21. Let’s Talk a Little Chaos

Chapter 21

Let’s Talk a Little Chaos

“ S o, you come in looking like a felon to my actual Biology class and only now decide to dress like a real scientist when no one’s watching?”

“You’re watching,” Phillip corrected, and I swallowed the uncomfortable lump in my throat, far too aware of that fact myself.

The other Hunter explained earlier that he was creating a reverse serum for what they used on me, shortly after Phil stabbed my arm with a needle to take my blood. Lux would need time to regroup, seeing how we took all his scientists, including the sister who helped me escape, and burned his operation to the ground, leaving nothing but rubble to prove it was ever there.

But Phillip was finally telling me everything, like the fact that there were whispers of Eros being on the hunt again. Which was such great news when our encounter nearly killed Phillip the last time.

But a part of me wanted the Dark Fae asshole to come at me so I could test this new control I seemed to have over my power. Or really, to put an end to a terrible reign of a Dark Fae with sadistic serial killer tendencies for anyone Phillip remotely cared about.

Of course, the snarky elite bastard presently playing scientist with my blood wasn’t convinced I truly had any control at all over my power. But when I was in Lux’s lab, something was different. I couldn’t explain how I knew. I just did.

Since Grams was back in the picture, I was confident Phillip would get annoyingly careful around me. From the way he explained it, while we were on the run, Sloan, Kris, Grams, and a few other Hunters on the Organization’s hit list were gathering troops.

So, my only mission was to stay alive.

Imagine that. A teenage vampire hunter, turned enigma, turned every top-level bad guy’s favorite target, turned the Organization’s Most Wanted only had to survive long enough to lead the march on the bastards who created us.

No big deal.

Phillip also regaled the tale of his little frolic with Cash. It was evident Cassius was ready to flee this realm for his. But for some reason, Phillip had the Dark Fae on a tight leash—leashes being our new thing and all—and Cassius wouldn’t be far away wherever we went.

Which begged another question, why?

Phillip looked up from his work, which I’d watched with nothing short of captivated interest for the last few hours. The usual smirk hung on his lips as his hands worked so quickly a human eye couldn’t follow. “Believe it or not, I much prefer that felon look,” the other Hunter added with a gleam in his eye that said he was on a naughty train of thought and I better be careful with what I said next.

The way the pale-eyed Austrian easily got my heart going was a talent all on its own.

“Yeah. No one here is surprised you’d say that. ”

“You’re the only one here though, mein Schatz,” was his quick, entirely too sensual retort, and my pulse thrummed loudly in my ears.

It always felt like I was one word short of jumping his bones, but we had more important work to do, so I changed the subject instead. “What did Donna mean when she said I was a Chaos Fae?”

It was the first time in hours Phillip paused in his work. “She mentioned that?”

“You knew?” I countered, throat tight. “What is it?”

Phillip’s luminescent ocean eyes fell away from mine, and then he clicked his tongue and removed his latex gloves. “It’s complicated,” he finally muttered.

I’d never seen Phillip look the way he did when he uttered those words, and it was hardly confidence inducing.

Fidgeting, I circled the desk, which was over encumbered with the mad scientist’s current experiments, and took my place by the other Hunter’s side. When I looked up at him, the Austrian’s eyes finally wandered over to mine. “You’re going to have to start trusting me, Phil. I deserve to know everything there is to know, same as you. I’m a Hunter first, and I doubt it could get worse than it already has.”

Turning, Phillip took my face in his hands and our foreheads met. “Why must you pry into everything? Why can’t we just stay here in our little bubble and live out our lives together?”

“Um, first of all, you’d literally lose your mind if you couldn’t stab something with that lame-named sword.” Signs that the other Hunter found me amusing tilted his mouth, and I couldn’t help but smile as well. “Second, you’re not the ‘live simple’ kind of person and neither am I,” I rebuked, trying to smother out the anxiety taking hold of my body. “So, what is it about Chaos Faes that’s giving you that heart-wrenching look, dear Phillip?”

Clicking his tongue but smiling like a little boy, Phillip pinched my cheeks. “Don’t patronize me, V.”

“Oh, what, because that’s your job?”

Phillip snickered happily, and I tried to hide a smile. “I missed you, more than words or actions could ever express, mein Schatz.”

Mirroring his hold, I brushed my thumbs across his strong face and admired how beautiful the world’s deadliest Hunter was. “I missed you too, you jerk. But I won’t be distracted by sweet uttered nothings. You should know better by now.”

Sighing loudly, Phillip bent down and kissed me so softly I almost didn’t know how to react. Then pulling away, he wrapped his bulky arms around my shoulders and held me close. “Pure Chaos Fae are ancient and extinct.”

“Of course they are.”

“And their power is destructive. It becomes impossible to control and darker the longer they wield it. It’s an unprecedented and far-too-powerful ancient magic, V. One that hasn’t been seen in over two millennia.”

