Chapter 47 – COSIMA
Chapter
Forty-Seven
COSIMA
K night's knot deflates just enough for us to finally untangle ourselves, and I bite back a groan as I slide off the broken piano. My legs feel like jelly, a sweet ache spreading through me like warm honey. I fumble with the borrowed robe, trying to make myself decent—whatever that means anymore.
"Holy shit," I whisper, taking in the wreckage around us. The piano lists at a forty-five-degree angle, one leg completely snapped off. Keys scattered across the floor like broken teeth. "We made quite the mess, didn't we?"
Knight makes that rumbling sound deep in his chest. The one that's somewhere between a purr and a growl. His blue eyes catch the dim light behind his silver mask, watching me with an intensity that would be unsettling if I hadn't just...
Well.
My face burns when I think about who's waiting on the other side of that door. Geo. Maybe Nikolai. The walls in this place aren't exactly soundproof, and we weren't exactly quiet. The piano itself practically screamed in protest with every thrust.
Shit. Shit. Shit.
I splash some water on my face and find a pair of what must be Raven's sweats in the dresser. They're too long for my legs, but anything's better than trying to face Geo in just this flimsy robe.
My, how far I've fallen. Oh, well. It beats dead raider clothes any day.
"Well," I say, squaring my shoulders. "We better face the music. So to speak."
Knight follows close behind me as I inch toward the door, my fingers hesitating on the handle. With a deep breath, I open it and peek around the corner, trying to look as casual as someone can after loudly getting railed by an eight-foot mutant alpha on a piano.
The living room comes into view, and I see Geo still sitting in his armchair. Alone. His single eye flicks up from his book as I hesitantly step out.
"Nikolai's gone," he says dryly. "You can come out."
For a moment, I'm relieved, then strangely… what? Disappointed? Worried ? Why the hell should I care where that arrogant alpha went?
I hate that I do. Even a little. All the more reason we need to get out of here as soon as possible.
"I wasn't hiding," I reply, channeling nonchalance I don't feel. "Just needed a moment to... freshen up."
Geo gives me a look that says he isn't buying it for a second. As if he heard everything. "I'm sure."
I move further into the room, Knight's heavy footsteps following behind me as he looms like a shadow. A floorboard creaks under his weight, breaking the uncomfortable silence.
Geo snaps his book shut, the sound making me flinch. "I was particularly fond of that piano, by the way. Been with me for fifteen years."
Heat crawls up my neck again. "Right. About that..."
"It was a relic from the pre-war Eastern conclave. Only three were ever made." His tone is conversational, but there's an edge to it.
"I can explain?—"
"Its ivory keys were harvested from the skeletons of the last elephants before elephants weren't elephants anymore."
I wince. "That's... unfortunate."
"It survived three radiation fallouts, two territorial wars, and a flood that nearly washed away half the compound. Pretty sure it's still haunted by the prince who commissioned it, so now his immortal spirit has to live with that."
I mutter a string of Vrissian curses, throwing my hands in the air. "For fuck's sake, fine ! I'm sorry about your piano, and as for your ghost, you can tell him the show was free."
Geo continues to glower at me for a few seconds before his grumpy expression cracks into amusement and he huffs. "Guess I should be grateful the entire compound is still standing. Could've been worse."
"How generous of you," I say flatly.
"What am I going to do? Kick you out? Then I'd have a pissed-off Raven and a mutated rage monster on my case." He tilts his head toward Knight, who responds with a warning growl. "Besides, other than the piano, you've been surprisingly well-behaved guests. So long as you keep him in line."
Knight's growl sounds irritated now.
"We'll see." A thought occurs to me. "Speaking of Nikolai... where exactly did he go?"
"Off to find Raven." Geo leans back in his chair. "After that... performance , he couldn't get out of here fast enough. Must not have wanted an encore. Can't say I blame him."
I groan.
But despite myself, my mind conjures an image of Nikolai wounded, facing who knows what dangers in the wasteland. Damn it. Why the hell should I care? He's nothing to me.
Yet there's that inexplicable pull again.
"What's the deal with you three anyway?" I ask, partly to distract myself from these unwelcome concerns.
Geo blanches, his expression shifting from mild annoyance to genuine discomfort. "There is no 'the three of us.' Period."
"Could have fooled me." I settle onto the couch, drawing my legs beneath me as Knight stands near the armrest. I reach up and rest my hand on his forearm, idly stroking his scarred skin.
