Page 37 of Wanted: A Roommate Who Isn't Evil

A smile cracked over Lily’s face. “Yes. Like a dragon.”

Dranian studied the thing. It had two straps that seemed to hug one’s shoulders, a satchel that rested upon one’s back, and a large tube that ran from the satchel to a wide-mouthed gun. “How absurd,” he muttered in an uninterested tone. “How far does it shoot the fire?”

Lily finished her writing and stood tall. “It could probably shoot halfway across this building,” she said.

Dranian’s jaw dropped. He slammed it closed immediately.

“That’s not interesting at all,” he stated. He took one last look at the fire breather. Then he turned and headed for the door with his new fairy-targeting gun. “And I won’t be using this.” He held the gun up between his thumb and forefinger like it contained an infectious disease.

“Do I need to call Shayne and get him to talk some sense into you?” Lily threatened again. “I might have agreed to keep your secret from Mor, but I won’t keep it from Shayne.”

“Ha!” Dranian turned back and waved a finger at all the weapons on the walls. “You’d have to admityourtreachery if you were to call Shayne about this.”

Lily opened her mouth to reply like she had something to say about that. But she closed it again and bit her lips. A second later, she turned back to her papers. “Shayne’s been giving me the cold shoulder since he left,” she admitted. “But I’ll get him to talk to me in order to rat you out.”

Dranian snarled andnearlysmiled. “Alright, Human. Go ahead. Try calling him.” He thought of Shayne’s phone tucked safely away in his apartment.

Lily made a disbelieving sound as she pulled out her phone to call his bluff. She hit the necessary buttons and held the device to her ear. Dranian heard the faint sound of ringing, and he huffed a dry almost-laugh.

“Hello?” someone answered, and Dranian’s almost-smile fell.

“Hey Greyson. Can I talk to Shayne?” Lily asked.

Dranian took a fast step forward. “Wait,” he said, reaching for her phone as Greyson’s muted response came. Lily’s face changed as she stepped back, avoiding Dranian’s grabby hands.

“What do you mean, he’s not there?” Lily said into the phone. “You mean he’s not in the room with you, or…” Something changed on Lily’s face, bringing Dranian’s attempt to wrestle the phone from her human fingers to a stop.

“If he’s not in Florida, then where is he?” she asked. The faint sound of Lily’s elevated rhythms found Dranian’s ears, and Dranian dropped his hand back to his side.

Lily mumbled a goodbye of sorts and hung up her phone. She had a strange look on her face when her velvety blue gaze slid back up to Dranian’s.

“Shayne’s not in Florida,” she said like she didn’t believe her own words. “Greyson said he cancelled at the last minute and didn’t go. He hasn’t been there the whole time.”

Dranian stared.

Shayne…

Wasn’t in Florida.

Didn’t take his phone.

Hadn’t told a soul where he was… forweeks?

The fairy-targeting weapon grew heavy in Dranian’s hand. His faeborn chest tightened like he was forgetting how to breathe… and that never ended well. He forced a large breath deep into his lungs, and he blew it out slowly.

The fool. The always smiling, shoe hating fool. Dranian’s voice was a low growl when he spoke again. “Where in the name of the sky deities is he?”

Dranian banged open the apartment door of 3E and marched in.

Luc stood there, seemingly waiting. The fox didn’t speak. Whatever humour had been on Luc’s face before was gone now. Swelling bruises and fresh cuts marked his neck and face—things Dranian hadn’t noticed back in the street while they’d been running from the park.

Dranian wanted to ask,“What do you mean you and Dog-Shayne only have a few days left to live?”but Luc seemed to read his mind.

The fox marched to meet him in the middle of the room. He put a hand on Dranian’s temple, and Dranian’s surroundings changed—his mind filling with a mostly blackand white memory, only certain colours coming through; red, pink, and a few notes of blue. Dranian became aware he was seeing a memory through Luc’s eyes.

A menacing, scarlet-haired fairy cloaked in dark armour stood before him.

14

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