16. 911 Cumsta!n
Seth
Idon’t wanna freak Ryn out or anything, but this is like reeeaaalllly not ideal. Actually, that’s putting it mildly. Technically, I’m already breaking my parole just by being near this stuff. I pull my bottom lip into my mouth and bite down hard. Gods damn it.
“Ryn—fuck! Ryn, I can’t…” my voice trails off, because what am I gonna say?
I can’t help you? I can’t even be around this shit, or I could end up in fucking jail?
My orbs flare so brightly that it makes me blink.
Anger at feeling trapped and useless bubbles up in my stomach, and I growl.
Fuck it. “What do you need me to do, love?”
Ryn’s still staring at the stones with wide, appropriately terrified eyes. My chest pinches, and I want so badly to pull her into my arms and comfort her, but I hold back.
She sucks in a breath and turns to stare at me, her voice barely a whisper as she mutters, “She…I mean, there’s only the one way to get it. Right?”
I nod, unease blanketing all the things unsaid between us. “It’s only produced in Unseelie lands. When the thick, shadowed fog that clings to the ground meets the Unseelie’s ancient magic wards, it creates a friction that gradually produces shadow dust.”
Ryn nods along. All of this is fairly common knowledge, especially for members of the Unseelie Court, and shadow wielders like me, since our shadows interact viscerally with the substance.
It seems like my rambling is helping to calm her, though, so I decide to continue my recitation.
“It’s highly regulated, and harvesting it for personal use is forbidden.
Really, it’s impossible. The dust is spelled to collect directly into a vault at the Unseelie Court.
” I hesitate, licking my lips before finishing, "Only royal blood grants access to that vault. "
Ryn’s shoulders sag as she adds, “And the Unseelie Court only sells shadow dust to the Reapers Guild.”
“Which is also highly regulated, and every ounce is accounted for.” I nod absentmindedly.
“Do you think it would be possible for her to have gotten some from an easily influenced psychopomp?” Her voice is hopeful, and I watch her closely as I consider her question. It’s not completely impossible, but damn near.
I don’t have the access that’s required to get near it. Still, something about the eagerness on her face right now is making my answer sit like acid on my tongue. “No, love. I’m sorry.”
“Fuck!” Tears streak down Ryn’s flushed cheeks, and I finally allow myself to move forward and pull her into my arms. She wraps herself around me and holds on so tight that it’s almost painful.
Some of the anxiety swirling in my chest calms at having her back in my arms, but I feel like she’s come to some conclusion that she’s not sharing with the class.
“What am I missing? A bunch of my brain cells are cooling on your lab floor right now, baby, so I’m gonna need to buy a vowel or something.” I hold my breath because that line’s gonna either work like a charm or bite me in the ass. Which is a gamble I’m willing to take when my girl is crying.
Ryn chuckles and glares up at me through her eyelashes, and I breathe a sigh of relief as she shakes her head. “If Saskia didn’t get it from a psychopomp, then for some unknown, probably sick and twisted, nefarious reason—I’m being set up. Right?”
Every cell in my body freezes with tension, and rage battles with dread in my chest. My voice comes out rough, with a faint echo to mark just how close to losing control I am. “Darro…”
“Is playing me like a fucking fiddle. The question now is why? What’s his goal here?
I mean, why even clue me in to the existence of the stones?
I would have never known Saskia was making them if he hadn’t come to me.
It’s not like I’m close with my family, which he knows.
” Ryn wears a deep scowl as she troubleshoots out loud, and I reach up to smooth out her brows.
She smiles faintly and drops her face into my open palm, nuzzling into it.
“You want me to go kick his ass?” I’m joking. I’d do it. Shit.
Every trace of her smile disappears, and she grabs my chin between her thumb and trigger finger.
“If you step one foot or spread one shadow out of line, Darro will look like a fluffy bunny compared to me. You are mine, Seth. Do you understand me? Mine. And I won’t lose you to some Reaper hellhole prison because a piece of shit like Kier fucking Darro is trying to frame me or blackmail me, or whatever the fuck it is he’s trying to do! ”
I can feel Ryn’s heavy breathing against my chest, and my lips curl into my mouth as I bite down on them, because I can also feel…
Ryn gasps and her eyes widen as she glances down between us.
I shrug and inject as much innocence into my voice as I can muster, “He likes it when you claim us. And when you get all fiery. It’s fucking hot. ”
“Did you just personify your dick?” The light is back in her eyes as she grinds against my now very hard cock and giggles.
“I’ve got about three awful puns fighting to be spoken into existence, but I like you so much that I’ll spare you and just—” I drag my tongue up the side of her neck and pull her earlobe into my mouth, sucking gently. Ryn shivers in my arms, and I grin as I whisper into her ear, “Kiss you instead.”
She moans and angles her head to give me full access to her neck. “Deal.”
