Chapter 6
SIX
Sebastian started the coffee pot as soon as we got back to the apartment. I was beginning to suspect he had an even bigger problem than I did, because at the moment I had no desire for coffee. I was ready for bed.
Unfortunately, I doubted that would be happening soon.
I sat next to Gabriel on the plush white sofa, the only sounds the coffee pot and the hiss of water through the pipes running to the guest bathroom where Crispin was currently showering.
The magical water in the pool had no odor, but the long dusty walk back had taken its toll on us all.
I caught Gabriel glaring at Sebastian, but his expression blanked as soon as I noticed.
Once his coffee mug was filled, Sebastian turned toward us. “I managed to send word to my sister. We should have a reply by morning.”
I gave Ringo a pat as he climbed onto the sofa arm next to me. His blue fur was damp from his sink dip in the master bath. “Who did you get to brave the hells for you?” I asked. The hells were a near realm. Some runners powerful enough could make it there, but they didn’t come cheap.
“I heard there was an imp lurking around the Circus. I found it, and bargained with it.” Sebastian shrugged one shoulder as if it had cost him nothing.
“What was an imp doing at the Circus?” I balked. Imps were creatures of the hells and the hells alone. They were sustained by the energy there, and couldn’t last long in this realm unless someone powerful was controlling them.
He shrugged again. “Someone must have summoned it.”
“And you’re not interested in finding out who?”
My question went unanswered as Sebastian’s eyes drifted toward Gabriel, an unsettling gleam of flame visible in their dark depths. Gabriel glared right back, his hands balled into fists.
Oh no, this was exactly why I had let Crispin and Ringo bathe first. I had hoped my presence would keep any altercations from brewing.
I stood, ready to distract. “If we’re going to hear from Penelope tomorrow, we should come up with an offer for her. I definitely want to see the contract before I sign it this time.”
“I have already drawn it up. It awaits your perusal in your room.” He gestured toward the bedroom door.
Gabriel’s eyes narrowed at Sebastian calling it my room, instead of simply the bedroom, since it was actually Sebastian’s bedroom. And why were he and Gabriel making such steady eye contact? I didn’t like this one bit.
I startled at the sound of the bathroom door opening down the hall, then Crispin walked into the living room in just a towel. I only had a heartbeat to observe the water droplets still glimmering on his bare chest, then Gabriel stood facing Sebastian, who had walked around the kitchen counter.
Crispin leaned in over the sofa back near my shoulder, whispering, “Your magic kicks up when you’re nervous. I thought you might need me to intervene.”
I appreciated the sentiment, but it was coming a little too late as Gabriel and Sebastian took that final step toward each other.
Gabriel was by far the larger of the two, but Sebastian didn’t shrink in his presence.
Gabriel might be a practiced warrior, but Sebastian could wield shadows like a weapon, and he could disappear in a cloud of darkness before anyone could land a single blow on him.
I stood, but wasn’t sure what else I should do.
Mistral thought he had underestimated Gabriel, and he could handle being around Sebastian, but maybe he’d been wrong.
Or maybe he had simply given Sebastian too much credit, and expected him to be courteous, rather than having his eyes shining with amusement at Gabriel’s anger.
“Um, guys?” I took a cautious step toward them. “We’re all allies, remember?” Taking another step, I felt the heat of Gabriel’s anger marching up my skin. It took some effort to place my hand on his arm. “Gabriel.”
His glare remained on Sebastian, but at least he didn’t attack him. “He’s gloating about being with you, Eva.” His voice was so low it rumbled like thunder.
I kept my hand on his arm. “He hasn’t said a word about it.”
“He does not need to.”
Keeping my hand on Gabriel’s arm, lest he use it for punching, I looked at Sebastian. “Is he right?”
One corner of Sebastian’s mouth curled. “I haven’t said a word.”
I glared at him, realizing exactly what Gabriel had meant. “You don’t have to speak to gloat.”
Sebastian leaned closer to my face, completely ignoring the threat of Gabriel so close.
“I would never gloat, dear Eva.” His whisper was so seductive it sent a little zing through my insides, and just like that, I could sense that golden cord between us.
It made me want to step closer, even with the current discomfort of the situation.
Reading the look in my eyes, Sebastian smiled.
Gabriel lunged.
As graceful as a dancer, Crispin took my hand and pulled me out of the way, twirling me in a full circle until my back was pressed against his chest, one arm around me.
