CHAPTER EIGHTEEN #3
Not this time, I wanted to say. I swallowed the words, because they wouldn’t do either of us any good.
Another silence hovered around the porch.
There was nothing else to say, at least for now, but I wasn’t ready to leave yet.
I didn’t want to go back upstairs and stare at Michael’s message for hours on end.
“Want to just sit here for a while? Until the rain passes?” I asked Damon.
He peered out at it, the damp still glistening on his skin. “Yeah. Sure.”
More rumbles of thunder shook the ground.
This time, I didn’t hear an ominous voice or feel a rush of urgency.
It was only music. They were only raindrops.
We were only two people sitting on a porch, enjoying each other’s company.
Just Fortuna and Damon. I rested my head on his shoulder and enjoyed the scents of the storm, watching it wash everything away.
The past was behind us, and the future didn’t matter.
There was only right now, and now, and now.
And that was more than enough.
Sunlight made the Cape Fear River glitter.
Seagulls circled the air high above the water, their gray wings spread wide.
Waves lapped at the shore, created by a blue-sided boat moving past. I stared out the window, my chin resting in the hollow of my hand.
To anyone else in the cafe, it might seem like I was looking at the view. But I was focused only on one thing.
The leaves.
They were brown now. Falling to the ground like the weary final gasp of a quiet death.
It was a glaring reminder of the passage of time—Olorel was inching closer and closer.
I’d been trying to ignore that fact, because every time I thought about the shrinking number of days between now and then, terror threatened to find a way through the wall of focus I’d built around myself.
Terror that we’d fail, and we wouldn’t get that Gate shut or win against Lucifer’s demonic horde.
Because even though my Court wouldn’t be going to those hills alone, it still felt like we were marching toward the end.
Not just the end of our lives, but life as we knew it.
If the seven cities of Hell came to Earth, those demons would torture and kill every living creature here. Including my family.
I couldn’t let that happen.
I’d been training harder than I ever had before.
Every night, I slept six or seven hours, and then I was up at dawn.
Hacking at that goddamn bespelled wooden man Viessa had sent me after I’d told her about Michael’s power, and how my comrades were struggling to match my tenacity.
I pictured Lucifer’s face with every strike.
When I wasn’t doing that, I did push-ups and lifted weights—carrying a sword and wearing armor wasn’t as easy as it looked in the movies, and I wasn’t about to die in battle because I hadn’t prepared.
On the rare occasions I wasn’t at Adam’s, Bea’s, or the loft, I was somewhere far, far away from Granby, still meeting every Fallen dignitary or monarch Collith and Laurie could find.
I spoke with the werelions of Bulgaria. The hyenas in Kenya.
I’d even tried to convince a commune of goblins to help us.
At first, every single group either turned me down or gave noncommittal answers. Only a handful had come forward since then to say they’d help, but it wasn’t enough. It wasn’t nearly enough.
Which was how I now found myself in a small cafe in Wilmington.
It was midday, so the surrounding tables were completely empty, save for one man in the corner wearing headphones.
It seemed risky talking about the war in such a public place, but I didn’t fully trust that the water nymph king wouldn’t try to steal me away if we met on his turf.
I’d still taken note of all the exits and escape routes, just in case.
“You came without your fae guard dogs. I’m impressed.”
At the sound of that smooth, familiar voice, I tore my focus away from the dying leaves outside and looked up at Alexander N?rg?rd. By all appearances, he’d come alone, too. As he smiled and waved at the server, I said mildly, “They know I can defend myself just fine.”
What I really wanted to say was a little more vicious, but I was here to convince the water nymphs to fight with us, and probably die in the process.
That would be harder to do if I told N?rg?rd that Collith and Laurie hadn’t come because they didn’t even see him as a threat.
In fact, they’d been watching a football game when I’d left.
Cyrus had invited them, along with Adam, Gil, Seth, Damon, and Danny, and all the guys had decided the TV was better at the loft.
They’d been in the living room while I was getting ready, the sound of shouting and referee whistles drifting through my bedroom door.
“Have fun fishing, honey,” was all Laurie had said as I’d walked out. I had shot him the finger in response.
As I watched the water nymph king pull out the chair across from me, I wisely kept this information to myself.