My leg bounces rhythmically as I wait for anyone from the group chat to respond.
Glancing anxiously at the bedroom door and pulling my bottom lip between my teeth to chew on it.
This is new to me—this weird anxiety. Normally, I brainstorm, and even if my plan is shit, I can convince myself it’ll work out in some positive way.
This time, even my halfway decent plans feel too risky, and I’m not sure if it’s because the stakes are higher or if my feelings for Ryn are clouding my judgment.
Maybe both. I don’t fucking know. All I know is somebody needs to answer my godsdamn text.
Cian: What the fuck does 911 CUMSTA!N mean? You HAVE to be making this shit up. There’s no way that’s a thing.
Oliver: It’s definitely not a typical text acronym. I tried to figure it out, but came up empty.
Cian: DON’T YOU DARE MAKE AN ‘I’LL FILL YOU UP’ JOKE, SETH.
I bite down on my lip to muffle a chuckle and breathe out through my nose, a wave of relief crashing over me at the predictable responses from my friends.
Seth: It means “EMERGENCY- Can you meet somewhere tonight alone? Now.” Duh.
Cian: Seth…how in the actual *fuck* did you expect us to figure that out?
Oliver: Do—is there really an emergency? Do you need us to meet you? Or did you just want to find a reason to text us the word cumstain like a code?
Seth: Of course, there’s an actual emergency. And also the code thing. But mostly the emergency part.
Cian: Oh my fucking—just video call us, you moron.
Seth: Yes, darling. <3
After a couple short rings, the faces of my friends appear on my screen, and I huff out a breath as I try to get my thoughts in line. There’s really no good segue, so I just come right out with it.
“Have either of you ever heard of shadow dust?” I doubt Cian would have, since he’s spent the majority of his paranormal life until very recently stuck in his house, but then again, his best friend while living was a witch, so maybe…
Oliver’s eyebrows pull down into a V, and he frowns, “Heard of it, yes.”
It seems like he wants to say more but doesn’t, which makes sense, considering it’s a highly regulated substance.
Squonk tears, while not highly regulated, are considered extremely rare as most squonks these days have vastly improved circumstances—and they’re very protective of their fluids.
Which makes the tears high-value on certain markets.
I watch Oliver for a few seconds more before he clears his throat and shakes his head.
“None of the black markets have shadow dust, Seth. You know it’s essentially impossible. You’d be more likely to happen upon a whole vat of squonk tears than an ounce of shadow dust in the wild. And you’ll never just happen upon a vat of squonk tears.”
“I’m sorry, what are we talking about?” Cian arches a single brow as he glances off-camera behind him, probably to check on his mate, Trissa.
I lick my lips and begin slowly, “Shadow dust. In the Unseelie Courts—”
“Where Ryn is from?” Cian questions.
I nod and continue, “Basically, when that gloomy ass heavy fog rubs against the magic of the wards it produces a substance called shadow dust. It's native to Unseelie lands, and it can't be reproduced.”
Oliver hums, “Very powerful stuff, and very illegal to possess.”
“Right. Harvesting it for personal use is forbidden, which isn’t really an issue, because it’s spelled to collect into a vault at the Unseelie Court.
” I run a hand over my face and sigh. I think it was the desperation in Ryn’s voice when we talked about it that made me think maybe Saskia could have gotten it some other way, but talking it over with Cian and Oliver has confirmed in my mind that it’s impossible.
“So the only way to get it is to—what? Break into a vault at the Unseelie Court?” Cian frowns and looks at me from under his heavily furrowed brows, “Seth, please tell me you’re not thinking about breaking into a vault at the Unseelie Court while on probation.”
Oliver, to his credit, only blinks. I watch as he purses his lips as if he’s thinking about the possibility and weighing our odds. A small laugh puffs out of my chest, and I shake my head, “No, I’m not. Although I swear for a minute there, Ollie was down.”
He turns pink around his ears and huffs as I continue, “Saskia, Ryn’s sister, has somehow managed to get her hands on a substantial amount of shadow dust.”
“Oh, fuck.” All the color that had been bleeding into Oliver’s features from his blush fades almost instantly as he pales.
Cian glances at each of our faces on his screen and draws in a measured breath, “And how easy is it to break into a vault?”
“A vault? Probably not impossible. The vault that holds the shadow dust? Spelled to the royal bloodline.” I bite the inside of my lower lip and swallow hard.
Both Cian and Oliver are silent for a few beats, trying to process what that means.
I can see the moment they come to the same conclusion that has my anxiety through the fucking roof.
Cian’s face hardens, and Oliver’s eyes grow sharp as he says, “So, someone with royal blood is supplying her with a highly controlled, incredibly potent magical substance. Why?”
“Didn’t you say an Unseelie prince was funding Ryn’s project?” Cian narrows his eyes, and I nod in answer.
Oliver’s eyes widen as he mumbles, “Well, fuck.”