Sebastian had disappeared in a cloud of darkness before Gabriel could lay a finger on him, though I wasn’t sure that had been Gabriel’s intent now that he simply stood with his hands balled into fists, glaring at Sebastian where he had reappeared behind the kitchen counter.
I was pretty sure getting Sebastian away from me had been Gabriel’s only intent, which kind of pissed me off.
I patted Crispin’s wrist where it crossed my collarbone, signaling that it was safe for him to release me.
Once he did, I stepped forward. “Look, I know this is an awkward situation, and I know I’m the one who has made it even more so. But if any of you seriously attack each other I will find a way to cut you out of our little conduit star so fast it will make your head spin.”
Standing with his arms crossed casually behind the kitchen counter, Sebastian’s brow twitched. But hey, at least he was looking at me with amusement this time and not at Gabriel.
Gabriel, however, looked hurt, and I almost regretted my words. Almost, because if they actually did start attacking each other, we would never complete our mission. It was too important for petty squabbles.
I gave him an apologetic shrug, but stood my ground.
Crispin lifted a finger. “Perhaps now would be a good time to discuss our watchers in the Bogs.”
Sebastian’s eyes locked again on Gabriel’s. “Watchers?”
Sebastian hadn’t ridden in the cab with us, so we hadn’t had a chance to tell him what happened. While I had been doing my best to avoid thinking about it, now I was grateful for the distraction. “We accidentally shifted in the Bogs. Ringo heard voices. Someone saw us.”
Sebastian’s eyes slid to me, “Us?”
“Me, and Gabriel,” I clarified, debating just how much I should say. I knew Mistral didn’t want me blabbing about the state of things in the Bogs. “It was an accident. But we didn’t leave the realm—we just shifted to another place in the Bogs.”
Sebastian’s eyes narrowed at us both. “And you have no idea who saw you?” I shook my head and he sighed. “I’ll see what I can find out. Review the contract before you go to sleep.” He disappeared in a flash of darkness, leaving his untouched coffee behind.
With Sebastian now out of the way, I looked at Gabriel. “Was I wrong in trusting you to come here?”
“That’s my cue to leave,” Crispin said at my back. I glanced his way to see him retreating into the bedroom, shutting the door behind him just as soon as Ringo scampered through.
I returned my attention to Gabriel, waiting.
His jaw ticked, hands flexing. “Being with you is a gift. He should not treat it as a joke.”
It took me a moment to answer, “Now how am I supposed to be mad at you when you go saying things like that?”
My words earned me a hint of a smile. “I apologize. I did not mean to upset you, but—” He looked down, not finishing his thought.
I took a deep breath and let it out. He hadn’t meant to upset me, but he was upset himself. And I wasn’t sure what to do about that. “Maybe it would be better if you went back to the Bogs tonight.”
His expression was entirely unreadable as he asked, “Is that what you would like?”
I stepped closer, wishing I was better with my words.
I tried my best to be straightforward, but I had never been great at expressing my feelings.
So straightforward it was. “That’s not what I would like, but I think it’s necessary because what I would like is to avoid further conflict, and to do that I need the space to chew Sebastian out and tell him to stop being such an asshole. ”
Gabriel took my hands in his, raising them to press his lips against my knuckles. “I would normally argue, but after what we saw, I am worried about Mistral.”
A shiver went down my spine at the memory of the gray trees, the dying ground. “I’m not sending you back into danger, am I?”
“Not immediate danger.”
I met his dark eyes. “Are you sure about that?”
When he didn’t answer, I moved closer. He released my hands to wrap his arms around me, pressing my cheek against his chest.
I breathed in the scent of him, wondering how much longer I would have it. “I’m scared we won’t be able to open the pathway to the goblin realm in time.” I took a shaky breath. “And part of me is also scared that we will.”
“Even if we do, I won’t leave you.”
I tilted my head back to look up at him. “But if Mistral goes—”
“He will likely have to, for a time. But he will not fault me for choosing to stay with you.”
My throat tightened. It was a big promise to make, and we really hadn’t known each other all that long. Just the idea of him making such a big choice in regard to me seemed crazy, but… I still didn’t want him to go.
And so I kissed him, and heat blossomed through me. Neither of us could be sure what tomorrow would bring, but—
Gabriel wouldn’t leave. For now, it was enough.