33. Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Three
I picked Rook up and drove us to the Council meeting together. He was still distant in the days leading up to it, but in the car, he chattered and made jokes like nothing had happened. He erased the space between us just thoroughly enough to give me whiplash.
The room was crowded when we entered, assistants and delegates and whoever else crammed wall-to-wall to hear Emmett Graves counter Wesley’s bold proposals.
Charles sat in one corner at a tiny desk, surrounded by ballpoint pens and other clutter, preparing to take notes.
Rook gave him a quick wave when he spotted us and grinned when it made the younger man blanch.
The meeting was structured much the same as before, though Wesley Lake stood in a line near the representatives from the other groups while Emmett took a single podium centered on the stage.
“Thank you all for coming tonight,” he said, and the last chatter in the room died off.
“With the election approaching, I want to make my plan for this city’s safety clear.
Candidate Lake has made it very apparent that he wants to sever magicians from the Council and pursue the power to punish our own people for crimes without the vote of other groups.
I believe this will weaken the alliances the Council was built upon.
We created a governing body to disperse power evenly, so that no group would have greater influence over magical matters that take place here in Ashbruck.
Each species brings its own strengths, and by combining those strengths, supernatural people prosper as a whole. ”
I didn’t need to hear Emmett’s new laws. I’d already read them. I was here to see how everyone else reacted to them.
He shuffled a few papers on the podium in front of him and read them out loud.
“I propose CPA2005 - the Cooperative Powers Agreement, which states that all supernatural groups will use their powers to correct deficits in other groups during times of need. Using the example of the heinous murders being committed against magicians right now, the fae have extraordinary powers for finding people—”
The fae representative let out a throaty laugh, his rust red fingernails twitching slightly. “And what exactly are you going to give us in return? What do you have to offer in our times of need?”
I snorted and Rook and I exchanged a glance. Magicians were powerful, yes, but the boundaries of our magic were limited. The fae on the other hand—a bunch of overpowered snobs, but he had a point. There wasn’t much for us to offer in return.
“Representative Fate, there is a serial killer on the loose—” Emmett started.
“And he’s not serial killing us,” the man countered. “If you truly valued cooperation between us, you wouldn’t tip the laws in your favor. At least Candidate Lake doesn’t dress up his goals as harmony between us.”
A few bodies down from him, Wesley tried to contain a laugh and did a poor job of it.
Emmett proceeded. “Moving on, I propose IDA2005 - the interspecies diplomacy act, which states that representatives from each of our peoples will visit the others quarterly to assess and assist with issues in other communities, followed by IDA2005-PT2-PEA - part two to the interspecies diplomacy act, the permanent embassy agreement, which allows each group to have an embassy within each other’s territories for diplomats to regularly monitor and act on the needs of other groups. ”
The shifter, who had to that point stood still and stoic, spoke quietly, but with an authority that turned heads. “You don’t want to insert an embassy into pack politics. You’ll make more enemies than friends.”
“Furthermore,” Emmett continued, “I suggest QGA2005 - the quarterly grievances act, which would allow the people we represent to submit their concerns on a regular basis. We shouldn’t be making decisions for the people we represent without hearing their input.
There should be open Council meetings once a quarter for this purpose. ”
“No, that’s why we are elected,” said Andrew Clark, who stood for the humans. “The vast majority of the people I represent are safer not knowing about the Council or the other groups.”
Emmett fidgeted with the corner of his paper. “Then we find a way to serve your people best. That’s the entire point. Humans can also benefit from the power of the other groups, even if we need to avoid their awareness.”
Wesley scoffed. “So you are making decisions for some people without input.”
The response ranged from whispers to barely smothered laughter. Representative Fate’s mouth curved enough that one sharp tooth poked out the corner.
“Candidate Lake, if you’ll refrain from interrupting,” Emmett continued. A thin sheen of sweat sparkled on his forehead under the lights. “We can work together to piece together the best solutions for all of us, but I stand by my belief that we are stronger united. Thank you for your time.”
