Chapter 6
CHAPTER SIX
After making sure Helios was fed and comfortable, Elijah gave into the urge to explore a little. He made up the excuse that he was looking for Isaac to thank him again, but really, he just wanted to look around. He had never seen this kind of luxury before.
The ceilings in the living room were so high, he had to wonder if it was designed that way so that Maverick could shift indoors.
The walls were all windows, giving a view of the front yard and the gate beyond it.
He would have felt exposed if there wasn’t a small forest between the house and the road, as well as a long driveway beyond that.
He expected with houses like this that the front lawn would be well manicured and plain, but the acres of wildflowers and local plants surrounding the place made the mansion feel more natural.
The wind blew through the plants as the storm gathered, and Elijah was sure once it had passed, the whole place would smell amazing. Like green earth and rain.
The interior of the home was a study in opposites.
There wasn’t much to it, all clean lines and simple furniture, but what little they did have looked expensive and new.
The floors were marble, with enormous rugs in every sitting space.
The couches looked comfortable and were deep enough to sleep on.
The colors were all dark wood and black furniture, but thanks to the windows, it didn’t make the space too gloomy.
“I’ve been slowly redecorating to brighten up the place, but I haven’t gotten to the living rooms yet,” Isaac said as he joined him. “We don’t spend a lot of time out here. If we’re home, we spend a lot of time in the conservatory or the library. Those are the rooms I focused on first.”
“I take it you had something to do with the yard?” Elijah asked, gesturing out the window.
Isaac smirked and nodded. “Yeah, cut lawns bother me. It’s not natural. When I told my cousin, she came and helped me put things back to rights. Maverick never cared either way, as long as there was a place for him to land.”
Elijah hummed, gaze still locked on the view. “It’s beautiful,” he murmured.
Isaac seemed pleased, talking to him about how troublesome it was to remove all the grass.
He’d planned on just tearing it all up, but a coworker overheard him talking to his cousin about it and was horrified.
Apparently, the grass planted around Maverick’s home was expensive.
When Isaac offered it to the coworker, he nearly wept with joy.
“It’s not that I don’t have an appreciation for plants, I do. I just don’t like grass. It’s a human invention and ruins local ecosystems. There are just so many better things to plant to make your yard look nice, don’t you think?”
“I’ve never thought of it that way,” Elijah replied, following him as Isaac led them through the house toward the kitchen.
He mentioned he’d come looking for Elijah so he could join them for dinner but got distracted by talking about nature.
As a mage, he likely had a strong connection with the elemental spirits, and nature was where he was happiest. Aside from anywhere his mate was.
Elijah was happy just to be part of the friendly conversation.
“My yard has grass, but I don’t spend much time outside,” he explained. “It’s always been easier to just keep things as they are. The most I have to care for it is mowing it every week or so in the summer.”
“You should consider clover instead. No maintenance required, it’s good for the environment, and it doesn’t grow tall enough to be bothersome.”
“Here we go again,” Alistair commented with a sigh. He and Maverick were in the kitchen. Maverick was in front of the stove, looking much more casual than Elijah had ever seen him, while Alistair was setting the table.
“What?” Isaac demanded with a scowl. “You like grass?”
“Of course, I don’t,” Alistair replied. “I just don’t pester everyone I know who owns their own home to change their yard. It’s not my place, and you border on obsessive.”
Elijah watched the brothers bicker, studying them a little more closely. Alistair had said he didn’t take Isaac’s teasing to heart. Watching them interact, he could better see the ease of their expressions and the teasing smirks pulling at their lips.
It was a little shocking just how different the two brothers were.
While Isaac was shorter with bright pink hair and a slender frame, Alistair was his opposite.
He stood at least five inches taller than his younger brother, with wide shoulders and a gymnast’s build.
The thick muscles of his arms made Elijah check for drool a time or two, and even in the long-sleeved button-ups, he could tell the man was ripped.
His hair was longer, past his shoulders if Elijah had to guess, but he kept it in a low messy bun at the base of his neck so it was hard to tell.
The color was interesting, though. A soft-looking silver that from different angles looked like it had hints of pale blue and purple.
It wasn’t old age that gave him that color.
He looked too young to have true gray hair.
It was a color that denoted his family line.
The scruff on his jaw was the same color, but underneath it was all smooth tan skin.
