Chapter 32 Cece
Cece
Kate’s eyes lock on mine, sharp, and my stomach twists into knots. I know I have to pull her aside.
“Let’s go talk,” I murmur, motioning toward the back of the restaurant.
She doesn’t hesitate. She gets up and weaves quickly through the crowd gathered around the pool table. The second we reach a quiet corner, she snaps.
“What the hell is going on?” Her voice is sharp, almost panicked. “I know you mentioned this crazy story before, but I honestly thought it was a metaphor for some shit you were dealing with. But talk to me, Cece. This is making my head spin. And it’s making me scared for you. For so many reasons.”
Her eyes are full of worry, and guilt twists tighter in my chest.
“Okay,” I start, centering my thoughts. “The truth is, what they said is true. What I told you before is true. I know how insane it sounds, but I need you to believe me. And I need you to trust me when I say I don’t want you involved, Kate.
Not because I’m trying to push you aside, but because I need to protect you.
You’re my family. And this is dangerous. ”
Kate exhales a long, shaky sigh. Her fear for me radiates off her. “Okay,” she says quietly. “I believe you. I don’t understand any of this, but if you’re telling me that’s what happened, then it’s true.”
I meet her gaze and know she means it.
“So what now?” she asks softly. “You say you’re in trouble. Why? Is it because of Lucien and Xanther?”
I shake my head. “No. They’re helping me, just like they said.” My eyes dart around the room, making sure no one’s close enough to hear. “Remember, I told you at dinner that Luc rescued me?” She nods, hesitant. “Well . . . something happened when he took me to his world.” I inhale slowly. “I died.”
Her eyes go wide, horror flashing across her face.
“But Luc brought me back,” I continue quickly. “And it triggered something in me. I’m developing abilities. And those abilities are either a threat or an asset to some terrible people . . . or creatures. And they’ve been trying to get to me.”
I see the questions forming in her eyes, hundreds of them. I place my hand on her shoulder to anchor her. “We’re working on a plan to keep me safe long term,” I tell her, keeping my voice calm. “But until things are safer, I don’t want you involved. I mean it, Kate.”
“What abilities?”
I glance away for a moment because saying it out loud still feels ridiculous. “Strong intuition. A kind of sensing ability. Knowing things I shouldn’t know. A connection to other beings. And more recently,” I take a breath, “telepathy.”
Her eyes go huge. “Oh, shit, Cece. This is wild.”
“Tell me about it,” I mutter, letting out a humorless laugh.
She leans closer, her voice soft but firm.
“Alright. I get that you don’t want me too close to this, but I don’t want to be in the dark anymore.
It doesn’t just go one way, Cece. You’re my family too.
And I can’t just sit by and let something like this happen to you without trying to help, in whatever way I can.
So just . . .” Her eyes plead with mine.
“ . . . keep me somewhat in the know. And if there’s something I can do, let me do it. Okay?”
I swallow hard and nod. “I will.”
Then I wrap my arms around her, holding my best friend as tightly as I can, because honestly, I don’t know what I’d do without her.
Kate doesn’t waste time once we’re back at the table. She swirls her cocktail, eyes flicking between Luc and Xan with that investigative edge I’ve known since grad school. “So,” she says, tilting her head, “what’s it actually like in your world? Is it magical? Dangerous? Both?”
Luc exhales softly, but there’s no edge to it, just patience.
“Both,” he admits. “There are places of breathtaking beauty. Endless skies. Amazing architecture. Cities built into cliffs. Forests that nearly glow at night. But there’s danger woven through it.
Throughout the universe. Power struggles.
Old grudges. Rules you learn fast, or you don’t last long. ”
Kate blinks, momentarily thrown by his honesty. “Wow. Okay. That’s . . . a lot.” She pauses, then cracks a grin. “But hey, at least you two survived. Clearly, you guys know how to handle yourselves.”
Xan smirks, leaning back in his chair. “Oh, I handle myself just fine. Some say I’m even heroic.”
