Chapter 7 Zera
Zera
Maverick let out a moan, and his teeth pulled at her bottom lip, as if reluctant to pull away. Zera’s heart skipped a beat, the rhythm of their charade momentarily shattered by the interruption.
She pulled away, and one look at Maverick told her the kiss had been planned. She forced her breathing back into a normal pace, cursing herself for forgetting the line. It was all for show, and she should be happy about that.
Zera followed Maverick’s gaze as a tall man approached them, his wild curls tied back in a casual bun. He wore nothing but a vest that exposed a tattooed serpent that wound its way from his tanned stomach to his left temple and leather pants that hugged his thighs like a second skin.
“I hate to interrupt such a moment between newlyweds,” he said, his eyes flickering demon violet in the low light. “But when I heard the infamous Dane was here inquiring about my services, I had to come myself.”
“Quill. It’s been a long time.” Maverick kept a protective hand on the small of Zera’s back as he shook the demon’s hand with his free one.
“It has. It’s good to see you again, old friend,” he said as his knowing gaze fell on her.
Zera had a feeling he knew something they didn’t, but she couldn’t figure out what or why. There was something off about him, and she wasn’t sure if she could trust him.
“This is Charlotte,” Maverick said with a smile, pulling her hand into his and placing a gentle kiss on her knuckles. “My Charlotte.”
The power that rippled off this demon made her cringe inwardly.
Suddenly Maverick’s advice of sticking to “mostly truths” made sense.
She didn’t want Quill knowing who she really was.
But her heart still raced, and she hoped the demon couldn’t hear it.
Their role-playing had officially begun, but she wasn’t ready to be Charlotte Brown.
She didn’t have a clue what she was doing.
“Congrats. May the fae bless you.” Quill barely gave her a bored glance before he turned and nodded toward a doorway at the back she hadn’t noticed before. “Follow me.”
The demon led the way past the bar to the doorway she was certain hadn’t been there. A green snake with intricate demon sigils for scales was etched on either side of the doorframe.
“Hold my hand,” the demon said, reaching both of his hands out.
Zera didn’t ask the question of why that bubbled up her throat. She had a feeling this demon wouldn’t care, and if she were truly married to Maverick—or his alias, Dane—she didn’t think Charlotte would even care to ask. She would probably be used to all of this.
They both took hold of the demon’s hands and stepped through the threshold.
Maverick ducked under, his height brimming the doorframe.
The air rippled around them as they passed through, and her skin prickled.
The sigils. It must be a way to keep outsiders from entering or even seeing this passageway, same as the one at Haven Wolf Tavern.
She exhaled when they made it through the ward unscathed. A long staircase illuminated by violet lamps welcomed them, matching the demon’s eyes.
Quill flashed her a wry grin, as if sensing her unease. “This way.”
They descended the gritty steps that spiraled down, each step farther into darkness, until they finally reached a dimly lit room that smelled of ink and sulfur. Shelves lined the walls, filled with various tools and materials, and at the center of the room was a large, cluttered worktable.
“Welcome to my lair,” Quill said as he waved his hand to indicate the chaos surrounding them.
Zera’s eyes darted around the room, taking in the peculiar pieces of machinery that lay about on random tables, tools she’d never seen before but instinctively knew held immense power.
The largest one tucked in the corner caught her eye, an industrial piece of equipment with crystals and runes cut into it.
Each symbol glowed in various colors, as if waiting to activate whatever operation it triggered.
She didn’t have a clue what it did or how it was operated, but she had a feeling it was incredibly illegal to own, let alone use.
“And this”—Quill motioned to the giant machine she eyed—“is my masterpiece. My life’s work. The Ethereal Forger.”
“Humble as always, I see.” Maverick chuckled, tossing his backpack on a tiny couch pushed against the only remaining wall that wasn’t littered with equipment.
Zera followed suit, setting her stuff down, and tried to look at ease, even though her heart raced with a mix of awe and apprehension.
Quill’s persistent grin deepened, and his violet eyes flickered. “Don’t pretend like you’re not always impressed with my work, Dane Brown. It’s why you’ve worked all these years undetected, though rumor has it you’ve gone sloppy and let someone discover your true identity.”