"Raven calls you 'Daddy' even though you're hardly old enough to be his father, and he and Nikolai have so much unresolved sexual tension between them, they always seem on the verge of either fucking or killing each other. .."
"Are you always this direct?" Geo asks with a grunt.
"It's a gift," I answer. "Vrissian mother."
Geo scoffs. "You're not far off where Raven and Nikolai are concerned. But if you're asking if they're together, the answer is no. If you're asking if they ever were , I got no fucking idea and that's the way I like it."
Hmm. Interesting.
"And what about you?" I can't help but press. "I see the way you look at Raven."
"I don't—" Geo cuts himself off, his jaw working. "You're seeing shit that isn't there."
"If you say so." I can't help the knowing smirk that tugs at my lips.
He watches me for a long moment, eye narrowed. "Would it bother you?"
"What?"
"Two of your alphas being with each other."
"They're not my alphas," I correct quickly, ignoring Knight's soft growl behind me. "But no, it wouldn't bother me." I hesitate, then decide honesty is the simplest approach. "Actually… it's kind of hot."
Geo's eyebrows shoot up.
"But it's irrelevant," I continue, smoothing my robe. "I already have a mate."
Knight shifts behind me, and I can feel him listening intently. There's a tension in his posture I can sense without even looking at him.
"Ah yes, the mysterious Azarel." Geo leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "Is he really worth all this trouble? A highborn lady such as yourself chasing an alpha across the Outer Reaches seems a bit backward, doesn't it?"
His words strike a nerve, prodding at doubts I'd rather stay buried. What if Azarel isn't looking for me? What if he's moved on? What if I was never as important to him as he was to me?
I bristle, my chin lifting defiantly. "Azarel is looking for me," I say with confidence I no longer possess. "He'd do anything to find me."
"Maybe." Geo's voice softens, and for a moment, I see genuine concern in his expression as he searches my face. "I hope that's true."
Before I can respond, the door bursts open. Raven staggers in, supporting a frighteningly pale Nikolai who's leaning heavily against him. Blood stains Nikolai's shirt, and his normally sharp eyes are glassy, unfocused.
My heart lurches painfully as the sense that something is wrong finally merges with reality.
I've barely known this man a handful of days. How should I sense anything at all where he's concerned? Why should I care if he lives or dies?
But I do. And I hate it.
"For fuck's sake, how many times have I told you to aim for the heart?" Geo grumbles without getting up from his chair. "You've got shitty aim when you're thinking with your dick."
"I didn't do this," Raven snaps, struggling with Nikolai's weight. That finally prompts Geo to get off his ass and help. "He was ambushed, and he's clearly off his game. But I don't think it's the new wounds. Probably an infection."
The raw edge in Raven's voice surprises me. There's real fear there.
Nikolai mumbles something incoherent, his head lolling against Raven's shoulder.
He's out of it, alright.
"I'll get the damn doctor again," Geo grumbles, already heading for the door. "But he's not going to be happy about making a second house call. Especially after the shit you pulled earlier."
"You can put him in here," I say, already heading into the hall toward the guest suite I just came from.
Raven nods gratefully, guiding Nikolai after me with Geo's help. Knight growls at my back like he's already territorial about our nest, but a silent shake of my head is all it takes to make him back off.
"Great," Nikolai mutters as Raven eases him onto the mattress. His voice is raspy, strained. "Going to die in the bed a giant monster fucked my mate in. Perfect."
"It was the piano, not the bed," I supply helpfully.
"You're not dying, you fucking drama queen," Raven snaps, but the tremor in his voice betrays his worry.
I move to the bedside, pressing my palm against Nikolai's forehead. He's burning up, his skin hot and clammy beneath my touch. A fever this high can't be good.
"That's a pretty bad fever," I murmur, pulling my hand back.
But Nikolai catches my wrist, his eyes fluttering open to fix on mine. "Don't stop," he whispers, nuzzling into my touch with surprising vulnerability. "Feels good."
Something in my chest softens, a tiny crack in the wall I've built against him. It's easier to hate him when he's being an arrogant ass. This version—fever-stricken, seeking comfort—is much harder to resist.
"I'll get the first aid kit," Raven says, his voice tight. "And some water. He's probably dehydrated."
As Raven hurries from the room, I reluctantly return my hand to Nikolai's brow, brushing sweat-dampened white hair from his face. Knight moves to stand in the corner, watching with those intense blue eyes, but making no move to interfere.
"Drink," I command, holding a glass of water to Nikolai's lips when Raven returns with it. "Small sips."