The meeting ended with a few words from the human representative, who announced election information ambiguously enough to hide his opinions on everything that had just transpired.
Representatives filed off the stage and moved toward clusters of lower Council officials.
The assembled crowd broke into low murmurs and quiet conversation.
“I see you had no trouble getting in,” a voice hooked me near the door.
Rook and I turned as Wesley caught up with us.
“And you must be Rook.” He extended a hand that went unshaken.
He withdrew it, his smile flickering for half a second before it solidified on his face again. “What did you think of that shit show?”
“I think perhaps you have the support you hoped for,” I said.
Wesley laughed under his breath and lowered his voice. “I thought maybe I’d have to wait for the killer to go after Emmett again, but it looks like he’s tightened a noose all on his own.”
“Very fortunate for you,” I said mildly. “I appreciate the invitation. Tonight was…enlightening. If you’ll excuse us though, we have other business matters to attend to.”
“Of course,” he said, his hands sliding into his pockets. “Work never ends, huh? Enjoy the rest of your evening.”
Outside, Rook said, “You hate him, don’t you?”
“I hate anyone who thinks they can put me on a leash.” Our footsteps fell in sync as a cold wind bit through us. “But he’s a problem to deal with after the election.”
“Deal with like…” He made a slashing motion across his throat with one finger.
“That depends on how big a pain in my arse he intends to be. Killing a Council member is too high profile, even for me. I don’t need extra scrutiny, but my business is already somewhat fucked after the fire, so I will do whatever it takes to keep the rest of it intact.”
Rook snorted and shook his head. “And Death is less high profile than a Council member?”
I rolled my eyes, opening my mouth to argue with him, but he grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. When I turned toward him, his face had softened slightly, the tension around his eyes absent.
“I need a drink.”
“Ooo, Council meeting and then a date,” I deadpanned. “Are you so turned on by politics that you’re trying to seduce me?”
“I’m trying to distract you,” he said. “You’re carrying too much alone again.”
“Oh. And no, I’m not. You’re right here.”
He stepped so close our chests almost brushed. “You can’t see the enormous wall you’re building back up?”
My eyes sharpened, and I hoped he felt the sting of them. “Maybe it’s because the last time I saw you, you basically told me to fuck off with my feelings.”
He had the decency to look properly remorseful, his shoulders dropping a fraction, lips pressing tight. Then he touched one finger to my lips, cutting off anything I might have said next.
“One problem at a time. Have a drink with me.”
I didn’t mention that he’d just defined my feelings as a problem as I smacked his hand away. “One drink, and you are allowed to talk about anything that isn’t us or the meeting we just left. Both are giving me a fucking headache.”
I stepped past him without a clear destination.
Council meetings changed locations each time, often hidden by glamours and spells, but this one was in a wealthy part of town.
If I walked the busy streets long enough, there was sure to be a suitable bar somewhere.
Rook kept a pace behind me now, his footsteps following mine instead of courting them.
I could feel enough of his body heat at my back to make me regret snapping at him.
In another time, in another situation that didn’t involve endless death threats, all-consuming goals, and unchecked ambition, I might have reached out and held his hand.
We stepped through the glass door of a bar called The Easy Bottle and found a secluded table in the corner.
The place had dark, polished tables that created a rich contrast to the white leather seats.
The back of the bar was a massive stained glass piece that cast the bottles in front of it in colorful reflections on the white marble bar top.
A server came over to take our orders, and I picked a citrus cocktail from their specialty menu, something light to lift my mood and weak enough to keep me sober for the drive home.
“Just one,” I warned Rook. “I’d rather not kill you in an accident tonight.”
“I’ll have what he’s having,” he told the server. The moment she walked away, he gave me an easy grin across the table. “A few months ago you would have loved to have run me off the road.”
“A few months ago you shot me.” I tapped two fingers on the lacquered table and smiled in spite of myself. “You’re bloody insufferable, you know that?”
“Is that what you tell yourself when you come in my mouth? Or my ass or…”
“We’re not talking about us, remember?”
