Chapter Seven #3
She forgot he had never met Gideon before and that Gideon was considered ‘attractive.’ But this was not happening. Seth could set his gaze somewhere else.
Sera attempted to block Seth’s eyes, but she was considerably smaller than her brother and Seth simply craned his head around her.
Sera blew out a breath of exasperation, puffing the fine hairs that had come loose of her pins.
“Did I interrupt a meeting?” Gideon asked.
“No,” Sera replied through her teeth, “you were just about to leave.”
Gideon’s eyes landed on her, accusation flaring in the annoying depths of brown. Here it comes. “You’re hiding something.”
“What? From you? Never.”
He held his damn finger in her face and she’d have reached out and tried to snap it backward if she thought it would do anything other than annoy him. He was nearly shouting, voice loud and accusing, “I never hear a word from you unless you’re being booked at headquarters.”
“Then quit,” she retorted with a shrug. “Then you can simply read about my failures in the newssheets.”
“Or when you’re working with rogue vigilantes in dark alleys.”
“For the last time, she came to my aide because I was about to be murdered.” She took a deep breath and Gideon did the same. For a few seconds, he was blessedly silent.
He rubbed his neck and, well, his silence was bound to end sooner rather than later. “Hell, Sera, it wasn’t supposed to end up with you thinking you couldn’t tell me if you were in trouble. But I get the feeling something significant is going on.”
Sera’s fingers twirled together, around and around. “Nothing. Nothing I can’t handle.”
“And if I can help?”
“You can’t.”
“Sera, let the man help.” Seth slid into her side, easing her out of the way. “Pleasure to meet you, I’m Seth Morrigan. Sera mentioned a brother, but you are not what I pictured.” Seth’s smile suggested reality was far superior to imagination. A revolted shiver raced down her spine.
Gideon crossed his arms and gave a quirk of his head as he measured Seth with his eyes, assessing weaknesses or whatever bullshit protective scrutiny he claimed was for her sake.
It was tactical, if Sera knew Gideon at all, but Seth must have mistook the assessment for interest, for his posture grew considerably looser.
Sera groaned. This was a nightmare. Somewhere behind her, she could hear Kieran and Varian discussing when they would meet again, then she noticed Varian shimmy toward the door and freedom.
Gideon smiled, and Sera saw the effect of it first-hand in the color on Seth’s dark cheeks. She turned to Seth. “No.”
“But…?”
“No.” She shooed Seth away. That was one relationship she did not need exploring. It was as if her brother was interested in her… brother.
Gideon watched with mild interest. “That the friend?”
“Yes, Seth is a dear friend,” she replied, pressing two fingers against her temple.
“I like him.” Gideon said.
Sera shot him a glare so scathing his smile faltered. He liked the attention, but Seth was too young, too sweet, and too male. Sera put a finger in Gideon’s face and growled before pushing Seth to the door.
“You. Out.” She briefly noted Varian waiting in the foyer and his quick intake of breath when Seth was pushed out to join him, but she had more important things to worry about. Seth was an adult and Varian wasn’t Cole, however much they looked the same.
Cole was tall, imposing. He used charisma to get what he wanted until his mercurial rage surfaced.
Varian looked as threatening as a puppy.
There was an earnest sorrow in his eyes, elegance in his posture, and a softness to him that Cole couldn’t pretend, even when he was being charming.
The pair of them would survive a little social awkwardness.
“You.” Sera rounded on Gideon, not able to tower over him, but her glare should suffice. “I don’t want you involved in this. I can take care of myself. Besides, if you knew, you’d be unreasonable and I don’t want you charging into the problem and putting yourself at risk.”
His eyes narrowed. “I’m not leaving until you tell me.”
“It’s not your choice. I’ll have you kicked out.” Sera did not know if removing her brother from the building was within her realm of power, but he did not know either.
“It’s not your house.”
“It’s not your business.”
“You know, there were some questions that I needed for that investigation,” he said, voice a melodramatic show of casual. He snapped his fingers like he had just remembered a crucial detail. “Damn it. I don’t have my notes, guess I’ll just have to insist you come down to HQ with me.”
Sera was going to throttle him. If there was any chance of doing real damage, she might have. “I thought that was Rachel’s job. Speaking of, where is your better half?”
Sera only mentioned Rachel because she knew it would rile him.
Rachel and Gideon met while in the guardian academy for their training.
