31. Gabe
T he sun was setting as Hecate led us to the Ropes Mansion on Essex. We followed her to the back of the mansion into the garden. She approached an ancient sundial that was erected on a stone pedestal, and she spun to face us with a large grin on her face.
“You ready?” she asked, and I rolled my eyes, sliding my hands into my pockets. Shemhazai’s mood had turned for the better, and he was now buzzing with curiosity and excitement next to me.
For some reason, it annoyed me. I wanted to dig into why he had been so frightened earlier. The aching need to pull him aside and strip away his walls was gnawing at the inside of my skull with so much intensity I was developing a migraine.
However, Shemhazai still hadn’t even looked in my direction since Raziel’s name had been mentioned, and it was pissing me the fuck off.
He was integrating himself into this little group of strangers, and I was feeling snubbed. He had even exchanged some good-natured ribs and jabs with Fenrir on the walk here, and I couldn’t tell if I was jealous or just on edge because I was worried this Raz character would hurt my partner .
“I was made ready, sweetheart,” Shemhazai purred, eyeing up the sundial curiously.
Hecate grinned and snapped her fingers. The sundial whirled and spun like the hands of a clock, and before our eyes, it rose out of the ground, the base twisting and rising to create a tall, cylindrical structure that housed an opening large enough for us to step through.
“This leads to the Salem Tunnels, which were built in the 19th century for smuggling. Hex and Haven is down these steps. Come on!” she chirped, skipping into the stone cylinder and down what appeared to be a spiral set of stone stairs.
I glanced at Shemhazai, raising a skeptical eyebrow, but he refused to meet my gaze. He stalked after Hecate eagerly, and I scowled before diligently falling in step behind him.
The guardians followed, and once we were all making our way down the steps, there was the telltale grind of stone against stone as the sundial twisted back into place, closing the portal behind us.
The base of the staircase opened into a massive underground cavern, and my eyebrows rose to my hairline in surprise.
It was a club.
A magical club, to be exact.
The high ceilings were filled with pulsing glowing orbs that smoothly shifted from gold to violet to a bright, shamrock green as they lazily bobbed through the air.
The stone walls glittered with twinkling lights and there were VIP alcoves carved in strategic places.
These alcoves were complete with large, heavy tables draped in velvet cloths covered in celestial designs and pillars of flickering candles.
Along the far wall of the massive space was an imposing obsidian bar manned by no less than four witches, happily serving drinks to a line of patrons who waited patiently for their intoxicating potions.
The dance floor in the center of the room pulsed with light, and there was a stage in the middle where a witch was performing.
She was controlling large, silky ribbons with some unseen magic in an impressive and elegant display that was choreographed perfectly to the otherworldly music that played from some unseen DJ booth.
I pursed my lips and followed Hecate as she led us to one of the empty booths, gesturing for us to take a seat .
“I’ll go get us drinks!” she announced happily before disappearing into the crowd. I glowered as Shemhazai immediately followed her, and his entire face lit up with excitement.
“I was looking for a place like this! I knew this town couldn’t be this fucking boring.” He grinned, and my mood soured further.
Remembering the few days he’d ghosted me, I was suddenly grateful he hadn’t known about this club.
I may not be threatened by some stupid human server, but the way Shemhazai was eyeing up the patrons of the club as he stalked after Hecate made my gut churn.
Fucking beings that were on our level somehow felt different. Unless I was invited to participate, I didn’t want Shemhazai hooking up with anyone who had the power to stick around longer than a human lifetime.
It felt like… a betrayal.
My skin was suddenly itchy, and I felt trapped. I couldn’t demand that Shemhazai not fuck anyone here. It would just make him want to do it more. It would push him away, and that was the last thing I wanted.
However, as I watched a male witch approach him while he leaned casually against the obsidian bar to wait for Hecate, I couldn’t get a grip on the anger that rolled through my chest.
Mine.
The possessive voice ripped through my mind, and it shocked me. I’d always known what I was getting into with Shemhazai. Why was I suddenly so triggered by someone approaching him?
Watching Shemhazai give the witch a sly, flirtatious smile made my stomach swirl with nausea.
I forced myself to sit down as he snaked a hand around the man’s waist, whispering something in his ear.
The man laughed at whatever Shem had said, and my knuckles cracked in my pockets.
Skoll chuckled darkly as he threw himself on the deep plum couch next to me.
“You’re green with envy , raven.”
My gaze flicked to him, and I scowled as Fenrir flopped down on the other side of me, tossing his arm casually over my shoulders .
“And here I thought you two liked to share.” He laughed, snatching a glass of champagne off the tray of a passing server before downing it in one go.
“Shemhazai loves to share,” I agreed.
I didn’t mind it because it made Shemhazai happy. But there was a difference between sharing as a couple and him doing what he was doing now.
He’d shut me out before coming here. I could tell by his body language that I wasn’t invited to participate in whatever conquests he might win here tonight, and it fucking hurt.
He was pushing me away, and I didn’t know how to make it stop.