Naturally.

“And Cassius thinks the only way to control it is to cross over to the Fae realm and have it sealed and bound by some no-name Fae with the ability to do it.”

“Something tells me that doing so would mean throwing ourselves to the wolves,” I commented offhandedly.

“It wouldn’t be the smartest move, no.”

Plus, Cash wasn’t the easiest to trust, even bound by Phillip’s Truth Bracelet thingy. He could opt to withhold information, hence avoiding the “ lie” part of the contract. Cassius already proved to be a sneaky devil, and I wouldn’t put it past him to find a loophole.

Not only that, but the dude would run at the first sign of trouble if he wasn’t worried about Phillip getting to him first—and more specifically, if he thought Phillip was as good as dead.

Cash was the truest form of coward.

Thinking, I considered our options. “And there’s no guarantee such a thing would work, either. It’s a shot in the dark, and one we can’t afford to try right now.” We’d be at the mercy of a brand-new realm, and one that used magic better than I ever could. “I’m not ready to take on a new realm of shitheads, and leaving this one could put our own people in danger. The Organization and Lux will double-down, no doubt, and I can’t be the reason that our friends are picked off one by one while I’m playing Fae realm explorer.”

“I hate to agree with you—”

“Why do you hate agreeing with me, you asshole?” I cut in sassily.

Chuckling, Phillip continued, “Because it’s the same conclusion I came to myself, and I really hoped you’d argue the latter, lass.”

His deep, husky voice echoed in the ear pressed against his chest where I detected the uptick in his heartrate. Phillip was a master of control, so the fact that he let his guard down around me was enough to solidify the trust he was finally putting into our relationship.

Despite the dire-as-shit talk, I was on cloud nine.

Slipping my arms around him, I hugged the oversized jerk closer, trying to digest what he said but also knowing I never truly would. “But there’s one thing that changes it up. I’m a genetically created mix.”

“You are. ”

“Which means there’s no telling what I can or can’t do,” I argued, finally peering up at him. And I was so glad I did, because a half second later, Phillip offered me the sweetest smile yet. One born out of pride and absolute awe.

Kissing me again gently, Phillip took strong hold of my jaw and stared at me with fiery intensity, his gaze mere inches from mine. “Why is it that you know just what to say to give me hope? What’s this power you have over me, maus? It’s terrifying.”

“Things can terrify you? That’s what’s truly terrifying, my dude,” I snarked.

“We’ll do it your way,” Phillip said to my eternal surprise.

“Phil ceding ground? Is this a dream?” I mocked with a gasp.

Pinching my nose spitefully before smacking my butt hard enough to get a sound out of me, Phillip put on a new pair of gloves and got back to his work. “It’ll take a few days to figure out this reverse serum, and I have a few other gadgets to make for our next little excursion, so go sit in the corner like a good little girl and let me work.”

I saluted him sarcastically. “Aye, aye, el cap-ee-tan!”

Over two weeks passed, and finally the mad scientist was ready to leave this claustrophobia-inducing box of chemical fumes and sultry temptation. He’d successfully created a counter-active agent for the shit they used to paralyze my abilities. Cleverly, he made them into little dissolvable pills I simply put under my tongue, and thankfully the effects were quicker to work than the syringe versions .

Phillip then did the same with the reverse serum.

It was interesting how hot it made me to think about my genius scientist partner creating the very things that could save my life when push came to shove. Plus, I could carry more on me with these new tablets, and I kept bottles of them in several reachable pockets.

Equipping the usual assortment of enemy-conquering weapons and accessories, I took a moment to admire the Hunter silhouette I struck in the only reflective surface inside this hellbox I’d called home for a couple of weeks.

My naturally wavy red hair was pulled up into a neat ponytail, which sported several intricate braids, giving a totally unobstructed view of my freckled face. My hazel eyes glistened in a way completely unnatural for a human, and I idly wondered what they looked like when I was in the midst of a fight.

Did they really turn red?

Suddenly, Phillip’s much larger frame outlined mine. His mesmerizing azure stare captured my gaze in the mirror.

The Hunter’s luscious dark hair was gelled back away from his eyes, which were lined with dark black eyeliner. The usual piercings were in place, as was the accessories he used against an assortment of foes. He’d worn the usual jacket, probably jam-packed with all his favorite knick-knacks; inventions that overpowered some of the strongest enemies we could face.

That was Phil’s greatest power, cleverness.

I absently traced the lines of my gorgeous partner’s tattoos with my gaze, starting just under his strong jaw and spreading out over every visible expanse of flesh before disappearing under a thin, black tank top .

Before I realized what was happening, Phillip had a hand around my throat. It was neither aggressive nor threatening, merely demanded I listen carefully. His bedroom eyes glimmered before he bent and hovered his mouth close to my ear. “Trust no one,” was all he uttered, his other hand locking on my hip. “Especially not Cash.”

