Page 101 of Immersed
“I’ll go with Levi,”Elliot said, moving to stand beside him.“I’ve got the best equipment, and he’s done the research. Makes sense.”
The temperature dropped another few degrees—not from the weather, but from Asher’s sudden stillness. His expression hadn't changed, but something in his eyes becameflat and cold.
“Actually,”Levi said carefully, weighing his options,“Asher and I should probably take the Research Wing. He’s... familiar with the recording equipment we need for that section.”
The liewastransparent, but it avoided the immediate danger of Asher’s jealousy. The brief flicker of satisfaction in Asher’s mismatched eyes confirmed Levi made the right choice. For now.
“Fine,”Elliot huffed.“Tyler and I will take the east wing, then.”
“Owen, Zoe, and I can check out the patient rooms on this floor,”Maddie offered.
“I guess that leaves me with the sweet equipment monitoring setup,”Jasper said, gesturing to their base camp of screens and receivers.“I’ll be your eye in the sky, keeping watch over everything.”
Levi nodded, relieved. The arrangement wasthe best he could come up with for where they were at in the game, keeping the group close enough to help each other, but separated enough to cover more ground before the building’s nighttime reconfiguration began in earnest.
“Stay in radio contact,”he instructed.“If anything feels wrong—anything at all—head back to base camp immediately.”
“Ooh, listen to Commander Levi,” Maddie teased. “Didn’t know you had it in you.”
Neither did Levi. But having information and the memories they didn’t meant they’dall die without his guidance. “Let’s move out in fifteen,”he said.“I need to check the equipment.”
As the others dispersed to gather their gear, Asher’s palm pressed against the small of Levi’s back, guiding him toward a quieter corner of the entrance hall. “Elliot’s still interested in you,”Asher grumbled.“I counted six separate instances of unnecessary eye contact.”
Levi sighed.“We don’t have time for this.”
“I disagree.”Asher’s fingers traced up Levi’s vertebrae, coming to rest at the nape of his neck.“We have thirteen minutes before we ‘move out.’ Plenty of time to discuss the fact that he wants to fuck you.”
Levi flinched.“He does not—”
“He does,”Asher interrupted, his grip tightening.“All I need to know is if I should remove his eyes now, or ifyou’dprefer I wait until we’re deeper in the building where the others won’t hear him scream.”
“No one dies,”Levi hissed.“We need them alive. All of them.”
“Why?”Asher’s lips brushed Levi’s ear, sending an unwelcome shiver down his spine.“We know more than they do. They’re liabilities.”
“They’re resources,”Levi countered.“More eyes watching for danger. More hands to help if something goes wrong. Jasper especially, he notices things the rest of us miss.”
Asher hummed noncommittally, his breath warm against Levi’s neck.“And Elliot? What’s his purpose beyond making me want to peel his skin off in strips?”
Levi swallowed.“Hehasthe best equipment. EMF detectors, thermal imaging, all his stuff is top of the line.”
“Fine,”Asher conceded, though his fingers remained possessively curled around Levi’s neck.“But he stays away from you. Or I can’t promise he’ll keep all his fingers.”
“Asher—”
“I’m being reasonable,”Asher insisted.“I’m not killing him. Just... establishing boundaries.”His thumb rubbed the sensitive skin behind Levi’s ear.“Speaking of boundaries, you still owe me three minutes from earlier.”
God dammit, Asher.
“Not now,”Levi managed, stepping away from Asher’s touch.“We have work to do.”
Asher’s eyes gleamed in the dim light.“Later, then. When we find somewhere private in the Research Wing.”
Levi didn’t answer, turning instead to check the battery packs for their cameras. He could feel Asher’s gaze on him, heavy as a physical touch.
The Research Wing smelled of formaldehyde and old paper.
Levi swept his flashlight across the abandoned laboratory, revealing dusty specimen jars and antiquated medical equipment. The beam caught a row of filing cabinets against the far wall, their metal surfaces dull with age. Everything looked roughly the same as it had the last time they were down here.
