It took Liam a moment to answer. “I don’t know. We’ll have to tell Malachi.”
I nodded. “The soldiers were prepared to fight. They had weapons, armor. She called to them. I couldn’t hear what she’d said, but she called to them, like she was getting them ready to charge.”
“The army is assembled,” Gavin said.
“They’re going to try to open the Veil again,” Gunnar said, standing. It was time for him to see the Commandant.
“Yes,” Liam said, and we all knew that worse things were on their way.
? ? ?
Gunnar left to make his report. Liam went back to Devil’s Isle to get a shower and a clean change of clothes. That left me and Gavin in the store.
It wasn’t fair of me to push my drama onto him, but I had the sense he’d like the chance to talk about something else. “Can I ask you a question?”
He looked up at me. “Go for it.”
“Why did you punch your brother when you first walked into my store?”
“He kissed my fiancée.”
After a moment of stunned silence, I asked, “Did he know she was your fiancée?”
“He did, yeah. Technically, she kissed him. He just happened to be there. Her pitiable bad judgment, since I’m obviously the handsome one.”
“Obviously. Is she why you left the Zone?”
Gavin’s expression shuttered. “She was one on a long list of reasons. Nix being one of the other ones.”
“Yeah.”
Gavin cocked his head at me. “And what’s going on with the two of you?”
“We’re friends. Kind of.” It was becoming my stock response.
“No, but you’re a crappy liar. He brought you into the District, into his apartment, and to meet our grandmother. He’s become part of this saving-the-world quest at least in part to impress you. And I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I’d say his interest is more than ‘acquaintances.’”
“He’s decided he can’t have me.”
He rolled his eyes. “What ridiculous theory supports that?”
I looked at him. “I’m a Sensitive. He’s a bounty hunter. He could wield too much power over me, and it wouldn’t be fair.”
Gavin snorted. “He’s got plenty of alpha male in him. Plenty of protectiveness.” He leaned forward over the table. “Can you take care of yourself?”
“Of course.”
“Are you going to become a wraith?”
My voice was flat. “No.”
“Then this is his problem.” He sat back, grinned as he slung an arm over the back of his chair. “You know what your best move is here? You let it stay his problem. You just keep being your sexy redheaded self.”
I smiled. “Thank you.”
He held up a hand. “Don’t get too excited. I’m taking myself off the market right now.”
“Because of the utter betrayal.”
“Because of the utter goddamn betrayal.”
“I think that’s a good decision.”
He finished off his drink. “Damn right it is.” He looked up at me, grinned. “Watching my big brother get his comeuppance is going to be a lot of fun, Connolly. I look forward to it.”
I thought I did, too.
And it made a really nice change from worrying about the end of the world.
? ? ?
It was nearly ten when Gunnar walked in, back in his fatigues. Liam, Gavin, and I sat up straight, waiting for the verdict.
“No one’s going to Devil’s Isle.”
I breathed a little easier. But my palms were still sweating.
He sat down, pulled out a chair. “The Commandant does not know about anyone’s magic. As unfortunate as Nix’s involvement was, she gives us a very good scapegoat. He thinks Rutledge was obsessed with her, decided to help her open the Veil so that she could go home again.”
“That’s the truth,” Liam said. “If not all of it.”
Gunnar nodded. “And since Rutledge is dead, he can’t exactly contradict the story. We’ll have to keep an eye on the remaining ComTac operatives. They don’t have any incentive to rat you out—even if they knew who you were. That’s not clear, since their mission was to open the Veil.”
“What about the raid on Claire’s store?” Liam asked.
“Broussard maintains he got an anonymous tip. Not hard to imagine that was Nix.”
It could have been Nix, sure. It probably had been. It also could have been Rutledge, or someone else entirely who wasn’t a fan of me. That was something I’d have to ferret out later.
I leaned forward. “What about Phaedra and Tom? Their roles would have been obvious, since the Veil was locked.”
“They’ve gone back into hiding, just in case,” Gunnar said. “They’ve worked out a way to communicate with Tadji. Places they can meet, leave messages for each other.”