Page 260 of Caelum

The stakes were beyond high. They were everything.

Just thinking of what we had to do was enough to make me feel nauseated.

“Do you really think if we kill Drekavac, it will decimate his line?” Stefan’s voice was pensive enough to make me gnaw on my bottom lip. I wanted to answer but couldn’t. Had nothing to say really. No way of replying in the positive or negative.

Frazer, on the other hand, did—bighead. Hey, just because he was a brother didn’t mean I thought the sun rose and set on his ass. “If what Bartlett and Avalina had to say is the truth, and if their translation was accurate, I don’t see why not.”

“If itisthe truth,” I retorted. I was still on the fence, even if it was only out of obstinacy. Their tale had resonated with me in a way that discomforted me, and the fact Bartlett had handed us a drawing of Solomon’s ring? Meaning that he’d been in Solomon’s court? It just blew my mind.

And the change in Eve was remarkable too. It was like what they’d told her had strengthened her somehow. To the point where it was difficult to explain how she’d changed.

I had to admit, she was no longer as useless as she’d been back at Caelum.

Whatever thisJannahcrap was about, learning of her heritage had made her embrace her true self. So, whether it was bullshit or not, it had made her believe, and through that, the leaves and branches on her body had stopped glowing so much—something we could only see as being a sign of things to come.

By the time we pulled up to the house Samuel had rented for us in Geneva—a small chalet that was an hour away from the city—we were all whacked. Samuel had gone radio silent, so I hoped that meant he was getting some rest, and I knew that the second I could, I was getting between the sheets too.

As I stared up at the house, I had to admit it was both cute and disconcerting. Disconcerting because it looked like the gingerbread houses I’d seen in movies as a kid—the Hallmark Christmas ones that were shipped around the world—and cute because, fuck, it looked like a real-life gingerbread house.

It was three stories tall and thin with it. Two windows and the door were stacked in vertical alignment beneath a flat roof that pitched down on either side. The windows had little Juliet balconies that were decoratedwith wooden moldings, and in the light of day, it was painted a cheery yellow color. A bit like custard. In fact, now that I thought about it, it was definitely like custard—the flans myabuelahad made when I was a kid for special occasions. Back before she’d turned into an outright bitch.

As the car doors closed, the front door to the chalet slammed open. Eve stood there, her chest bellowing like she’d run a race as she stared at us. With a squeal that would have had any neighbors protesting if we weren’t in the middle of goddamn nowhere, she hurled herself at Stefan, then after he’d squeezed her, kissed her until she turned pink, she rammed into Eren. Another hug, another kiss. Then onto Frazer. Same treatment.

I wasn’t sure why I watched, because it was an effort in torture, but I kind of wanted to know what she’d do with me. After she squeezed Frazer until he looked like he was being choked by an overlarge octopus—not that he seemed to mind—she turned toward me and bit her bottom lip.

There was a longing in her eyes that made me ache inside, but just because she wasn’t useless anymore didn’t mean?—

Fuck.

It didn’t mean shit.

My dislike and distaste didn’t mean shit either.

She was mine.

Fuck a duck.

I ran a hand through my sweaty hair again, tipped my chin up and mumbled, “Hey.” Before she could say anything, or before the others could glower at me too hard, I spun on my heel and headed through the open door. I needed to process this before I made a move, process what this meant to me and how I’d cope with the ramifications.

Spotting Reed at the dining table, I cocked a brow at the splintered wood around him. A small lamp and, by the looks of it, three chairs hadn’t survived his wrath.

He shrugged at my questioning look. “Temper got the better of me.”

I snorted. “Good thing we can afford the security deposit.” Dude had a habit of breaking shit wherever he went. It was like living in a china shop and inviting the bull inside for afternoon tea.

“Eve was freaking out about all of you being gone, and my Hell Hound doesn’t like it when she’s uneasy.”

I eyed the destruction around him. “Ya think?”

He pulled a face then asked, “Everything go well?”

Having hauled the bag in with me, I nodded, stepped over to the dining table, and dumped it on there. I really wanted to crash on the sofa I’d just passed, but I didn’t. I behaved.

“Sammy still awake?”

“He napped once we knew you were on the road home, but he set an alarm for ten minutes before you were due to arrive.” At my frown, he shrugged again. “Brother does what he wants. Anyway, he’s in the shower. Should be getting out soon.”

Sighing, I nodded then opened the zipper and grabbed the shit inside the bag. There’d been some stuff loose in the drawer, but most of it had been in velvet pockets for safe keeping.

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