Page 14 of Never Run from an Immortal

Pictures of Rush mostly. Or what was left of it. And that was a problem for them, because there weren’t many accessible locations in Demesia that housed an abundance of wealthy Vampires to fund their silver. Rae swiped through the images, scanning the report for any scraps of information she could use. She’d filled Nim in on everything that had transpired the night before, though she’d left out the details of the fate of the Witch, Calder, and her friend had listened carefully to every detail.

Nim chewed her lip as she leaned over Rae’s shoulder, a gesture that reminded Rae too much of her younger brother, Seylan. A pang of nostalgia twisted in her chest as memories played on repeat. It was all for him: every stolen wad of cash,every piece of polished silver, and every move she made. Rae let that thought ground her.

“Reed’s taking me to the docks tonight. I’ll ask him what he knows,” her friend said, reading the news report for a second time.

Rae tried not to frown. “I don’t like him, Nim,” she murmured, swiping through the last of the photos.Likewasn’t strong enough a word. She thought of the Witch as though Nim were her little sister, and though she knew her overprotective streak was creeping too far into asshole territory, Rae wasn’t about to let down another sibling, real or not.

Nim scoffed. “What’s not to like? Have you seen him? He looks like he was chiselled from a slab of marble.” She tapped her PAD, pulling up a picture of her and Reed together, Reed’s attention fixed firmly on the Witch as Nim beamed at the camera.

Rae already knew what he looked like. Knew a number of things about him she probably shouldn’t. Where he lived. Where he worked. How his only serious relationship had been with a young man from the ISA faction who’d broken his heart. But it was the look on Reed’s face Rae didn’t like. That look spelled trouble. Like he hadn’t decided whether to keep Nim as his pet or his plaything. That, or he really did love her. And a part of her—the selfish asshole part of her—worried that worse than that, they’d fall in love and he’d take Nim away from all this, and Rae would be left with no one.

“Statuesque,” Rae said with as bright a grin as she could manage.

Reed was a Shifter, and everything he wore showed off his muscled frame, hinting at what form he took when shifted. A lion, if Rae had to guess from his scruffy mop of light brown curls. He was a big guy; she’d met him once, despite Nim’s constant requests for the three of them to go out together more. A formidable presence, though not as formidable as Aidan. Raealmost scoffed at the thought. He’d been a monster in every way the night before.

Nim hummed at her side. “He also said he’s going to talk to his father to find out what’s going on with the mines.”

It was no secret that silver was getting more difficult to source, but it was the reasoning that Rae wasn’t buying. There was plenty of it. She suspected it was the transport back to Demesia that was the real issue. With so many Liberalist Fae camped out on the border at the base of the mountains, it wouldn’t be long before they halted more goods entering the city. Luckily, the humans had created indoor greenhouses, underground, some eight levels deep, and even the meat substitutes they’d created from plant proteins were convincing enough if you weren’t too fussy.

If it was the Fae blocking the supply of silver, the question was why? Why they wanted Demesia was obvious enough—not just because they coveted anything the Vampires had out of pride—but because of the magic thrumming through the heart of the city. Ley lines ran across the continent of Mazyr, converging in Demesia and stretching across it like a spider’s web.

The Liberalists had even begun to spread their propaganda to the Fae living in the city, and everyone knew it was only a matter of time before the scales tipped entirely. Rae rubbed at her temples, pulling her wayward thoughts back to the conversation.

“Just be careful with him, Nim,” she said softly, resuming her position at the polisher with another cuff. Asshole-mode averted.

“Yes, boss!”

Rae didn’t need to turn around to know the Witch had saluted her.

This batch of cuffs needed to be finished by tonight. These ones afforded a small amount of protection from weak Provident abilities. Rae’s most popular piece, in fact. Factions usually worethem under their uniform, curled around a bicep or forearm, some around an ankle, always hidden out of sight. Necklaces could be pulled off, piercings too. Rings could get hooked on something and ripping the skin off your finger was less than ideal. So Rae’s most popular items were the cuffs, and between her and Nim, they turned out dozens of them a day, murmuring their market-bought spells, as Aidan had called them, into the metal as they worked.

