Sevastyan
Sevastyan kept his eyes forward the entire time his half-sister blithely drove him through the downtown area.
He gave a grunt of goodbye and stepped out, then let out a sigh of relief.
He’d always thought it would be Collin he might meet, having lived in the same building with him for weeks, but Alice had been harder, in a way.
Her smile was bright and she had a spark that made him want to stare and figure out how she’d come from fifty percent of the same genetic material as he had.
He limped up the stairs into the building and took the lift to the floor where the Bolthole was located.
His biometrics let him in. He took off his shoes and ghosted his way to the bedroom. Rei was asleep, one arm wrapped around Lisa’s waist. Lisa was sitting up, gun in his lap, his arm around Rei.
“It’s you.” Lisa set the gun to the side.
Sevastyan grunted softly.
“I’m waking him up every hour,” Lisa waved his phone, showing a timer. “He’s answering all the questions fine.
Sevastyan sank down on a padded stool and leaned against the dresser. The wound in his side was burning. His muscles hurt. Even thinking was taking effort. Loading so many bodies and breaking apart furniture had taken a toll.
Lisa sighed. “Come lie down.” He motioned to the side of the bed by Rei. In seeking Lisa’s comfort, Rei had completely migrated from one side of the mattress to the other.
“I can sleep on the couch.”
Lisa scowled. “Rei needs you.”
“Did he . . .”
Lisa shook his head. “He just . . . went away. I couldn’t get him to talk.”
“He’s never killed anyone before.”
Lisa said nothing. Sevastyan rubbed his face. There was something the other man wasn’t saying, but he couldn’t wrap his brain around any way to get it out of him. “Did you report to Alexi?”
“No. I figured you’d want to have a say in that.”
“Yeah.” Sevastyan rubbed his eyes. This was where he was supposed to say something strategic and certain and . . .
. . . he had nothing.
“Come to bed,” Lisa said. “I won’t kill you in your sleep.”
“That’s less inviting than you might think.”
“Oh?” Lisa raised an eyebrow.
Sevastyan stood and started stripping off layers, moving carefully around the bandaging on his side. “If you kill me, I won’t have to wake up.”
Lisa almost cracked a smile. Or maybe he did, and the bruising and swelling on his face was just suppressing his expression. “If I kill you, then I have to take care of Rei on my own. Suck it up.”
Sevastyan lowered himself to the mattress and pulled the covers over his shoulders. Every part of him felt closer to eighty than thirty. “I don’t think I can suck you off right now. Rei’s in the way.” Sevastyan put a hand on Rei’s hip and closed his eyes.
Lisa snorted. He picked up the gun again. “Who said I’d even want your mouth there? Maybe I just want your ass?”
Sevastyan gave a huff of laughter. “You say that like it’s a threat.”
There was no answer. Sevastyan was already sliding into sleep. Being in Ellisandre’s place, with Rei breathing steadily against his chest and Lisa sitting up, gun in hand, was the safest he’d felt in years.
The only thing that would make it better would be if Ellisandre was there as well. But the sheets smelled like them at least.