I cried harder, promising myself that this was the last time. This was the last time I cried over my life. Tomorrow, I'd pick myself back up, kill the asshole that did this, and move on. In that exact order. I was getting ready to pull away from Adrian and ask for the water when Ryder sifted in, and growled an inhuman sound that made my spine stiffen and my heart race.
I turned, and leveled him with a pointed look. “Did everyone get out? Is there anything left?” My voice hitched, and cracked as I said it, which made his eyes soften a bit. He nodded, lifting my hope. “How bad is it?”
“House is a total loss. We managed to save a small portion of the clothes, pictures, and anything pertaining to your parents that we could find.”
“Wait, you went back to get my stuff?” I asked, incredulous that he would risk anyone's life for things I cherished. On one hand it was sweet, while on the other, it was stupid.
The tick in his jaw was working overtime now. “Yes, I took immortals inside a fucking inferno for your stuff; things that I couldn't replace, or anyone else could for that matter. Fae can’t undo that kind of damage, or turn back time, but we can recreate what we have seen. We just don’t know what was in there so that we could reproduce it for you, so we tried to save what we could. I know how humans like to keep memories from their past.”
“Thank you, thank you all,” I said, looking around to find people covered in smoke and soot from the fire. “Next time, Ryder, screw the stuff, and kill the motherfucker who did it. Don't risk anyone's life for things. They are only items, and even if they can’t all be replaced, I’d choose safety over things any day.”
He stared at me openly as if I'd just shocked, confused, and made his day all in one sentence. I moved closer, until I was standing on my tiptoes, and kissed his untouched cheek. “And thank you for saving me.” Because I, like a ninny, had forgotten I could sift! And he'd known I would, predicted it, and saved me from death. I wasn’t quite done with Transition yet, and this could have put a damper on my future as an immortal.
He wrapped his arms around me, pulled me closer, and whispered in my ear, quiet enough that only I could hear him. “You almost got killed yet again, Synthia. I'm about to wrap you in fucking bubble wrap.”
I smiled against his chest. “I hear plastic isn't in these days and, besides, it wouldn’t last long since I have a weakness to pop the bubbles.”
He laughed, but it wasn’t the musical one I wanted to hear. I could hear his heart hammering wildly inside his chest. My own was matching his in tempo. “Someone openly tried to kill you tonight, Synthia. Come back to Faery with me where I can keep you safe,” he said with possessiveness flooding his tone.
“No, someone tried to kill me. Tonight, I'm upset. Tomorrow, they die. I won’t run from a fight, and this guy needs to be dealt with,” I smiled sadly as I pulled away. “I'm not hiding. I'm just not that type of person, Ryder. They want me; they can come and try to get me.”
“They just fucking did. They blew up your fucking house with you inside of it! If I hadn't been there,” he paused, and shook his head as if dispelling the thought. “You'd be inside that burning fucking mess.”
“But I’m not, because you saved me. They failed, because the guy at my side is the biggest baddest boogeyman on the fucking block. They failed, and if I hide they win. I can get knocked down, but what I can't do is stay down. Don't ask me to, because it will be no, every fucking time.”
He shook his head and grinned. “All right, then we need to figure out who is trying to take you out. It could be the same asshole who keeps showing up at your house, or…Could it be someone from the Guild or, perhaps, one of the fanatics outside of the Guild?” he asked, raising a brow.
I crinkled my nose and nodded. “It’s possible. If they are making a list and collecting information on those who were sympathetic to the Fae inside the Guild, I’d be on that list by default.”
“Drinks, come sit at the bar,” Vlad said when he noticed it was going to be awhile, and I was shaky on my legs at best right then anyway. I guess almost getting blown up had that effect on a person. I sat beside Ryder as his men circled his back.
I'd noticed that anytime he couldn't put his back to a wall, they became the wall that stood at his back. He was always guarded and never alone; unless we were inside a room together. I was willing to bet that someone stood close to the door guarding it as well. He was important to his men; even if he wasn’t the Dark Heir, he was definitely a prince who was extremely important to his people. He had an elite guard of men he cared about, and who worked like a well-oiled machine. He was fast enough to remove me as a bomb went off in my house, and strong enough that people listened without questioning him. He was primal, sexual, and deadly to his very core.
“We’re out of tonic right now. Gin and seven, ok?” Vlad said, and my stomach pitched and rolled with the sound of the drink.
“Just a bottle of water please,” I replied, smiling when he cussed.