Swallowing, I nodded. “I got it.”

Dropping a kiss on my neck, Phillip let loose a breath. “I mean it, V. Eros is tracking our steps and has very likely gotten to Cash and a long list of others if my gut is right—and it’s rarely wrong.”

Surprised to hear it, I gawked openly. “Then why keep that asshole close?”

“Because it’s time to face off with that Dark Fae bastard on our terms. It’s time to end this little game he’s playing,” Phillip growled, eyeing me in our reflection. “I think you’re ready. But if you aren’t, now’s the time to say so.”

I almost couldn’t believe it at first. Phillip finally trusted me. I mean, truly trusted my abilities and regarded me like the Hunter I’d become. Words couldn’t express how amazing it felt to be finally seen for who and what I was. Not someone in need of protection, but the weapon I’d been trained to be. Someone who was capable of tearing down an entire operation of Hunters bent on killing me.

Fist clenched and heart in my throat, I nearly stumbled over the words I wanted to say. “I-I am! I really am. The bastard needs to be taken down, and he’ll be a good test of my new control.” Turning around and looking the Austrian in the eyes, I offered him my most confident smile. “The two of us are a force to be reckoned with, and I don’t think that sly asshole stands a chance,” I added emphatically .

The other Hunter cradled my chin and smirked in a way that always hit me right in the hips. “You’re right. We are, mein Schatz. And he’ll think he’s the one catching us on the run, but I have a plan that will trap the bastard long enough to put an end to this little dance of death. Do you trust me?”

Always. With every part of me. With my life.

Letting loose a shuddering breath, I nodded. “I do.”

“Then I want you to do what you do best,” Phillip started, a devious glint in his pale blue eyes, “Use that adorable innocence everyone underestimates to convince Cash you want to go to the Fae realm and mean ol’ Phillip won’t let you.”

Confused, I tilted my head.

Phillip’s tattooed hands slipped into my hair and he bent down, ghosting his soft lips over mine. The sudden spark of pleasure nearly distracted me away from what we were talking about, but Phillip quickly spoke up and got us back on topic. “If I’m right about Eros, then he’s using Cash to get close to us. Cash will want to get you alone, out of my protection. And that’s what you’ll do, lass. You’ll follow him right into Eros’s trap. But it’ll be a trap inside a trap, yeah?”

What a clever bastard this man was.

“The old switch-a-roo,” I commented, laughing. “So, you’re trusting me to go up against both if things go pear-shaped?”

Phillip’s eyes dropped to my lips, and I could tell he wanted to kiss me. I waited for it, but the Austrian spoke again instead. “You’ll have Blood Slayer. It won’t go awry. I won’t let it. This will work. ”

Usually, his confidence made me roll my eyes and toss something sassy at him, but today it was just what the situation called for. Still, I was nothing if not consistent about my teenage sassiness.

My lips lifted into a sly grin. “You just want me to touch your sword.”

Phillip’s eyes danced with amusement and his jaw worked, clearly fighting the urge to outright cackle. “Maybe just a little bit.”

Licking my lips, I eyed the sword strapped to his back. “Thank you for trusting me,” I said to the other Hunter’s visible surprise.

Then his hand locked around my neck and the Austrian kissed me so hard I didn’t breathe at all for several minutes, tongue caught up with his in a sensual dance.

Forehead pressing against mine after kissing me silent, Phillip’s jaw strained and his eyes closed tightly. “No. If anyone should be saying thank you, it’s me, V. You didn’t have to give me another chance. Fuck knows I don’t deserve it…or you. But I’ll make damn sure you know it wasn’t wasted.” His eyes opened, beaming in the lights from above. “You’re my partner. And fuck all if it makes me sound like a proper simp by saying so, but you’re a hundred times the Hunter I’ll ever be.”

A simp!

I nearly lost it to hysterics, finding the word impossibly adorable on a man who looked like he’d just served ten years in the big house.

I’d always wondered about this so-called “gap” Kate always raved about when a dude looked like a criminal but was sweet and kind to his lady of choice. Honestly, I never really got why she was so obsessed with it. She was the girl who chased down guys who looked like they’d taken a loan out at a tattoo parlor, but now I got it. It made sense. I was addicted to the gap in Phillip’s terrifying appearance and his sultry sweetness .

Call me a convert, because I was totally a gap girl now.

I groaned, hands on the other Hunter’s face and eyes set on his. “How fucking dare you, dude. How dare you make me want to throw you down and fuck you right here when we have a Dark Fae to catch.”

Phillip laughed huskily. “There’s time.”

“Oh, shut up,” I retorted, smirking. Then I stole the sword right off his back and aimed it at him. “There’s no time like the present, you beautiful jerk. Let’s go trap us an old-as-fuck Dark Fae, hmm?”

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