“What do you want, Felixa?” she asked with a long sigh. Poor Brynn of Haversey looked tired, seconds away from collapse. Maybe if she fell, I could catch her in my arms like a proper gentleman? I wonder what those full lips of hers taste like? I wondered as I gazed down at her round face and that plump little mouth. I would’ve tasted it, too, if that Vexer motherfucker hadn’t punched me.
Speaking of … I’d gotten hit with both a boot and a fist, and my poor jaw was sore as Hell. I rubbed at it as I watched sparks fly between the two girls. And not good sparks either. Bad ones. Angry ones. A catfight would be interesting, wouldn’t it?
“I know Air is here. I know he’s living with you.” I raised my brows at that. Huh. Interesting turn of events. I couldn’t help myself; a smile split my face that Brynn immediately zoned in on.
“What are you grinning like a shot fox for?” she asked and I felt my smile fall. With a small growl, I turned toward her and got up in her face a bit. Just a bit thought, and just for fun.
“A shot fox? That’s beyond offensive. Don’t you have any compassion?” I reached out and poked one of her wings which earned me a pulled tail in response. But the joke was on her because I highly enjoyed being molested.
Small, cold drops fell from a gray skin, the clouds tinged with gold from the setting sun. It made the campus with its tall stone towers and old temples look a bit … ominous. Even with those massive wings, Brynn looked so small and delicate in front of it all.
“I don’t have compassion for assholes,” she said, scooting past me and refocusing on Felixa. “And Airmienan is not here right now. I don’t know what gave you that idea.”
“Those are his clothes,” Felixa said, pointing at the pants and boots I was wearing. I gave her a smug smile from behind Brynn’s head and fluffed my tails. “And I heard his voice the other day when you opened the door; I know I did. Besides, you must think I’m a complete idiot. You’re living in the queen’s quarters. Where else would Air live?” She fixed Brynn with a sharp, resolute sort of stare. “Everess keeps putting off the announcement of our engagement. Why would she do that? Where is he?”
Brynn tore a ring from one of her pockets and shoved it onto her finger.
“He’s busy,” she snapped, holding up her hand and flashing the royal ring in front of Felixa. “And he just doesn’t have time for you. Have you ever thought of that?”
“Where did you get that?” Felixa breathed, grabbing Brynn’s hand and staring at the ring with a look of shock that was pretty similar to the one Brynn had given me after I pulled the old switcheroo with that spell. Heh. Clever, right?
“Airmienan gave it to me during the All Haunts’ Eve celebration,” Brynn said with a smirk, extending her wings out in a hostile looking little gesture.
“The last night he was seen in public?” Felixa growled out as Brynn took her hand back. “Seems a tad coincidental, don’t you think?”
“Seems to me that’s none of your business,” I said, stepping around Brynn and taking her hand in mine. She tensed up a little, but at least she didn’t pull away. “You’re a nosy little thing, aren’t you?”
“Do you even have a permit to be on campus?” Felixa snapped, looking me up and down with a scowl now instead of a smile. I guess with my hand now covering Brynn’s, she didn’t think of me as available.
“This is Dyre of Ha’s brother,” Brynn spat, “a shadow. The queen’s already given him her blessing to be on campus, so you can wipe that off your blackmail list.”
“This is the fox?” Felixa asked, looking at me now like I was some deep sea creature that’d crawled up onshore dripping slime and flashing tentacles. Goodness. What a fucking racist bitch. “Which means that Prince Dyre is in there, too? What the Hell are you up to, Brynn Rebane?”
“None of your gods-dang business, Felixa Morair,” she snapped back, heading back for the front door and yanking me along behind her. Brynn dragged me back inside and went to close it when Felixa shoved her way in, too, strong-arming the door open.
“Air!” she called out, pausing as she sensed all the spirits in the room. They were hiding, but if she activated her second sight, she’d be able to see them regardless. Like me, I supposed. I was a shadow, so there was no blending into the Otherside to hide from me. I stared right at Dyre and Air, before Elijah revealed himself and blocked the staircase.
“Get the fuck out of here. Don’t you know how to take a hint?” Felixa paused, her handler trailing uncertainly along behind her as the tiny ghosts of mice crawled up Eli’s pant leg, a little furred head peeping out of his torn Royal College jacket. The spirit of a dog took up a growling, fur-raised position behind him, baring its teeth.
“Move before I exorcise you,” Felixa snarled, putting her hand on the knife at her side.
“Get out of my house before I call the campus guard,” Brynn said, shaking with rage. I simply stood there and watched it all unfold for a moment before heading into the kitchen for a lemonade. Somebody had had the small ice box—a carved square cut from the stone wall with a door and heaps of ice to keep everything cool—stocked with pitchers of it.
As long as my brother wasn’t in danger, I was content to watch.
“Do something and get that girl out of here,” Dyre hissed at me, his form blurred with darkness from the Otherside. Purgatorial hell is what that place was. Was it really any wonder then that so many shadows were violent and predatory? Most of us—keyword, most—were born into this world like anyone else, and yet, we were never blessed or cared for by the gods. Magic surged through our veins with no rhyme or reason, tempting us at every corner.
“Why? It’s much more fun to watch.” I crinkled my face up in a smile, plucked a copper straw from the ceramic jar on the stone countertop and dropped it into a glass. “Well suck my dick and call me Truuuuble,” I purred as I drank up the glorious liquid. Peach-lemonade. Fantastic, and very pricey. “This is delicious.”
“Are you serious right now? Get over there and break that fight up,” Dyre snapped at me, grabbing my arm and turning me around to face the growing confrontation. Jasinda, Brynn’s pretty Amerin handler, and her boyfriend (because if he wasn’t, he should be—the sexual tension between those two was palpable) had just joined the fray.
“Mm,” I started, sipping my lemonade and shrugging loosely. “We’ll see.”
Dyre cursed under his breath and started to pace again, but I ignored him. If he wasn’t such a virgin, maybe he’d be able to sit still for a change? As soon as we found a way to bring him back to life, I was getting him laid. Or Hell, maybe Brynn liked him back and wanted to fuck him in spirit form? The stress relief would do my brother a whole lot of good.
Felixa grabbed the silver necklace around her throat and shouted out the light goddess’ name, flicking her eyes around the room and locking on Professor Cross. Slowly, she scanned across the rest of the downstairs, but both my brother and the prince had already fled upstairs. She’d know they were there, but she wouldn’t know who they were.
“The two spirits upstairs, is one of them Airmienan?” Felixa asked, spinning and smacking Jasinda with her long blonde hair.
Brynn scoffed and planted her hands on her hips, looking tiny and fierce and curvy in that red silk shirt she was wearing. Gods above, I’d kill to put my hands on that girl’s body. My dick thickened inside my breeches and I groaned.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” she started, but Felixa was already interrupting her, turning and walking through Elijah as she sprinted up the staircase. In response, Air and Dyre simply floated back down again.
“She’ll see the coffin,” Air choked out, but there was a low, gruff voice from up above.
Vexer.
“This isn’t your house and this isn’t your business,” he said, backing the blonde half-angel down the stairs without even touching her. “I suggest you remove yourself immediately.”
“Who is this?” Felixa asked, turning to find Brynn penning her in on the stairs. “Does he have a permit to be on campus?”