N?rg?rd sat down and said, “I don’t doubt it.
I’ve done extensive research since we met, my lady, and I firmly believe that I’m looking at the most powerful creature on the planet.
I would be a fool to insult your capabilities. ”
“So you’re openly stalking me now?” I asked, ignoring the rest.
Just as the water nymph started to respond, a figure appeared next to the table. The human’s blinding smile made me think of Ariel. “Hi, there!” she chirped.
N?rg?rd tipped his head back and gave her another charming grin. “Hello! I’d like a Coca-Cola, please.”
She nodded. “Absolutely. One soda, coming right up. Is there anything else I can get you?”
“Whatever the lady would like.” The water nymph raised his eyebrows at me. I started to shake my head, then reconsidered. Keeping my hands preoccupied would stop me from fidgeting.
“I’ll have a small coffee, please,” I said. The human smiled again and took our menus. The moment she walked away, all the politeness dropped from my expression. “This isn’t a social visit, Mr. N?rg?rd.”
He leaned back in the chair, propping his elbow on the backrest. “Call me Alexander.”
“You must know why I’m here,” I insisted.
“I’ve heard things in the currents. My contacts on land have also had disturbing things to report,” Alexander said, some of the light leaving his eyes.
I wasn’t sure I wanted to know the details of those reports. I held the water nymph’s gaze, and my voice was hard as I said, “Then you also know that he has to be stopped.”
The humor was completely gone from his expression now, and his attention shifted toward the window beside us. Sunlight shone on the smooth, solemn planes of his face. “What I know is that war isn’t as glorious as legend makes it out to be. It only brings pain and death,” he answered.
He’d come here to reject me, I could hear it in his voice. But instead of getting frustrated, I studied Alexander and remembered Damon’s words to me the other night. You’re a lion.
Lions didn’t hesitate. Lions used their teeth and their claws when they went in for the kill. I leaned forward, gazing at Alexander intently. My voice was low and intimate as I told him, “There’s a saying, you may have heard it before. The enemy of my enemy is my friend.”
The water nymph went still at my proximity, and he wasn’t staring out the window anymore.
He didn’t even react when our server returned and set down our drinks.
I’d seen that look a thousand times, on a thousand others, and I knew it better than the lines of my own palm or a photograph of my parents.
Alexander N?rg?rd was caught in my thrall.
For a brief moment, I felt a flare of triumph, thinking I’d won.
Then the nymph’s eyes shifted away, and the intensity between us eased. Alexander’s demeanor became brisk as he ripped the paper off a straw and dropped it into his soda. I clenched my jaw and fought a wave of frustration, sitting back against my chair.
“My loyalty cannot be bought,” Alexander said, lifting his cup to take a sip. Then he swallowed and added, “However, it can be rented.”
I made a sound of disbelief. “You expect someone to pay you for fighting on the Fallen’s side? Your side?”
Alexander rested his elbows on the table and moved closer, just as I had. Once again, this was a look I knew well—desire. “Marry me,” he said.
“Pass,” I said flatly. I didn’t even pretend to think about it. “What else do you want?”
Alexander spread his hands helplessly. “I have everything I could possibly want.”
Now I really was frustrated. I fell silent and struggled to control my expression.
Our server hurried past again, and the sunlight bounced off two water glasses in her hands, making the sword beside Alexander flash, too.
Something about the play of light triggered a memory.
I saw that moment in my mind again, when Alexander had pressed the edge of his blade against Lucifer’s throat.
It looked so much like Lyari’s sword, I thought with a frown.
Too bad she’d never gotten to use it on Lucifer, since he’d released Lyari from her contract …
right before he had practically fled from their duel.
I remembered the swiftness of his departure when Alexander had stepped up to defend me, as well.
I’d never made the connection before, but it couldn’t be a coincidence, could it?
“Where do you get your weapons?” I asked suddenly. My heart was beating so hard I could feel it in the hollow of my throat. I didn’t know why, exactly. I just had that feeling like … like I was onto something. Something big.
The water nymph quirked an eyebrow, obviously thrown by the abrupt topic change, but he answered easily enough. “We have a trade agreement with the Unseelie Court, who mine the materials themselves.”