Page 82 of Corrupt Shadows

He chews quickly and swallows audibly, then coughs a few times as he tries to get the large lump of food down his throat. Aiden wraps the excess foil over the top of the burrito and tucks it away in the back pocket of his jeans. I raise an eyebrow.

“Shit. Sorry. I didn’t get to see much, but Evie’s apartment is definitely destroyed.”

“And the mirror?”

“Oh, that thing is completely fucked. What happened to it?”

I ignore him. “Were there any dead bodies?”

“Not that I saw. But these dudes showed up, and I did not want to fuck with them, so I hid in Evie’s bedroom, then snuck out the window. Actually, they looked really similar to you.”

Fucking spectacular. “Anything else?”

“Rosa filed a missing person report with the police. Evie’s face is plastered all over every news and social media outlet. Oh! And I found her familiar. He was actually at the manor already.”

I knew familiars could follow the bond to their other half, but not that it would work through great distances. The property is cloaked so it cannot be seen by anyone who is not invited by me. Yet somehow, Fluffy Fucker was able to find her. I employ a select few to keep up the general maintenance of the manor in the Human Realm. Aiden is in charge of making sure they all do their jobs and keep my secret. If they fail, so does he.

I believe guilt over the bat is part of the reason she is feeling reluctant to let me help her with her magic. The last time she saw him, he was clawing the eyes out of one of her attackers. I will allow her to have whatever contact she needs with him, despite the fact that he is a nuisance and is interrupting my plans. He can’t even stay out of my business when we are in an entirely different realm. Maybe I shall fashion him a new cage. Once I am free of this place, he will need a master after all. I’ll provide a ration of berries and whatever the fuck else he eats. I swear that’s all he’s munching on when I watch Evie.

I clench my teeth as my demonic hearing picks up the all-too-familiar flapping of wings. “Speak of the devil,” I growl.

Aiden looks over his shoulder. I hear the bat’s chirping well before I see him. Gomez glides into the Human Realm version of the cigar room. For a few moments, no one makes a move. Aiden’s eyes dart from me to the bat, and his eyebrows rise, then he smiles toothily.

“Hey, Gomez,” he says in an irritating, slightly falsetto voice.

Gomez chirps in his direction and lifts his chin as if begging for scratches. For fuck’s sake, another one falls to the charms of the bat? Aiden holds his hand out to Gomez, but he flies to his shoulder instead.

I growl and run my hands through my hair. “Leave.”

Aiden opens his mouth to speak but thinks better of it. “Sorry, bro, looks like you’re on your own.”

Gomez flies from Aiden’s shoulder and circles the room. Once Aiden closes the heavy door, the bat flies to the mirror and latches his clawed toes onto the gargoyle’s head. He hangs upside down in front of me, wraps his wings around himself, and glares at me with his beady eyes.

“You would do well to remember I will forever be involved in your witch’s life. She is mine much more than she is yours.”

He screeches, the pitch changing and warbling, making my ears wish to reject the sound.

“I did not come here to argue, and frankly, I don’t give a fuck about your feelings, only hers. She misses you and worries for you constantly.”

Gomez finally stops hissing and gives me his familiar stink eye instead. I’ll give it to him; he’s a plucky little bastard.

I tuck both of my hands into the back pockets of my slacks. “I have a proposition for you. You and I are long past having a chat about what is and is not acceptable to do when I am spending time with Evie. Mainly, you will not interrupt. Ever. In exchange, I will make sure that you never run out of those blueberries you love so much. And perhaps I will procure something to keep you company.”

He tilts his head to the side, causing him to swing slightly, and the fur around his neck fluffs up.

“I know you cannot speak, but you can communicate. I’ve seen you do so with Evie and her human friend.”

He stares at me like he doesn’t know what I could possibly be talking about.

“Cut the shit. If you understand me, blink your beady eyes at me two times.”

For several moments, he does nothing, but then with exaggerated slowness, he blinks his eyes twice. He then glares at me and bares his teeth.

“Oh good, you can follow instructions. You must not be completely useless after all.” I step closer and place both of my hands on the opposite sides of the mirror.

The veil seems to shimmer between us as his eyes widen with anxiety. Suddenly he lets go of the mirror and flaps to the back of the black, stuffed armchair. He pierces his claws into the material, looking smug that he was able to do this small amount of damage to something that belongs to me.

I continue, ignoring the twitch in my eyelid. “One of the reasons I choose to allow you to see my witch is because you tried to save her. Although, we both know there was no way you would ever be able to.”

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