It might have been enough to trick the Vampires, but once the Fae soldiers breached the city—and it was only a matter of time before they did—Rae’s little trinkets wouldn’t be enough to make a difference to the safety of a few humans.

The Fae had been poor rulers once, in a time when the Royalist court held more power than it had possessed in years, but the Vampires had made Demesia a cesspool since, and Aidan was the worst of them. Watching him tear through those humans and Fae... and the Witch. He was as much of a bastard as the rumours said he was, every whisper marking him as someone who had no regard for anything other than himself. But that didn’t matter to Rae. All that mattered was getting what she wanted. Needed. For Seylan.

The machine hummed before her as the mop spun, and Rae lightly touched a bar of polish to the wool before moving on to the next cuff. She had no intention of reuniting Aidan with his abilities, even though she knew precisely where to find them. By the time he found out, it would be of no consequence to her. It didn’t matter if he suspected her—he was desperate. And she’d witnessed desperate men do stupid, foolish things too many times to count. Aidan would be no different. It had been the truth when she’d told him what she needed from him: His money. His resources. His protection. All of it essential to helping her achieve her goal.

She finished her cuff in quiet contemplation, sending Nim home early for the day to prep for her date, despite Rae’s reservations. Nim’s safety was always a concern, but Rae wouldn’t allow herself to interfere with her friend’s personal life, no matter how much she wanted to keep tabs on the little Witch. How much every intrusive thought screamed at her to do it anyway.

Rae loosed a stuttering breath. Her busy mind had always been an issue. So many thoughts layered over each other, always fighting for attention. Thankfully, there was plenty of time to kill before she met Ezekias at the Drunken Ram later, and an Aera representative was coming at seven to collect the day’s work. So she let herself sink into the task, keeping her hands busy, her thoughts in one place. Arming humans with weapons was difficult, but charming them to the teeth was easy.

But as the day stretched on, the setting sun casting long shadows into her workshop, a quiet sense of dread started to leak into Rae’s thoughts. The cases full of vials in the facility. The two she’d pocketed. Transferring magic was unheard of. Either the Fae were trying to drain Orders of their power or they were trying to harness it. Neither were options she wanted to see explored.

A knock at the door pulled her from her thoughts. Baxter, right on time as usual.

“There’s my ray of sunshine,” Baxter said with as much enthusiasm as he did every time he stopped by for a collection, one shoulder resting against the doorframe.

Rae took in his damp hair, the dark brown ends curling under his ears where he’d been letting it grow. She knew precisely what that hair felt like between her fingertips, and for one sleep-deprived moment, considered inviting him to the back room. Then he winked at her, and she remembered why that had been such a monumentally bad idea the last time.

Too in love with his looks, he’d probably just wet his hair before he’d left, hoping to catch Rae off-guard again. She’d always had a weakness for a certain kind of smile, but Bax, like most of the men she’d met in Demesia, had about as little to offer between the sheets as he did when he opened his mouth. Goddess knew how he’d secured his position as Tripp’s right-hand man. Or why he couldn’t send one of his lackeys to come and collect their order.

A frown creased his brow as his cerulean gaze swept over Rae. “You were there last night, weren’t you?” He reached out, knuckles grazing her cheek as she inched away from his touch.Thatwas why he didn’t send a lackey. He likely thought he could get some information out of her, and maybe a free fuck if he was lucky. Asshole.

Not for the first time in the last twenty-four hours, Rae silently scolded herself for her life decisions.

“Early in the night. I was done long before everything went down.” She handed him his order, theka-chingshe’d set up on her PAD to alert her whenever anyone made a payment chiming in the background as Bax tapped on his own device.

“You’re a shit liar.”

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