Chapter 20 Velra #3
He shifted the subject rather smoothly, returning back to the Sylas issue of it all, telling him, “So, yeah, there’s still been some major unilateral moves on your part.
Shoving Cassius and me aside to perform that Authority of Death spell.
Not telling us about Puritas’ rise—although you at least shared that with Cassius.
Just not me and Velra. Then there’s you retreating to your cabin where I didn’t even scent another presence at all, so you weren’t actually meeting with that Charles guy after all, even though you claimed that to Velra and Cassius.
And then, on top of all that, you knew about Morien Morgrave.
Your fucking father is back, alive and kicking, and you didn’t tell us, Sylas. I mean… really?”
“I needed to research his return properly before I filled you all in.”
Lazriel and I exchanged a look.
“I think that means they don’t consider your response good enough,” Cassius said.
Sylas pinched the bridge of his nose. “All right. Points made. Not just made, but driven home. I’ll… let’s just… what if I fill you in on everything I know about this nightmare return of his?”
“And that comment you made about Cornelius when Victor was shooting his mouth off earlier?” Lazriel cut in.
“Fine,” Sylas grunted. “Fine. I will. Tomorrow. Things have been… a lot. Especially tonight. Let’s just take a beat.”
“Good point,” I said, getting nods all around. “Tonight we enjoy being reunited, the four of us finally in the same fucking room together after way too long apart.”
“Perfect,” Lazriel said, winking at me as he used my word.
Then he walked to Cassius and said, “Listen, while we’re clearing the air and before we all take this reprieve, I just…
about me taking off like that, the way I left your bed after we…
I mean, I hope you know that it was real…
what happened between us… that it meant—”
“It meant a great deal to me also,” Cassius said, laying his hand on Lazriel’s shoulder. “I did not doubt what it meant to you. Although, I was greatly concerned for your safety.”
“I know, and I’m sorry. I just had to… I had to go… I had to do something.”
“I understand.”
Sylas wrapped his arm around Lazriel and tucked him into his side. “And you achieved what you set out to do. You just gave us information about Puritas. You found a viable temporary cure for me and, believe me, that’s no small thing.”
“What are your intentions with that?” Cassius asked.
Sylas had told us about it just before they’d left to secure Sorin.
A necromantic core transplant.
“Make the arrangements,” Sylas told Lazriel. “I’ll provide my blood for the test run. We’ll take it from there.”
Relief sung through me.
Cassius smiled.
And Lazriel kissed his cheek. “Good. Really fucking good.”
Lazriel jolted all of a sudden.
“What is it?” Sylas asked, feeling it against him.
Lazriel winced at Cassius. “I left Ketheron with two entire bags of marshmallows. I’d figured I’d just come out here to get you guys back inside, but then we really got into it. And now I heard him wolfing down the second bag, the first already gone.”
“You’re hearing that while Cassius has an auditory reduction spell up?” I questioned.
He lifted a shoulder. “Apparently.”
“Hmm, it seems you have learned a great deal from the Commander of The Shadowed. It is rumored that he can repel magic to a significant extent through drawing on the full weight of his Ancient blood. Said blood that also runs through your veins,” Cassius told him.
“Huh,” Lazriel uttered. “Cool perk.”
We all chuckled.
It was a lot more than that.
But Lazriel taking things in his stride really took the edge off.
And I’d missed it.
I’d missed this.
Missed us.
“Hey,” Lazriel said as he emerged from Ketheron’s room and saw me approaching.
I peered inside where Ketheron was tucked up in bed and sound asleep.
“Sorry. It took longer than I thought. You came to get me?”
“Yeah.” I frowned as his words settled. “What happened? Is he okay?”
He shut the door and we walked into the main living area together headed for Cassius’ room.
“Kind of. He wanted to map out an entire plan about our visit to Sanctum Sands Beach once all this is over and open it up to include you and Sylas. I think, though, it’s his way of sublimating and trying to deal with being kept out of all of this when the stakes are so high.
And when his massive power could really fucking help.
He even told me that the reason the Guardian Movement didn’t show up tonight during the attack at Sylas’ place was because he protected the entire area at Cassius’ request. He protected us, Velra.
If they’d shown too early, Sorin would be with them now, we wouldn’t have gotten a load of intel from Victor’s ramblings, or seen that Light Fae shithead who seemed to be leading Puritas. ”
“I agree that it’s hard for him, but it’s also shielding him to keep him from the actual thick of it. He’s been used for his power in the past. He was created as the ultimate weapon, remember? To wield him like that again after everything—”
“No one would be wielding him, love. He’d been a part of our team. It would be his choice, his will.”
“His power being unleashed, especially in a combat situation… it’s also dangerous because of perception.”
“Anyone, even the dumbest fucking shithead can see that Ketheron is so far from a damned destroyer. He has a heart of gold. He wants to help, not hurt.”
“We can see it because we know him. But as the very existence of Puritas proves, assumptions and stereotypes are created. And a lot of those exist about him as well. Fearful perceptions. And when people are afraid, they often lash out. That’s the last thing we want for him.”
“I know, but I really think a better balance needs to be struck. Really fucking soon.” He shoved a hand through his hair.
“You know what? Like Sylas said earlier, let’s take a beat.
Enjoy the four of us being back together after too long apart.
We’ll get into it later tomorrow.” He wrapped his arm around me as we walked, then lowered his voice.
