Seven
Jerry
"W here's Fressia?" I asked when I realized I hadn't seen her in a bit. The dog had gone silent as soon as she'd disappeared into the room with it, but neither of them had come back. "And you never told me you got a dog too!"
Kat made a face, then sighed. "It was a bit of an impulsive decision."
"I'll say. That's a big dog. What's their name?"
"Hella," Kat said with a smile, and I grinned back before remembering my earlier question.
Before I could get an answer though, the front door opened with a bang. Kat and I both glanced up, then shot to our feet.
Fressia was there, the front of her shirt covered in blood and a man slumped against her side. A man with very familiar blond hair and...no. It couldn't be.
"Fres! What happened? Are you okay? Is he?" Kat demanded as she hurried closer, while I just stood there and stared. Because that was Eshim in Fressia's arms. My Eshim. Bloody, and hurt, and what was he doing with Fressia? How did they even know each other?
"Get my phone. Back pocket. Call Reece. Tell him to get here right now," Fressia said, and Kat did as she'd asked as Fressia walked over to the couch.
I jumped out of the way as she carefully deposited an unconscious Eshim on the couch, and finally found my voice. "What the fuck happened?"
Fressia's head jerked up, eyes widening when she saw me. Had she forgotten I was here?
"Fuck," she said under her breath, before straightening up. She grabbed my shoulders and met my eyes, hers appearing more yellow than usual. "Listen to me, Jerry. There are things you don't know about us, about Eshim. He wanted to be the one to tell you, but there's no time. He'll tell you the details later, but all that matters right now is that he's hurt and he needs help. Are you going to be okay?"
I didn't have time to be surprised by the fact that she'd called me Jerry because of everything else she said, and I found myself nodding as my eyes slid to Eshim. Fuck, there was so much blood. "He needs a doctor. He needs the hospital."
"Where is he?" a new voice said before Fressia could reply, and I glanced up as an auburn-haired, dark-eyed man hurried closer to the couch, ignoring everyone as he went on his knees and placed his palm on Eshim's chest.
What the fuck...
I made to step closer, but Fressia's hold on my shoulder tightened.
My eyes roamed over Eshim's form, and his injuries...they made no sense. It looked like a wild animal had torn him apart, scratches littering his chest, his arms, his thighs. How could he have possibly come across a wild animal in the middle of the city? None of this made sense.
Something else that didn't make sense was what this newcomer was doing. He'd stopped touching Eshim now, and was instead digging into his pockets. He pulled out a vial that had something bright white and glowing inside, and he uncorked it before pouring the contents into Eshim's mouth and forcing him to swallow.
Then his hand returned to Eshim's chest, and I watched in disbelief as the bleeding scratches disappeared one by one. What. The. Fuck.
Was I dreaming? I had to be dreaming, right? This couldn't possibly be real.
"Snap out of it. Eshim needs you," Fressia said, and I frowned.
Me? Why would Eshim need me ? I was just his boss, nothing more.
"Could someone please explain what the hell is going on? Why is Eshim hurt? How did you heal him like that? Who even are you?"
The healer glanced up at me with wide eyes, then slowly got to his feet. His gaze flickered to Fressia, and they had a silent conversation before the guy sighed and held a hand out. Then he seemed to notice it was covered in blood, and pulled it back.
"I'm Reece, and I know you have a lot of questions, but I think it would be best if Eshim answers them." Before I could say anything, he glanced at Fressia again. "You should call Calux as well. Tell him what happened and then ask them to come over for a bit. Then you need to come with us. They're probably already gone but it won't hurt to check again."
"I'll call Lux," Kat said, and Fressia leaned over to kiss her before murmuring something into her ear.
Archer and Lux were involved in this too? Had he and Kat known whatever this was already? And why had they kept it hidden from me?
I settled on the edge of the couch, near Eshim's feet, as Reece and Fressia left the house.
Some time passed, and then Lux, Archer, and Gunner were there. Lux and Kat chatted softly, Gunner happily hanging out in Lux's arms, as Archer walked over to me.
"Hey, you okay?"
"I'm confused. No one will tell me anything, and Eshim looks like he went two rounds with a fucking grizzly, and all of you seem to be in on whatever this is, and I just..." I trailed off with a shrug, unable to explain what I was feeling.
I was confused, no doubt about that. But I was also...hurt. Because Kat and Archer clearly already knew Eshim, but they'd never said anything. There were far too many things that didn't make sense right now, but I couldn't get over the fact that my best friends, the people I cared about more than anything in the world, had been hiding something this big from me.
Archer winced. "Eshim will tell you everything, but I'm sorry we hid things from you. It wasn't about you, Jerry. I swear. I wished I could tell you every day, but there are rules. Not following them wasn't an option, and I was so happy when Lux told me about Eshim because it meant we wouldn't have to keep secrets from you. You weren't supposed to find out this way."
"If you're just going to talk in circles without telling me anything, stop!" I snapped, and Archer nodded, sharing a look with Lux.
Lux walked over, and plopped Gunner in my lap. "Hold him for a bit, will you? Thanks!" He took Archer's hand and tugged him away before I could reply, and I peered down at Gunner, who gave me a wide, gummy smile.
"You're lucky you're cute," I told him, and then sighed as his fingers tangled into my hair. Here we go.