Sera was not permitted to attend, as a lowly human.
Still, it was Rachel that helped them off the streets when they lost their mother.
Rachel’s devotion to Gideon was obvious to anyone with eyes, while he remained oblivious.
“She is not my better half.”
“I certainly like her better.”
“Why are we talking about Rachel? Tell me what is going on with you.”
Sera threw up her hands. “Fine!” Physically unable to force him to leave, telling him was better than this childish argument going no where. “I had an…understanding with Cole Hawthorne and now he wants me dead.”
Gideon’s face scrunched in disgusted horror. At least she’d shocked him into silence. She moved to one of the couches and fell onto it, crossing her arms.
Kieran hadn’t left. He was in the chair, face unreadable. Was he bored? Entertained by her drama? Was he suffering as much as her?
“He what? Cole Hawthorne? Hawthorne. The name is familiar. I’ll have Rachel check our files for anything on him.”
“I can tell you whatever you need,” Kieran interjected, drawing Gideon’s sharp eyes.
“You should have told me what was really happening here.” Gideon pointed an accusing finger in Kieran’s face.
Kieran rose to his feet calmly, adjusting his clothes while Gideon openly fumed.
It wasn’t most people who could ignore her brother when his anger was directed on them.
If she knew nothing else about Kieran, that alone was enough to have her swoon.
“It’s not my business to tell,” Kieran answered.
“Like hell, she’s my sister—”
“And a grown woman. I’m not in the habit of making choices for others. Your family drama is not my concern.”
“Listen!” Sera jumped to her feet and stepped in front of Gideon, who had taken a heavy step forward like he was about to charge. Leave it to Gideon to needlessly escalate a situation. “It doesn’t matter either way. You know now, and we already have a plan in place. I’ve got this under control.”
“What plan?”
“Divine above!” Sera resolved that there would be no keeping him out of it anymore. Gideon had gotten involved. “Cole works for Thaddeus Wraith.”
“Fucking hell, Sera.”
Breath steamed from her nose. She had to speak through her clenched teeth. “And Wraith should be able to stop him, since we have proof enough that Cole intends to make a grab for Wraith’s power. Once we secure a meeting—”
“Harrow,” Gideon interrupted.
“What?”
“Miles Harrow. He works for Wraith. And there’s no reaching Wraith, we’ve tried.
He’s got too much security and is too firmly entrenched in Demon Row.
But Harrow shows up at the Wandering Mare looking for mercenary work all the time.
But his position with Wraith is well known.
Harrow is capable and often in need of cash. He can get a message to Wraith.”
“I can’t just waltz into the Wandering Mare. That’s too close to Cole. And he’d know if I spoke with Miles.”
“I can do it.”
“No, this is my mess.” Sera sighed. “I have to speak to him.”
“And if that doesn’t work, you mentioned he’s often in need of funds,” Kieran said, drawing a look from Sera.
She had a guess what he was about to suggest, and her instinct was to let him.
Let the rich, handsome gentleman throw some coin at her problem.
It made her life so much easier and there was no way she’d ever get enough to do any good as payment, even with her ‘secretary wages.’
“No,” she said, surprising herself. Why the hell would she not let him pay for the information?
She swallowed, not wanting to think about it too closely about the reasons she wouldn't take Kieran's offer. “I’m not taking your money. There will be other ways to persuade him.”
“I am not offering you the money,” Kieran said, “I am offering it to Harrow.”
“Holy shit, you’re impossible.” She set a hand on her forehead. “It’s my problem you’re trying to fix. I don’t need your money.”
Kieran’s gaze was steely and direct, his arms behind his back in that casual pose he always had.
Sera was flushed, her cheeks red, her breaths heaving.
She did not want to have this discussion.
If he probed, she’d think about why she was refusing his offer, and that meant her thoughts returning to just how close she was to catching feelings.
“I can pay,” Gideon said, not reading the room at all, “and you can accept it.”
“Why? Cause you’re my brother?” she snapped.
“Yes, exactly because I’m your brother. I have a great salary and I don’t even use half of it. I’ve offered before, but since we’re talking life and death, I think we’re well past pride.”
She huffed. It wasn’t pride that kept her from accepting Gideon’s help all these years.
It was… a lot of things. The thought of being a burden.
The reminder that she couldn’t do it on her own.
The way Gideon always preached down to her, like he knew better, had always made accepting offers of assistance insufferable.