Chapter 25 #2
Stopping, he grabs three books, grins, and adds them to my stack, saying, “Because I can be.”
“I see maturity isn’t gained with age,” I shoot back. He’s a total fucker, but… I think he’d be fun to drink with. The bitchy ones always are.
“Neither is it with youth.”
We continue to walk, then reach more stairs—again and again.
Fuck. My. Life.
This is boring. I take it back. No more libraries.
His endurance is impressive, though. “How old are you?” I ask.
“Old enough to know a pompous prick when I spot one.”
My back straightens. “I’m not pompous.”
We reach a door, which he kicks open forcefully. Stale, moldy air comes rushing out. What’s down there? Old cheese?
Okay, I’ll follow, but there’d better be wine with that stinky cheese.
“You put your wants over others’ needs. That’s pompous.” He nods his head for me to follow.
I peek over the stack in my hands. I’ve walked on hills with smoother inclines. We must be far beneath the surface. My guard goes up. “No books are housed down there. The mold would eat at the paper.” I step back, fingers uncurling, ready to drop the books and grab my sword.
Whoosh!
A strong shove knocks the breath out of my lungs. Yuck! My inhale is filled with musky notes. I stumble, missing the first step. Fuck, here it comes! I tumble down the stairs, my shin and back hitting the hard corners of the stone. I’ll heal faster than a human and a fae would, but it still hurts.
He set me up!
But why?
As soon as I stop rolling, I stagger to find purchase and stand. With a wave of my hands, my magic flares to a dark, shadowy life. Darkness. It consumes me, covers me as my shadows curl around me like ringlets of hair.
“That was a mistake,” I growl as I unsheathe my sword.
Whoosh! Another attack assaults me, shoving my back into the stone wall.
Slowly, footsteps approach me. “You have earth magic, too,” the old man states. “Shadows.”
“And you have wind.” Lucky for me, I’ve trained with Ryker. I know how to fight against the wind.
“Yes. Now lower your shadows so I don’t trip and break my hip again.”
“You think I’m a fool. You tried to kill me.” I push my shadows out, blinding his path, until his steps halt.
“Kill?” he questions. “I merely gave you a little shove.”
“Down a set of stairs!”
I can hear his hand sliding over the wall, feeling for the path as he takes another step. “It’s not my fault you lost your balance.”
“What game are you playing?”
“I could ask you the same, boy. Mating bonds, my ass. If you did find your mate, it would be them who was running for the hills, not you. You’d be lucky to land a fish as a mate.”
“Then why did you lie and let me follow you?”
“Those books are heavy; I didn’t want to carry them.” He waits a moment until he releases an old bellow. “Joking. Pull back your shadows and lower your blade. I heard you pull it forth. I have what you need.”
My balls are starting to sweat. I don’t like this. Not one bit. Should I risk grabbing my snack bag?
I hear him take another three steps. I take a defensive position. He knows these stairs. Each step in the dark is controlled and measured. It’s I who is the prey.
Hiss. Hiss.
My shadow makes a slithering sound that echoes off the narrow stairway until the old man comes face to face with my sword.
Does he flinch? Nope. He still looks bored.
“Ahh, there’s the prick,” the old vampire grunts. “A man speaks before he pulls his sword. A prick thinks his sword will save him.”
He nudges his head like I’m a dog, then has the audacity to squeeze himself past me and my sword with the grace of a paperclip slipping onto a sheet of paper—so gentle it leaves no mark behind.
I hope I didn’t make a mistake by not driving my blade through him.
“Adolescent fool,” he grumbles as he raises his palm to the stone wall. “You pissed yourself,” he comments.
“What?” I raise my blade. “I did not!” Seriously, I didn’t! I look at my pants to double-check.
He laughs as he taps his foot. Sure enough, at the bottom of the stairs is a puddle of water. I… I did not! I’ve faced endless battles, and I’ve never pissed myself.
“You actually think you did.” His laugh hits me like cold water.
“The walls leak; these old stones drink everything up; water, whispers. But eventually, everything hits rock bottom. Everything comes to my doorstep.” The old vampire raises his hand and chants a mage spell over the wall. The ring on his finger glows.
Aww, he’s got an enchanted ring. It allows others who are not mages to do simple mage spells, like opening mage-locked doors. The ring is rare. I’ve never seen one in person before.
Turn around. It’s a trap.
A door magically appears. Whoosh! His wind magic flares behind me. Splash! My feet stumble through the puddle as I barrel into the small room.
He rolls his eyes at my sword as if it were a loaf of stale bread and not a weapon.
“Do you even know which end is the pointy one?” he ridicules.
“Would you like me to show you?” My shadows purr around my feet, eager to be set free again.
“Perhaps,” he rolls with my punches. “Talking to you is rather painful. If I were wise, I would just have you end it before nightfall does.” His choice of words feels like a sketch an artist makes before they commit to the design.
Does he think he’s dying tonight? The grin spreading on his lips tells me he wants death.
He closes the door, and then a silencing spell snaps into place. “What is the meaning of this?” I demand. My palms grow sweaty as I clutch my blade.
“I could ask you the same.” He tilts his head and then shakes it.
I look around. Is this a room or a closet? The space contains only a bed, a dresser, a chair, and a trunk. “Is this your bedroom?” Surely not. There is nothing personal. Where are all his knick-knacks? This guy looks like a hoarder.
“Not good enough for you, boy?”
This asshole! “This bed is better than the one I received when my brother and I became wards of the kingdom.”
His lip twitches. “Good. You’re not scared of losing everything because you have before.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing.” He rubs his jaw. “Didn’t Titus order you to pretend to bed the librarians?” He lifts a snarky eyebrow. “There is a bed. And if our conversation has been you seducing me,” he laughs, “I fear for the future of our young men.”
Seduce! Wait… what did he say?
My mouth fills with a sour taste. “Wait a minute!” Driving my elbow back, I prepare to strike. “How did you know what Titus and I discussed?”
He grabs the only chair in the room and sinks confidently into it, taking his time to cross his weary old legs before he smirks. “Because Everett told me.”