doors leading inside were open, and the living room was full of people. Onyx and Nico lounged on a couch with two women. A man Dex didn’t recognize sat opposite, and a demon was looking out the window, her light gray wings folded at her back.
Ash was in the kitchen, pointing at a bunch of containers while Harper listened, a patient expression on his face.
Ollie and Dante were nowhere to be seen.
Onyx jumped from the couch. “You’re here at last.” He threw an annoyed glare Luc’s way, like he was late to the party, before hugging Dex. “Good to see you.”
“You too.” Dex fidgeted. You’d think he was a long-time member of Onyx’s family or something. “Is Rowan coming over?”
“Here?” Onyx drew back as if shocked. “No, we’re meeting him at the club.”
Ash joined then and nodded at Luc. He smiled almost shyly in return, like he couldn’t believe Ash wasn’t taking back his acceptance.
Luc wanted the other demons’ forgiveness so deeply. Dex couldn’t imagine how agonizing it must be. Maybe the agony was deserved, but punishment didn’t have to go on forever.
Ash cleared his throat. “The food is all organized.”
“No one’s starving, that’s for sure,” Harper added under his breath.
Ash pulled Harper against him. “What kind of mate would I be if I let you starve?”
“A terrible one.” Harper caught Dex’s eye, his lips twitching in amusement.
Ash laughed, and Onyx said, “Glad that’s all worked out. Where the hell is Dante?”
Luc stiffened against Dex’s side. “Isn’t he staying behind?”
“I’m staying behind,” one of the women on the couch said. She stood and maneuvered across the room to hold out a hand to Dex. “I’m Pamala.”
He shook it. “I’m Dex, and this is Luc.”
“Oh, I know who he is.” Pamala seemed to stand taller, giving off a regal air.
Luc’s stiff posture remained, and tension seemed to settle over everyone. Pamala must be a demon, though there was no way for Dex to tell from her appearance.
Luc placed a hand on Dex’s shoulder, while his attention remained on Pamala. “You’re here even after I imprisoned you?”
She waved an airy hand. “What can I say? I’m a sucker for a cause.”
The corner of Luc’s mouth twitched. “Aren’t we all. I appreciate you staying behind. You’ll have my unending thanks for looking after my mate.”
“As long as you look after Lillian and Maxwell, there’s no need for thanks. Besides”—Pamala turned her attention to Dex—“I hear you’re a friend of Ollie’s.”
“Yeah, I am. Are you?” How many demons did Ollie know?
The demon by the window turned to face them, revealing a crisscrossed length of fabric binding her breasts without restricting her wings. She raised a brow. “Friend? Is that what you call someone who kidnaps you these days?”
“Ren,” hissed the man whom Dex presumed was Maxwell.
“What?” Ren shrugged. “Did Pamala not kidnap Ollie?”
“Pamala only kidnapped me to try and save her friends. It was a misunderstanding,” Ollie said as he came in from the hallway on the other end of the room. “She’s Ellie’s mate,” he added to Dex.
“Ellie has a mate?” Dex didn’t know Ollie’s coworker well, but they’d hung out a bunch over the years.
Ollie nodded. “Awesome, right?”
“Yes,” Pamala said primly. “And it’s nice to socialize with you, Ollie. Now that Dante has calmed down.”
“Who said I’ve calmed down?” Dante filled the doorway, his wings towering over his shoulders.
“You did.” Pamala braced her hands on her hips. “You said we were good.”
Dante stalked forward. “We are. Like Ollie said, it was a misunderstanding. I’d have acted similarly in your shoes.” He turned to face Luc. “I’m coming with you.”
Luc took a step back. “You are?”
“Of course. You’re doing the right thing for the first time in a thousand years. I’m not missing it.”
Luc’s lips stretched in a wide, unrestrained smile, and Dex’s heart leapt. Luc would earn back his brothers’ trust. Dex was sure of it.
Nothing was so broken that you couldn’t try to fix it.
Ollie wrapped an arm around Dante, lifting his chin as he met Luc’s gaze. “You can do this. I know you can.”
“Thank you, Ollie. Together, I believe we can.”
The tension returned to the room, this time with a crackling undercurrent, like lightning about to strike.
Onyx stepped forward. “All right, no more declarations. Let’s get on with it, or we’ll be here forever. We can all have a big moment when we get back.”
Luc playfully shoved Onyx in the shoulder, and he shoved Luc back.
Nerves coursed through Dex. There was no way around this. All he could do was wait. That, and give his mate one more kiss.