Kate laughs, shaking her head. “Heroic, huh? Sounds like someone wrote their own fan club.”
“I wouldn’t mind adding you to the membership list,” Xan says, his tone light and teasing.
“Mm-hmm,” she replies with mock skepticism, though the corner of her mouth twitches upward.
Luc chuckles, and it makes Kate look at him differently, like she’s realizing he’s not just the brooding statue she assumed he was. “Ignore him,” Luc says, his voice smooth but warm. “His ego needs no more encouragement.”
Kate laughs again, the tension between them easing.
Soon, the conversation shifts. Kate asks about the music in their realm, what they eat, and what an average day looks like.
Xan tells a wild story about a festival gone wrong, complete with an unstable warp field, a herd of glimmer beasts, and an angry Pomerian elder.
Kate nearly cries with laughter. Even Luc chimes in, offering quiet commentary that’s unexpectedly funny, and Kate relaxes, the guarded edge she had earlier softening into something almost friendly.
By the time we’re ready to leave, it doesn’t feel like three separate worlds colliding anymore. It just feels easy.
Outside, the night air is cool and crisp. Luc walks close at my side, his hand brushing mine occasionally, while Xan trails just behind us, whistling softly like he doesn’t have a care in the world.
Kate glances at me as we walk toward my apartment, her expression softer now. There’s still worry in her eyes, but there’s also acceptance. She doesn’t have to say it. I can feel it. She’s starting to understand that Luc and Xan aren’t just part of the chaos.
I trust them.
And maybe, just maybe, she’s starting to as well.
Back at my place, we’re sprawled around the living room, still talking. Kate’s got that curious glint in her eyes again. “So how old are you guys? I’m guessing . . . mid-to-late twenties?” she asks, looking between Luc and Xan.
I’m in the kitchen grabbing water when I freeze. I’ve never actually asked. I always just assumed Luc was around my age. Twenty-seven. When I glance back, I catch Luc looking at Xan and Xan looking at Luc.
Silence. Heavy, uncomfortable silence.
“Well,” Luc says, his tone careful, “we don’t track time the way you do here. Beings from my realm . . . we live much longer. And Warpers . . .” His eyes flick to mine. “ . . . we’re given even more time.”
Something twists in my stomach. He’s dodging the question.
I walk over and drop onto the couch beside him, my pulse loud in my ears. “So . . . how old are you, then?” I ask, more firmly than Kate.
He studies me for a beat before answering. “By your measure? About your age. But a year in Imperium equals roughly twenty mortal years.”
I blink. My mouth goes dry. “Wait—” My voice cracks. “So you’re . . . what? Five hundred something?”
“Five hundred and sixty, give or take.”
I stare at him. My mind can’t seem to catch up with my ears. “Oh my God, Luc.”
Kate lets out a low whistle, clearly stunned, but I can’t even look at her. My thoughts are racing. Five hundred years. Five centuries.
I finally manage, “So the average person where you’re from, how long do they live?”
Luc doesn’t hesitate. “A couple thousand mortal years. Sometimes more. But Warpers . . .” His gaze softens, fixed on me. “ . . . we have longer.”
Longer.
The word sinks into me like stone, leaving me frozen in place, my brain scrambling to make sense of the scale of his life compared to mine.
“So wait,” I say, my voice rising, “if you left for a year and came back, would I be nearly fifty?”
Luc meets my eyes, steady and calming. “No, Cece. It doesn’t work like that. Time doesn’t pass differently between our worlds. We just measure our cycles differently, so it takes about twenty of your years for us to age the way you do in one. And even then, our lifespans are naturally longer.”
I still feel like the rug’s been yanked out from under me, but now my brain latches onto the basics. The things you just take for granted when you’re dating, well . . . a human.
“Are we different, like, biologically?”
Luc gives me a small smile, the kind that says he’s trying hard not to tell me to relax.
“Yes and no,” he says gently. “We share plenty in common with humans. But there are differences. Not enough to make compatibility or procreation an issue.” His eyes flick to mine.
“But enough to make us . . . more. More evolved.”
