Page 61 of Demons Treasure Warlocks

“Well, not really. Elijah is too much of a show-off, so he needs the audience,” Darius explained as they stood side-by-side, surveying a very boring building. Bale relaxed his jaw a tiny bit, believing the worst was almost over. Darius still refused to look at him, but he wasn’t vibrating as much either.

“So why are we here?”

“Still making sure. Gotta get all the information for the others.” Darius leaned on him abruptly, his head resting over Bale’s heart. The unexpected embrace soothed Bale, and he draped an arm around Darius’s shoulder. “I don’t want to hurt you, but I need you to trust me to do this sort of stuff. I’m not gonna be reckless.”

“He scared me. Seeing you talking with him over the portal made the worst sort of sense, and I couldn’t even think.” Bale shook his head. “What he possibly can do to you terrifies me, and I got mad.”

“I understand. But you can’t give him that power. He’ll hold it against you.” Darius’s voice was muffled as he spoke into Bale’s chest.

“Believe me, I know that much. And I reacted.” Bale sighed. “Forgive me?”

“Don’t yell at me again,” Darius ordered. He rubbed his nose against Bale before pulling away. His eyes were damp, and the tip of his nose was bright red. Darius tugged his toque over his ears and pulled Bale after him as they continued to explore the town.

“Promise.”

Once Darius began shivering uncontrollably and stomping his feet, Bale knew the search was over. Darius was too cold to do anything requiring focus. Bale didn’t want a repeat of a frozen Darius either. There’d been too many of those days in recent memory. He hustled Darius off to the Tea Shoppe, where Hawk served them while they waited for Isaac to arrive.

Darius ate the food Hawk set down in front of him, but he seemed quieter than normal, and he kept watching Hawk with suspicion burning in his gaze.

Isaac burst in through the door. “Hi! I am here, ready to bring Darius home.”

Darius scowled before shivering. The cold must have hit him harder than expected. Bale made a note to start a bath or something when he got home. Darius was still too thin and the cold too bitter for him to wander around as ill-prepared as he was.

“Dammit Bale. I’m not that fragile,” Darius grumbled, but he willingly followed Isaac out. Hawk rested a hand on Bale’s arm. Darius noted it and met Bale’s gaze. “I’ll see you at the cottage then?”

Bale nodded. He allowed Hawk to pull him aside before speaking. No one else was in the dining room. “What’s up?”

“Your Darius, is he alright? He seems different, I guess I could say.” Hawk leaned on a table and crossed his arms. His antennae flicked back and forth as he considered his words. “More present but still… I don’t know how to explain it.”

“He’s coming into his own. He’s determined to keep Granite safe from the demonic ilk it’s attracted. Now more than ever. We have until the spring equinox before His Majesty attempts something stellar. The time crunch is a bit overwhelming.” Bale hedged his words, unsure of Hawk’s concerns. He glanced out the window and relaxed. There was still enough light to guide him home.

“It’s not that. He’s frenetic, and he keeps crackling. I don’t think he’s safe anymore, Bale. He’s going to hurt someone.” Hawk wrung his hands as he continued. “We can’t have another incident in town. The people are too delicate to withstand it. Elijah and Jenkins did masterful work at the town meeting. He’s managed to convince a lot of residents that his way is safer and better.”

Bale bit his tongue. He wanted to ask if Hawk was one of those people who thought it was better that Darius remained at home. It was Hawk’s right to be worried, but to say that it would be better for Darius to be out of sight when Hawkknew? It was ridiculous, and Bale shook his head, tired of the lack of communication, tired of people willing to take the easy path. Bale realized that Hawk had a lot at stake, but to come to Bale and suggest that? Pissed him off a tiny bit. “Can I buy a tisane? Dare likes them to wind down at night.”

“Of course.” Hawk slipped behind the counter and packaged one of Darius’s favourite teas. “The cryptids and I? We like this town. We truly do. What Isaac and Adam have done is a blessing for us all. It’s just… we need a bit of quiet.”

“And when His Majesty decides that calm is equal to submission, everything will change for the worse and you know it.” Bale tipped his head and left the shop with a bang. The door clattered, but Bale didn’t care. Poor Darius was being shoved under the dirt for something he had no control over.

Finally, being able to fly for longer than a minute should have given Bale joy, but Hawk’s words made him irritable on Darius’s behalf. When he landed on the wooden palisade Adam had created with Isaac’s help, he felt the wards curl around him and welcome him home. The lights were on in the house, and he could see Darius in his recliner by the window, a book in his hand and both cats napping near him. It was moment of perfect domestic bliss. The only thing missing was Bale.

ChapterTwenty-Seven

Darius didn’t have supper on the stove, and there wasn’t a snifter of brandy resting on the table. He certainly wasn’t peering out the window every five minutes, waiting for Bale. When had Bale visiting turned into Bale living here? It was weird in a good way, shifting his mindset. This was Bale’s home. They might butt heads and argue until the cows came home, but this was Bale’s sanctuary as much as it was Darius’s.

Even the cats accepted him as part of their clowder. It was nice.

The book he had been reading didn’t grab his attention. Darius wanted to watch the sky for Bale’s return.

The confrontation with Hastur hadn't been as bad as he'd expected. He did manage to get some notions about what Hastur was up to, and it aligned with Darius’s original thoughts. He needed Bale here so he could vocalize the pieces into one big picture.

It was his encounter with Hawk that had bothered him the most. Hawk’s refusal to look at him rankled. It made his skin crawl if he pulled on that thread because he didn’t want to believe it.

Bale landed gracefully on the fence before ruffling his wings into place. He stood on a post with his face tilted to the sky. His adoration of the stars made Darius smile. Seeing him fly was beautiful, and Darius was thrilled his wings had healed enough that he could do it once more.

Bale hopped down and smiled brightly when he noticed Darius in the window. God, Darius was turning into such a sap.

“You’re back, and I don’t have dinner ready.” Darius tried wrestling his way out of the chair, but the two cats weren’t having it. “We can have—”

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