“By the way, Sylas isn’t gonna be able to handle any fucking tonight.
I took it out of him earlier, before that battle even started, and I even fed off him, and he didn’t want me to heal him.
” His eyes lit briefly as he said, “He wanted to keep my bite marks on him.” It faded as he added, “Although they healed involuntarily anyway when he erected that shield over us earlier. I guess his magic called to him, helped him, without the use of an actual command.”
“It would have likely been the radiating energy of it,” I explained.
He nodded, getting it. “You know how he is. He’ll try to put on a steadfast front, but he really needs to rest, Velra. In the morning we can ravage each other, but he needs to sleep several hours first.”
“Of course. No problem.”
“No problem? I thought you would have been all over us, especially after all that heaviness earlier. You clocked his exhaustion then, already shut yourself down?”
“I clocked it, yeah. Honestly, I’m just glad we’ll all be together tonight. Sex can wait, you know? I kind of just want to fall asleep with the three of you all over me.”
He smiled and kissed my hair. “You’re too cute. You know that?”
“Come on, we all know you’re the cute one.”
He slapped his free hand to his heart. “Graverun King here, love. You wound me.”
I burst out laughing, then I turned in his arms as we reached Cassius’ bedroom door. “Holy crap, I’ve really missed you. So much.”
I went to lean in to kiss him, but I only managed a brief brush across his lips, before his deeply erotic groan had me needing to pull away to ensure I was able to stick to the no-sex-tonight agreement.
I called my magic briefly. “Sleeping naked isn’t going to be conducive to keeping things chill tonight.
” In the next moment, I changed into my pajamas with a spark of my magic.
I knew Sylas had said that he was fine with Cassius and I using magic in front of him, but I still didn’t like doing it while he was bound.
“Shit. Yeah. So fucking cute,” Lazriel said, taking in my off-shoulder black tee emblazoned with a crescent moon and the matching purple shorts that were dotted with silver specks like starlight.
“Shut up,” I said, slapping his shoulder, before I turned and opened the door, and we stepped inside.
As I heard Lazriel close it behind us, I took in the sight of Cassius positioning more pillows on the bed to make it comfortable for all four of us to sleep there tonight.
I swallowed hard at the sight of all that broad Celestial muscle of his on display with him shirtless and just wearing a pair of white silk pajama pants.
Sylas emerged from the bathroom in a pair of crimson sweats that hung low on his hips, his cut chest bared as well.
Okay, this was gonna be harder than I thought.
Fingers snapped in my face and I adverted my eyes to see Lazriel had blurred in front of me. “All right there?” he asked in a teasing tone.
“Fine,” I breathed. “Just going to… I mean… I’m going to lie down, get some sleep.”
His lips quirked. “Sounds good.”
“Here, my darling,” Cassius said, gesturing to the center of the bed where three overstuffed pillows were propped up. “I made this for you. I’ve come to learn recently that you enjoy many pillows.” His eyes sparkled. “Extra coziness, as you refer to it.”
Aww. “Thank you.”
As I climbed onto the bed, I caught sight of Lazriel whispering something to Cassius.
In the next moment, Cassius was nodding, then darting behind him, using his massively broad body to shield him as he stripped down to his boxers. He was trying not to tempt me or worsen the strain of it. He fingered his wolf claw pendant as he emerged from behind Cassius, he winked at me.
“Thanks, big boy,” Lazriel told him, planting a kiss on his cheek that had Cassius beaming at him.
“Long night,” Sylas groaned as he sat down heavily on the bed and smiled out at me.
Lazriel was right, he looked absolutely exhausted.
“Yeah, I’m wiped too.”
“Yeah?” he asked, sounding surprised and relieved, struggling not to show how much he actually needed to rest.
At least this was just him processing, not keeping major secrets and taking dangerous unilateral action. And I really believed he could get better with that, and that he’d give us the whole deal tomorrow like he’d promised and loop us in.
Not because it was easy for him, but because it was clear to me that he wanted this with us. He was deeply invested in our relationship and it meant everything to him. He’d try for us, I knew it.
“Definitely,” I said, resting my head down on the super comfy pillow display that Cassius had made, just as Sylas eased in and settled onto his back.
Cassius climbed in beside me.
And then Lazriel did a half somersault over him and settled between me and Sylas, then threw his leg over the covers so he could touch Cassius’ thighs through the covers with his feet.
I laughed and tickled his ribs, which given how ticklish he was, had him thrashing.
“If you continue, it’ll really work him up,” Sylas warned. As I ceased my tickling, he reached out and stroked Lazriel’s hair, gliding his fingers through the block of green strands amongst the rest of his dark hair. “Shh. Settle, babe.”
“You also, Velra,” Cassius said, curling around me and stroking my hair softly.
I couldn’t believe I needed to be settled, but being together, all four of us, after so long was clearly getting to me. I was so excited for it.
So relieved.
So happy.
Lazriel and I exchanged an amused look.
And then I nuzzled against his cheek and he breathed me in, resting his hand over my stomach possessively.
Sylas closed in, essentially spooning him on the other side, while also hooking my leg in the process, wanting me close.
And then Cassius covered me from behind, continuing to softly stroke my hair as he also reached out and grasped Lazriel’s hand, holding it firmly.
I absorbed it all, every moment of them wrapped all over me.
Being immersed in them again.
It was so lovely and perfect that it relaxed me in moments, soothed me so deeply.
And it wasn’t long before sleep took me.