Not a wrinkle in sight, except between his eyebrows where a permanent frown line deepened whenever his brows drew together.
An unfamiliar flare of awareness swept through Elijah, and he felt his cheeks flush when he realized he was staring.
Alistair was a handsome man, and seeing him acting so domestic made Elijah want things it was impossible for him to have.
He was more than grateful that Isaac called them to the table to eat, but he nearly swallowed his tongue when, instead of sitting by himself on one side like he was accustomed to, Alistair sat beside him.
“So, Elijah, how has SR been handling the medical innovations coup?” Isaac asked before taking a bite of his food. He beamed at his mate and praised him for the meal before raising an eyebrow at Elijah, who was still floundering with the idea that someone would want to sit so close to him.
“Ah, um… As well as we can, I suppose. We’re certainly kept busy. Brennus has also been making noises about conducting loyalty interviews with those who had worked closely with Aristeos, but without cause, I’m not sure it would be allowed.”
Maverick made a low, grumbling sound, his expression a mask of annoyance.
“There is cause for it. An employee stole company information and used it to create a rival company. It was an act of corporate espionage. Conducting interviews to ensure there aren’t any moles in our staff is more than legal.
It’s necessary. I should have thought of that earlier. ”
Isaac put a hand on his arm, reassuring him. “You’ve been busy with the lawsuit against Aristeos and the former employees who left with him. You can’t do everything.”
“Wait, hold on. What happened?” Alistair demanded, confusion pulling his frown even deeper.
It wasn’t a pleasant story, and Elijah still felt the shock he’d experienced the day he found out.
Aristeos had never come across as someone who would betray the company.
That was what Brennus had told him anyway.
Elijah hadn’t ever actually met the man.
Perhaps if he had, he might have been able to see this coming.
“A former division lead recently stole client and company information so he could start his own rival company,” Isaac explained with a scowl.
“When he left, he took a lot of the staff who were loyal to him with him. It almost crippled the medical innovations division. We had to get Charmed Away to send most of its staff to help so SR could have a chance to hire replacements.”
“We’re still wading through the potential applicants,” Elijah added with a sigh.
“Department heads want us to hurry up so they can have their staff back, but Brennus is refusing to rush things. He doesn’t want to hire anyone who might betray the company in the same way.
It’s meant more work for me since he wants me in each group interview to feel out any negative or worrisome emotions from the interviewees. ”
“Do they consent to that beforehand?” Alistair asked with a touch of accusation in his tone Elijah tried not to take personally.
He nodded. “Yes. They sign a release form with the acknowledgment that I’ll only go as far as picking up on their emotions unless they’re chosen for a one-on-one interview.
If I got anything worrisome from them during the group interviews, then we’d of course insist on an interview with me before offering them a position. ”
The strain on Elijah’s magic was new since he wasn’t used to actively using his magic this many days in a row.
He spent so long learning to tamp down his magic, using it so often was hard on his system.
He hated that he couldn’t exercise it often like most supernaturals could with their abilities.
If people didn’t think he was dangerous, he might not get migraines when he used his magic more than usual.
“Now that I’ve passed the bar, I can take some of the load off of Maverick,” Isaac said. “We can talk to Brennus on Monday and set things into motion for loyalty interviews to better protect the company.”
Which would mean more magic use from Elijah.
He fought not to wince. It was necessary.
But perhaps once everything had settled, he would take some time off to rest. There were very few places he could let go of the reins on his magic, but he could do some research, find someplace far away from society.
He tried not to think about how lonely it would be.
At least at work, he could interact with people.
“What about you, Al? Do you have a new contract yet?” Isaac asked once the subject died down.
Alistair shook his head. “Not yet. I’ll go in on Monday and see what’s available.”
Elijah cocked his head curiously. “Where do you work?”
“Charmed Away.”
That surprised him. With the strength of Isaac’s magic, he’d assumed his family would be at the same level and in important jobs like battle mages.
Then again, he’d avoided sizing up the man’s magic before now.
It was a habit to avoid any type of reading unless he had a reason for it.
He gave in to the urge, curious why Isaac’s older brother would be working as a temp, and came up short. His gaze swung to Alistair in shock.
“How–”
How in the world did Alistair manage to hide his magic signature entirely? Unless… he had no magic at all?