“You’re so serious all the time,” he grumbled as the server placed our drinks in front of us. “Lighten up, England.”
He hadn’t called me that in a while, and I both loved and despised the little thrill the nickname sent down my spine like an electrical shock.
He took a long pull of his drink from the straw. “Holy shit. That’s really good.”
I swished my straw around, disturbing the slice of orange floating in the pink liquid, and tested it. Orange and grapefruit layered over the crispness of tequila, sliding a pleasant sweet and sour mix over my tongue.
“Impressive,” I said.
“When do you plan to do the ritual?” he asked.
The drink turned more sour than sweet, pairing adequately with the shift in my mood.
“This weekend. This week was a bloody wreck after the fire and with Gray gone. I spent every day cleaning up messes, and I’ve barely slept.
But this weekend she’s mine. The bitch has been a thorn in my side since I was ten.
I can live with it for a few more days.”
“Do you want company?” He reached across the table for a moment so brief I might have imagined it and brushed his fingertips against mine before wrapping that hand back around his drink.
I hadn’t considered letting someone else in on such an intimate moment, something I’d held so close and waited so long for, but the question made me wonder if there would be blood, if Death might fight back, if I would be afraid to face her again or end her fearlessly with all the hatred in my heart.
Perhaps I shouldn’t do it alone.
I nodded. “Yes, I think I would like company.”
He slapped one hand on the table. “Okay, no more serious talk. Your face is going to stick that way if you keep frowning all the time.”
His drink was finished, and he reached across the table to pick up mine and slurp it loudly. I huffed a laugh. “That was only half a drink. Now I have to order another one.”
“Oh no,” he said, grasping the orange slice between two fingers and biting into it.
A bit of juice escaped down his chin and I wanted to lick it off his face.
He wiped it away and grinned like he could read all my thoughts.
“You’re driving. Have another half a drink. I don’t have to follow the rules.”
“You never follow the rules.”
“Lucky for you I don’t.”
I leaned forward on my elbows, bringing my face nearer to his, and whispered, “Very lucky for me.”
All serious business gave way to laughter and playful banter, which only increased as Rook drank twice as much as I did, and everything loosened between us.
For the first time since Gray died, lightness expanded in my chest, a floating sensation that coaxed genuine smiles and delight at Rook’s well-timed jokes. Even the ones at my expense.
We left the bar well past dinnertime, me taking Rook’s weight as he stumbled slightly and laughed fully from his stomach.
“I needed this,” I said as I stepped back into the cold air.
“I know. I always know what you need.”
I wrapped my hand around his wrist, hauled him into the shadows of an alley, and smashed my mouth into his so hard our teeth collided.
He tipped his head back and groaned as I dragged my lips and teeth down the side of his neck, dipped my head to taste his collarbone, and clenched my fingers in the fabric of his shirt. I wrenched it from the waistband of his pants.
“Fuck. Not here,” he said with effort. “I’m not fucking you in an alley in the cold.”
I didn’t stop. I slid my hand under his shirt, to one shoulder, then scraped my nails over one tight nipple, dragging another succulent noise from his throat.
“Fuck, it’s…hard to…think with all the blood rushing to my dick. I—”
“Penthouse.” I pulled my hand away as he nodded.
This time I took his hand, gripping his fingers between mine. He didn’t care, or was too drunk to protest. I dragged him up several streets to the darkened area where I’d parked my car and released him as I circled to the driver’s side. My keys jingled in my hand.
He grunted and stumbled into the passenger side door.
“Are you so intoxicated you need me to buckle you in, too?” I laughed.
“No, there’s something—hold on.” His own keys rattled and a tiny flashlight attached to the ring flicked on. “Oh shit.”
I circled back around the car and noticed first that Rook seemed suddenly sobered. Balanced. Eyes focused.
Then the body on the ground. Handless arms bent at strange angles. Blood smeared across his face where his tongue had been severed crudely from his mouth. His golden hair was disheveled over his eyes.
Someone had dumped Wesley Lake’s body beside my vehicle.