Page 28 of Stuck with my Frenemy
Chapter Eleven
Ebony
If I was honest with myself, I actually felt bad. All of Cherry’s insanity aside, she did deliver karma to the right humans. Not that I had any intention on telling her that. Her obnoxious behavior didn’t need more encouragement. And I was glad that we’d taken the time to visit Ash’s apartment because it gave me the opportunity to calm down. I’d always been used to going into situations with a well-thought-out plan, which would never be the case again now that Rainbow Disaster was in the picture.
Chaos.
My whole life was chaos now.
While I pretended not to notice that Ash was throwing strange glances my way, I tried to come up with some sort of idea about what it all meant. Too many coincidences piled up never sat well with me. And all my reservations about being stuck in this realm aside, I’d never give my mother the satisfaction of seeing me fail. I’d bet my magic that was what she expected anyway.
“What are we waiting for?” Bernie grumbled, kicking at a pile of papers fanned around his feet.
I didn’t miss the way he gravitated toward Cherry, hanging on her every word and move. She, on the other hand, acted even more weird around him. Because why wouldn’t she? That was what we needed at that moment, more of her stupidities to create a bigger mess.
“Didn’t you see her a few minutes ago?” Cherry stabbed a finger in my direction. “She almost bit your brother’s arm off. Even I’ve learned never to push her past certain points. She could snap.” Her eyes widened dramatically. “No one needs to see that. Trust me on this.”
Jaw set, I stared at her.
Ash’s apartment was not what I expected. Actually, I had no idea what I thought it’d be like, but the stylish-though-simplistic space was definitely not it. I needed to think, and being here – mess aside – was calming. Crème walls and comfortable leather furniture in natural tones said this was his safe place and somewhere he could rest his head and just be, which was a total contradiction to the intense and intimidating vibe he gave off with just one look. For an obviously dumb reason, I also felt bad that it was ransacked and turned upside down. He was a thief, for Hell’s sake. I should be happy he and his brother got what they deserved.
Double, as a matter of fact.
“Before we go back, I’d like to know what the two of you were doing with Thor’s hammer in the first place.” Leaning my butt on the flipped-over couch, I peered between the humans. “Cut through the bullshit too, because as I said before, the trail might go cold. Magic dissipates eventually.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Ash was the first to jump right for my throat. How sweet. I’d hit a nerve. “He sells antiques, and I help him do it. I saw the replica, and I liked it, so I bought it.” Cherry opened her mouth, but one look had her closing it with a smack.
She pouted.
“Well, you see, I have a problem with that little statement of yours.” Head cocked to the side, I searched for deceit in him with no luck. He was good. I’d give him that much. “I know as well as you do that the hammer was not a replica.”
It was fascinating how their eyes could bug out of their sockets when humans got incredulous. “Because Thor is real, and I somehow bought his actual hammer.” Ash tucked his chin down to gape at me.
I gave him a nod.
“This is all a waste of time,” Bernie barked, frustration oozing out of him. Me, too buddy. Me, too. “You always did have a talent for picking the nutjobs, brother. This time, you truly outdid yourself.”
Since we were not getting anywhere—and something honestly still felt off about this whole task Karma shoved in our faces—I had to make sure we got past their ignorance so we could get to the bottom of it. Ignoring all of them, I closed my eyes, and with a deep breath, I focused on my familiars. When I sensed Sol’s answer brushing against my awareness, I released the breath and gave the two humans a strained smile.
“Very well. Ash, can you please open the door?” I was already moving toward the window while he eyed me warily. “Or Cherry can do it, too.”
“Ma’am, yes, ma’am.” Cherry saluted me cheerfully, darting for the entrance of the penthouse. “Always at the ready to do my job.”
“Just open the damn door, Cherry, and shut up.” It took a moment to find the latch and open the window.
The brothers stood in the middle of the room, their expressions saying loud and clear that we were crazy. I’d be happy to leave them to their limited beliefs, but if I knew anything about Karma, it was she wanted that hammer. We weren’t here in her name only.
We were both her errand girls now.
Retreating to the flipped couch, my butt barely touched it when Sol burst into the wide room with a loud rustle of wings. The humans got animated at once, shouting and swearing at “the bird.” Sol fully ignored them as he landed on the outstretched forearm I had waiting for him.
“Always with the warm welcome,” Corvus sneered, prowling through the door Cherry opened for him. “I feel the love.”
You could hear a pin drop.
Both brothers froze in their attempts to grab whatever they were getting in hopes to get rid of the crow that just entered their space. All the color drained from their faces, and their wide eyes kept flicking from Corvus to Sol frantically. I blew out a long, suffering breath, and my mouth twisted in annoyance.
“Bernie, Ash, meet my familiars, Sol and Corvus. Sol is the crow, the cat is Corvus.” My body tensed to catch at least one of them if they went down. Two grown humans looked ready to faint.