Eshim
I winced as I came to, my whole body feeling like it'd been drained of every last drop of energy.
I blinked a few times as my vision cleared, and my lips curved up instantly when my eyes fell on Jerry. He was here. He was okay.
He sat with my legs in his lap, and Lux and Archer's baby on my legs. Gunner was happily tugging at his hair, and Jerry seemed content to let him do that as he smiled softly at the baby.
I cleared my throat, and his eyes snapped to mine. Giving him a weak smile, I struggled to sit up. "Hey, boss."
I'd barely uttered the words before Lux, Archer, and Kat were on me, checking me over and demanding to know I was okay.
By the time I'd reassured them and calmed them down, Jerry had left the couch and was now on the other side of the room, leaning against the wall with Gunner cradled to his chest.
Lux glanced from me to Jerry, then nodded to himself. Walking over to my mate, he took Gunner from him, and then Kat waved them deeper into the house until it was just Jerry and me in the living room.
Based on what I remembered and the fact that I was still bloody, I had to assume Jerry had seen things he couldn't make sense of.
"Is Fressia okay?"
Jerry blinked, then nodded, still keeping his distance. "She went with the guy who...healed you. Reece."
Oh. Right. Of course Consort Reece was here. He was the only one who could heal souls, but he must've needed Kym's fire, since I'd been hurt by a dark soul.
"Are you okay?" I asked, and he rolled his eyes.
"Shouldn't I be the one asking that?"
I sighed. This wasn't how I'd wanted to do this. At all. I'd wanted to get to know Jerry better, wanted him to know me better so that when I revealed the truth, he wouldn't be afraid.
I had one thing going for me, though. Both his best friends were here, and they knew the truth. They'd be able to help if he didn't believe me.
"I'm sure you have questions," I said as I stood up, and he nodded slowly.
"A shit-ton of them, starting with why my best friends have been keeping secrets from me and how they seem to know my PA better than I do."
Shit. Behind Jerry's flippant words, I could sense his hurt feelings. I knew Archer and Kat had hated hiding things from him, but I imagined it didn't feel any good from his side either.
"They didn't have a choice, and I hope you won't blame them for it. I'll tell you everything, okay?" I said as I reached him, and he gazed at me, eyes troubled.
On impulse, I reached out and took his hand in mine, and he jumped before glancing down at our joined hands.
"Eshim..."
"Just come sit with me. Hear me out."
Jerry was silent for a moment, but then he sighed and gave a reluctant nod. We walked back to the couch and sat down with an ocean of space between us, though I didn't let go of Jerry's hand.
I took a deep breath and decided to jump right into the center of things. "Fressia, Lux, and I are demons."
Jerry blinked, then blinked some more. Then he jerked his hand away. "If you're going to make jokes..."
I shook my head, then held my hand out, palm cupped. Ignoring the strain, I magicked up a red rose, and Jerry sucked in a breath. I offered it to him, and he took it reluctantly, his fingers running over the smooth petals.
"I can show you my true form some other time if you need more proof, but I'm too drained. I hope this is enough for now."
"Fuck," he swore, then seemed to come to a realization. "Are you saying Archer and Kat know?"
I nodded, then clamped my hand on his knee when he started to get up. I might have been weakened, but I was still stronger than him.
"They weren't allowed to tell anyone, no matter how much they wanted to. Just like you can't tell anyone now."
Jerry stared at me, and I could see his brain running through everything I'd said. My mate was one of the smartest people I'd ever met, so I didn't doubt he'd understand this, though I suspected it would still take him some time to heal from the hurt feelings.
"What changed? Why can I know now?" he asked, then huffed. "You. It's because of you, isn't it?"
I nodded, then explained. "All sentient beings in this world have a—sometimes more than one—mate. Someone who pairs perfectly with their soul, chosen by fate to be their partner. Fated mates. You are mine, just like Kat is Fressia's, and Archer is Lux's."
A dozen emotions flickered through Jerry's eyes, too fast for me to read, and I held my breath, waiting for his reaction.
"That's why Archer and Kat know? Because their...their mates told them?"
I nodded. "We don't keep secrets from our mates, but the existence of magic isn't something humans are allowed to know, not unless they're mated to a supernatural being and have a vested interest in keeping their secret."
"This is...a lot."
"I understand. This wasn't how I wanted to tell you."
"I can imagine that," he said with a snort, then rubbed his face. "I need to go home. Tom's alone."
I knew what he actually wanted was some space to think, and I didn't want to stop him but...
"Not until Fressia's back and we know it's safe."
Jerry frowned. "Why would I be in any danger?" Before I could answer, he added, "And what the hell happened to you? You never told me that."
"How about Calux brings Tom here so we know he's safe, and then I'll tell you?"
I sensed Lux's magic stir, and knew he'd heard me and left already. Jerry sighed and nodded, and Lux was back.
"There's Tom," I murmured as the small dog came barking out of the hallway, aiming straight for Jerry.
"What the..." He shook his head, and decided against asking the question he'd had. I answered anyway.
"Demons can...teleport. And we have superior hearing. Lux heard me and got him."
Jerry nodded slowly, his fingers sinking into Tom's fur as he pulled him into his lap. "Tell me everything ."