Here comes an enormous amount of awkwardness.
I wanted to wilt from the chair and let Chase take the ball on this one. Shifting in my seat, I glanced at him. Brow bent, he stretched out again in a relaxed position, not saying a word. I lifted my brow right back at him, teeth clenched. He was not going to corner me into telling Devin we’d had sex. Not happening. An uncomfortable silence extended out into the cozy room. I started biting my nails and swinging my legs under my chair.
Devin looked back and forth between us. “Are either one of you going to tell me what is going on?”
Chase sighed. “I guess that is going to be me. So we might have finished the binding triangle,” Chase finally manned up, feeling my stubbornness and utter embarrassment. Sex talk with my boyfriend’s uncle wasn’t exactly a hot topic for me, but it made me feel a little bit better knowing that Chase also found it weird.
I couldn’t meet Devin in the eye, so I stared behind his head at all the paintings of exotic and beautiful places.
“I see. It’s complete.” He folded his hands on his desk, keeping his cool far better than I anticipated. “And apparently the underworld is not very happy with the outcome.”
“I’d say not,” Chase had to add.
“If that is true, he will come for you—soon.” He started to shuffle through mounds of paper, looking for what I did not know.
“What do we do?” I asked, looking for great words of wisdom.
“We wait.”
Not precisely what I’d thought I’d hear from Devin. I wasn’t known for my patience. “That’s bullcrap. I can’t just sit here.”
Devin didn’t appear happy about our options either. “What choice to do we have? It is oblivious that Alastair is pulling the strings.”
I jumped to my feet, feeling a surge of anger and fear tear through me. For once, I didn’t need someone to tell me that my eyes were glowing. I caught my reflection in one of the framed pictures, an electric blue radiating off glass.
Chase placed a hand on my arm. “Whoa there, She-Ra. Let’s not go all gung-ho before we know what we are getting into. I am not willing nor will I let you foolishly give up your life.”
“I have to give him whatever he wants.”
Chase shot to his feet so fast I didn’t even see him move. “Absolutely not.”
I wanted to argue. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cause bodily harm.
Inside I felt like a bubbling volcano, ready to burst. All these emotions were churning inside me, and I was feeling helpless. I was going to lose it, right here in Devin’s office. “You don’t get to tell me what to do. This is my mom, Chase.” Anger tears punctuated my words, making them somewhat inaudible.
Most people would feel nervous about having two emotionally unstable somewhat-humans on the verge of…who knew. None of us actually knew what I was capable of. And Chase, well, you could always count on Chase to be unpredictable.
Devin surprised us both when he spoke, interrupting our pissing match. “We are not going to let him take another person I love,” he declared passionately, so much so that I believed him.
Devin was sort of a badass in his own way. Who would have thunk?
And he just admitted that he loved my mom. Oh boy.
I sat back down, unable take my eyes off Devin’s. The determination that shone there was as bright as mine. It was nice to have someone on my side. Chase took a few more moments to calm down.
“Did you ever tell her about Chase? What he is?” I asked. It had been on my mind the whole time we had stayed with them.
Regret crossed his expression. “I didn’t get the chance.”
“But you planned on telling her?”
He nodded, running a hand through his sandy hair. “All of it, but I wanted to discuss it first with you, and with Lex, Travis, and Chase. This isn’t a decision for me to make solely.”
That we agreed on, but now…did it matter? “She gone,” I whispered. “He has her.” Horror ricocheted inside my gut, traveling through the length of me. “Can’t I just demand he return her?” I asked, grabbing at straws.
“I wish it was that easy,” Devin said.
Alastair came to me that night. I was just thankful I didn’t have to wait days.
Chapter 25
He appeared as just a man. Nothing special. Nothing all mighty. Just an average guy in jeans and a crisp shirt with polished raven hair. Nothing memorable—except the eyes.
No matter how much glamour demons used, for me, their eyes were all the same. Black. Emotionless. Tortured. Damned.