He twisted out of my hold so he could grip my upper arms. “I never intended for you to pay for it.”
“I know that, Andre, but I didn’t have much choice.”
“What did you promise?” he demanded.
I opened my mouth to respond when I heard Oliver shout, “Skanks, are you done making little Andres? My ass is about to get as fried as those demons if I stay on church grounds much longer.”
A moment later he came sauntering out around the church, Leanne on his heels.
“Where’s Ophelia?” I asked Andre, noticing her absence.
“Don’t change the subject.”
“Oh, is he getting bossy?” Oliver yelled, picking his way through the tombstones to get to us. “I love it when he gets bossy.”
I could tell Andre was now torn between extracting my secrets and throttling the fairy. His mood was darkening by the second.
“Let me guess,” Oliver said, “you finally told him about last night’s preview of thunder from down under, eh?” Oliver waggled his eyebrows.
Andre went still as stone, and I winced. Oliver just had to drop a bomb like that.
Andre’s fangs slid out. “What is he talking about, soulmate?”
Eep.
Before I could answer, Leanne said, “Cough it up, Oliver.”
“What?” He tried to look innocent.
“Oh, you damn well know what. You lost the bet.”
“What bet?” I asked.
“The bet where Oliver insisted he could hold out on all sexual references to the devil—T-shirt aside—for a full day.” Leanne gave me a pitying glance. “Sorry, babe.”
Oliver huffed, folding his arms. “I was under the influence of pixie dust when the bet was made. It doesn’t count.”
“Does too. Now hand over the dinero buddy, or I’m not going to tell you how to run into that merman you’ll have a fling with on your—”
Oliver whipped his wallet out so fast you’d have thought someone put a gun to his head.
“That’s what I thought. Never bet a mother-effing seer,” she said as he dolled out several bills. “We’ll come and collect on your ass.”
Oliver grumbled. “Taking advantage of poor, unsuspecting fairies …”
Andre growled. “Enough of this. What happened last night, soulmate?” he demanded, recapturing my attention.
I shook my head, my throat closing up at his intensity. “Nothing.”
He stepped into me. “You’re lying,” he stated.
“Lover’s quarrel,” Oliver said as he dragged Leanne away. “You don’t want to be here when shit hits the fan …”
Andre lifted a lock of my hair and fingered it before bringing it to his nose. He drew in a deep breath, closing his eyes. They snapped open. “The devil.”
His eyes widened with horror. “What did that hag have you do last night?”
Should I tell Andre when he was like this? I’d inevitably have to talk him down from running the sorceress through with that sword of his. “I had to fetch Hestia a rose as part of my payment for the seer’s shroud,” I said. “I ran into some complications.”
“Complications?” He ran a shaky hand over his mouth. “What do you mean complications? You come back to me with four vials of seer’s shroud and bleakness in your eyes.” His eyes unfocused. “You smell of brimstone …”
His gaze sharpened and the connection between us flared as some terrifying thought hit him. He grabbed for my wrist and brought it to his face. For a moment I thought he’d bite me, but instead he inhaled.
I tried to step away from him, but his grip held firm.
“His scent is woven through yours.” Andre’s eyes snapped to mine. “What have you—?”
A bloodcurdling scream interrupted us. Another joined it a moment later. My breath caught in my throat at the sound.
My gaze met Andre’s. “Oliver and Leanne,” I whispered.
Our pursuers had found my friends.
I yanked my wrist from Andre’s grip and sprinted towards the source of the screams just as my two friends rounded the church, moving like hell was nipping at their toes. I smelled the metallic tang of blood the same instant I saw it seeping from Oliver’s temple.
“They shot me!” Oliver screamed as he ran. “Oh my God, I’m going to die!”
Next to him Leanne was white as a sheet.
Andre’s form blurred as he ran to Oliver and threw the fairy fireman-style over his shoulders. I followed suit, grabbing Leanne and wrapping her body around my neck like a shawl.
“We need to move. Now.”
“Hestia might help.” As I spoke, I heard footfalls on the other side of the church moving quickly in our direction. Our attackers weren’t as fast as us, but they’d still spot us in another several seconds if we didn’t get going.
“She will not interfere further, soulmate.” Andre readjusted Oliver’s weight, and then he took off, running faster than human eyes could track.
I followed Andre blindly, not sure where he was going, but trusting him to know what to do.
“I never saw it coming,” Leanne said as I ran. “I’ve been so worried about your future that I didn’t foresee his.”
“Shh,” I said, vaulting over a rock. “It’s okay.”
“It’s not.”
Something whizzed by me, so close it stirred my hair. It thwacked into a tree, and when I caught sight of it, I had to give it a double take.
Iridescent feathers tipped the shaft of the arrow lodged into the tree.
Did none of these people use modern weapons?
“Keep moving,” Andre ordered, not turning, “and use your hearing to avoid getting hit.”
Behind me I could hear whoops and strange calls.
“Who are they?” I said, ducking as an arrow whizzed by. Did anyone use guns these days.
“Amazons,” Andre ground out.
I balked even as I ran. “You mean the chicks that fought in the Trojan War? The ones that cut off their right breasts to better shoot? Those ones?”
“Unfortunately, yes,” he gritted out.
Shit, shit, shit. And they were after my ass?
I stopped, swiveled around, and caught sight of several women who looked just as badass as I had pictured.
“Gabrielle!” Panic laced Andre’s voice.