“Our realm is older, more established, and much more technologically advanced. That comes with obvious benefits. Disease isn’t the problem that it is here. And we treat our bodies with more respect. Which is why,” he adds with a tiny smirk, “This realm’s food is . . . less desirable.”
I know he’s trying to lighten the mood, but it doesn’t take the edge off. My stomach is still a knot of questions. “Have there ever been beings from your realm who coupled with humans?” I ask.
Luc smiles, almost amused. “Yes. There have.”
Before I can press further, Xan chimes in from his spot on the arm of the chair. “I’m a byproduct of one of those relationships.”
I whip my head toward him. “Xan. Wait. You’re human?”
He takes a sip of his water, calm as ever, like this is the most ordinary thing in the world. “Half-human, half-Warper. My mother was human. My father, the coward who abandoned me, was a Warper.”
“Wow,” I breathe, trying to process that. “Interesting.”
Kate, bless her, breaks the tension with a grin. “So, Xan, you’re not too foreign then. Basically, one of us. No one could tell you’re any different from us. Like Canadians and Americans.”
Xan flashes her a grin. “Exactly. Just with a few extra tricks up my sleeve.”
I roll my eyes at their exchange, though it warms me more than I’ll admit.
And maybe it’s that ease between them, or the way the conversation has drifted into what they are and how they fit here, that nudges another question to the surface.
Before I can decide if it’s appropriate, it’s already out of my mouth.
“How do you both have money? Here, I mean. In this world.”
Xan glances at Luc, as if silently deciding who should take this one.
“Well,” Luc begins, “now that you know how old we are, you can probably imagine we’ve had plenty of time to figure out ways to secure financial resources here. We have more advanced technology, and we can come and go from this realm without much notice.”
He looks down, a sly smile tugging at his mouth.
“Most Warpers who frequent here maintain some form of investment. Predicting your markets is considerably easier for us. We have foresight you don’t.
And it’s quite easy to establish an identity in many of your realm’s sectors.
” He lifts his gaze. “So yes, it’s provided us with very comfortable means. ”
Well. Wow.
I’m sure my face says exactly what I’m feeling. So they play the stock market and always win. Must be nice. I glance at Kate, who’s wearing a very clear look of approval. Figures.
Kate stands, grabbing her bag. “Alright, I’m going to head out. I have an early morning tomorrow.” She glances at Luc and Xan, a playful smile tugging at her lips. “It’s been a real treat, gentlemen. Seriously.” Her eyes widen on the last line to drive home the emphasis. “One hell of an evening.”
She steps toward me, and I rise to hug her. “Text me when you get home,” I say quietly.
Xan stands too, slipping his hands into his pockets. “I’ll walk you downstairs, Kate.”
She waves him off. “No need. I’ll be fine.”
“I insist,” he says, that easy grin making it impossible to argue.
She hesitates, then nods. “Alright. Thanks.”
They disappear through the door, and the apartment feels quieter. Luc gives me a look, the faintest hint of a smirk tugging at his mouth. “He’s completely smitten.”
I huff out a soft laugh. “Yeah. I noticed.”
But the laugh fades as the weight of everything I’ve learned tonight settles back over me. I turn to face him, my chest tight.
“Luc, I know we haven’t actually talked about where this is going. About us. But after everything you told me tonight, how could this ever work? You and me? It just feels unrealistic for anything long term. Maybe short term is all we can promise each other.”
Concern flashes across his face, softening his usual steadiness.
He moves closer, his voice low but sure.
“We haven’t talked about it, no. But that doesn’t mean I haven’t thought about it.
Or wanted to talk about it.” His eyes lock on mine, unwavering.
“Yes, it’s complicated. Yes, it’ll take work.
But it can work, Cece. We’ll figure out the logistics when we’re not in survival mode.
What I need you to understand, what I want you to know, is that I want this.
I want you. Long term. And I couldn’t be more certain of it. ”
His words create an ache in my chest, and for the first time that night, the spinning deep inside me slows just a little.