“Not sloppy. Just betrayed, and I’d like to know who,” he growled, his eyes narrowing at Quill.
His bushy blond brows vanished into his curls. “You think I did this? You’re my best customer. Really, my reputation alone keeps me in business, and that would shut me down for good. Besides, I never knew your true identity from the start.”
Maverick sighed. “You’re right. It’s hard to know who to trust these days. I had to ask.”
“Of course.” Quill gave him a pitying tsk before shrugging it off. “Well, I assume you need papers for her, a coin card, accounts, and a new faestone?”
“Yes. And it needs to be untraceable.”
“Naturally,” Quill shot over his shoulder as he meandered to his Ethereal Forger.
“And I need three faestones this time.”
“Three?” He whistled as he pressed his hand against various runes on the forger, which whirred to life. “My prices have increased since the last time you had me create your identity, Dane Brown.”
“You always do good work for me,” Maverick said with a smirk. “Have it charged to my tab.”
Zera noticed he didn’t ask for the exact total, but she wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to know what the going rate was for illegal identifications and untraceable faestones.
It couldn’t have been cheap. But it would be worth it to be able to video chat with Jade and Sloane and to see Cole again, hear his coos and baby talk. Even if it was just through a lens.
Her heart ached as she wanted to be there to cradle him in her arms until he went to sleep.
She didn’t even know what time it was, since there weren’t any windows in this deep cellar-like lair, but she was pretty sure it was nearly late afternoon.
Jade would probably be making him something to eat before starting the bedtime routine.
She didn’t know what she would do with her evening without her little one to care for.
Guilt hit her like a wave and flooded her with doubt. She knew she’d had no choice but to leave Cole with Jade, the only person she would trust to take care of him while she did what needed to be done to ensure their safety. Still, the thought of not being there for him made her insides churn.
As Quill worked, Maverick took up a space near a giant cabinet as far away from her as possible. She frowned. So much for keeping up their role-playing. Why did he get to pick and choose when they were to stay in character?
The charged silence between Maverick and Zera filled the room, thick as the enchanted fog that often rolled through Havenwood from the north.
Zera’s gaze flickered to him unintentionally, catching a glimpse of those piercing, storm-filled eyes that seemed to see right through her.
She quickly looked away, feeling an unbidden warmth spread across her cheeks.
What was she, some pixie teen hyped up on hormones?
She had to get a grip. Some type of control over these feelings that betrayed all reasoning.
“Almost done, Charlotte,” Quill murmured, his voice pulling Zera back from the brink of whatever dangerous precipice she found herself teetering on when it came to Maverick.
“Charlotte?” she repeated, the name foreign on her tongue.
“Your identity,” Quill said with a finalizing tap on the Ethereal Forger in front of him before he snapped his fingers and an image fluttered above one of the runes. “Charlotte Brown, elf-born elemental from the Lunar Forest with a clean slate.”
Zera ground her teeth at the mention of the Lunar Forest, just south of her hometown in Pixie Hollow.
It was a forest she knew well but one pixies, for obvious reasons, didn’t dare venture into.
But she guessed if she was to be playing wife to a Lunar wolf, with a pack or not, she might as well embrace it.
She leaned in, scrutinizing the image of herself, now sporting brown eyes instead of her usual lavender.
Of course, not even Quill knew she was a pixie.
Or did he? He seemed to pride himself on deception.
Perhaps he was only pretending not to know Maverick’s true identity.
But right now, he was the only one helping them, so if Maverick trusted him, then she guessed she would have to as well.
Her heart raced at the thought of becoming someone else, temporarily or not. The intricacy of the holographic seals and the flawless forgery of the governmental Fae Realm insignia were impressive. Quill had outdone himself.
“Quite the craftsman, aren’t you, Quill?” Maverick quipped from behind her, leaning against the cold stone wall, arms crossed. His nonchalance grated on her nerves.
Did he not realize she was having to step into the shoes of someone else entirely? Did he care that even this paper separated her further from the only person who mattered to her?
She cleared her throat, shaking off her sudden emotion before the moisture that threatened to brim her eyes spilled.
If she let her guard down in front of this demon, her brown film covering up her pixie irises would slip, and she couldn’t risk that.
There were too many who already knew she had pixie dust. She didn’t need to add to that list.