Olezka walked back to me. “It is time.” He reached a hand toward me. I took it unflinchingly.
The sun chose that moment to drop behind the horizon, and as starlight took over, the air in front of us shimmered.
“Oh, wow. Holy crap! So that’s what you meant.”
Chapter 8
The gate shimmered before us. The stars glowed as they wheeled overhead, brightening then dimming with an eerie, otherworldly light. Struck with awe, I inadvertently took a step backward. I whispered a curse again.
Olezka laughed. “I believe you owe a dollar.”
“Totally worth it.”
“You done gawking, Seis? I’ve got business to attend to.”
Cyril stepped through the gate without another glance. The instant he did, something snapped inside my head and pain ricocheted throughout my body. Gritting my teeth, I tried to hold in my anguished cry.
“Bastard,” Roman growled, rushing through the gate after the incubus.
“Anubis, after them,” Olezka commanded. Anubis took off, his body morphing slightly the closer he got to the gate. Until that moment, I hadn’t even realized that Roman still looked fairly human while on this side of the Veil. Olezka, on the other hand, looked decidedly more “beastly”.
“Are you ready?”
Homesickness hit me hard. Going back to the human realm felt right, but incredibly wrong at the same time. It was home, the place where I belonged. But as I peeked over at Warrior, who watched us with big, baleful eyes, I felt a stab of disappointment. This wouldn’t be my last visit, and I knew that, but in this moment, it felt like I was saying goodbye forever. It seemed like we were shutting the door on saving Ana and returning to our normal – well, our version of normal – life as if Ana weren’t missing.
“It feels so final.”
“It is not, pchelka. We will return for Ana.”
I nodded. Right now we had bigger problems, and unfortunately, the longer I stayed here without Cyril in the same realm, the worse the pain got. Olezka helped me to the gate, and we stepped through together.
It was… strange.
A place of swirling darkness and light, it felt as if I was floating but also as if each limb weighed a ton. I was sluggish and swift, all at the same time. My head felt lighter than air but utterly focused and sharp on all of the dizzying sensations that coiled around me. Sucking in a quick breath, I felt bubbles burst in my lungs a second before my foot landed heavily on concrete. I blinked and stared directly into a streetlight that was the only respite in the dark of night.
Electric lights!
“Home! Sweet, sweet home.” I did a tiny victory dance before my stomach heaved. Muttering another quiet curse, I bolted away from Olezka to hurl in the closest trash can. Seconds later, gentle fingers combed my hair back and held it while his other hand rubbed my back in soothing circles.
“Da, I apologize, Sixx. I had hoped you wouldn’t experience this unpleasantness.”
I waved his apology away. It wasn’t his fault that I’d had a bout of motion sickness or whatever it was from stepping through the boundary. At least, the pain of being in a different realm than Cyril had dissipated, but fatigue weighed heavily on me. I stumbled away from the trash can.
“Olezka?”
“Da?”
“Catch me?” I whispered right before I passed out.
****
“You lost him?” a grumbling voice hissed. My mind was trying to wake up, but my body said nope. It wanted more rest, but my stupid, overzealous mind wanted to hear more.
Roman sighed. “I don’t have the same nose as you, brother. And even Anubis lost his trail. We all just left the fae realm, and our senses were sensitive, on overdrive. You know how hard that can be.”
“If he gets hurt, it will affect her, too. We need to find him immediately.”
“Brother, he’s not stupid. He wanted Sixx for a reason, and he knows the limitations of the favor. After all, he set the grounds for it. So rest. Get used to being back here. And let your little mate sleep.”
After Roman left, Olezka sighed. “How much did you hear?”
I kept my eyes closed, snuggling closer to my very stiff but warm pillow. “Cyril disappeared and you’re worried about me, but, I mean, you’re always worried about me,” I whispered, pressing my cold toes against his heated calves. He didn’t even flinch.
“I do not worry that often.”
“Now you’re just making me feel bad,” I joked lightly, but it did sting a little. Was worrying a new thing for him because of me? Squishing that thought down deep, I breathed in his scent. “Wait…” I opened my eyes, blinking hard when the blurriness in my eyes wouldn’t fade. Grumbling, I searched around.
“Your glasses are on the nightstand, to your left,” Olezka said. I didn’t have to look over at him to hear the smile in his voice. I grabbed my folded-up glasses and peeked at them before cleaning them on the sheets. Once I got my eyes back on, I glanced around the room.
“We’re at your house.”
“Da. You passed out after we crossed through the gate. The journey there and going through the gate must have sapped your energy. You have been asleep almost fourteen hours.”
I decided to process that bit of information later.
“So… we’re back.” It felt strange to be home, but I wasn’t really home, was I? This was Olezka’s house. Reality came crashing in, and dread twined through my body. Ana and I paid our rent on the first of every month. I didn’t even know what day it was, or what month. Aunt Lola had explained that time moved differently in the Veil, and the others had hinted at it. That meant…
“What year is it?”
“2030.”
My eyes widened. “What?” I squeaked.
Olezka’s lip twitched, and his eyes lightened with humor. I slapped his shoulder, but when that didn’t satisfy me, I pushed instead. He still barely budged, so I lunged forward. He flopped down on the bed, choosing to, no doubt. I ended up draped over his chest, my face scant inches from his. How many times had we been in this position? Even so, my heart still pounded like a rollercoaster drop. Excitement mingled with a bit of unexpected fear of the unknown.
The humor was sucked out of the room as desire filled his eyes and pumped through my blood. My chest heaved with deep breaths as I lowered my body to his. His heat burned through my clothes, sending warm zings through my body. Olezka’s large hand cupped my hip, his fingers gripping tight, making me feel wanted, desired. Heck, even needed. My gaze focused on his lips, and I leaned down, pressing mine against his in a feather-light touch.
“Sixx.”
That breathy groan shot straight through me.
“No, no, nooo.”
Olezka chuckled, his chest vibrating against mine. I dropped my head in the crook of his neck and pressed a kiss there. His hand tightened.
“Sixx.”
“Stop using your sexy voice, and I’ll stop acting on it!” I replied with a smile. Olezka didn’t remove me but caressed my thigh, encouraging me to lift it a little higher. We stayed that way, just relaxing, for several minutes. Unfortunately, it wasn’t long before my thoughts started to filter in and break the temporary peacefulness in which we’d cocooned ourselves.
“Crap.”
“Nyet. I know I was the one who insisted we stop, but I do not want you to start thinking. This feels too good.”
“It does, but…”
“Nyet, no buts.”
“Yes, all the buts. I need to know what the date is. You still haven’t told me.” I lifted my head, but Olezka averted his gaze. My stomach tightened. “Please tell me you were joking when you said it was nine years in the future.” My heart thudded. My parents, even as distant as we were, would have assumed I was dead. Who went missing for nine years? Oh my…
“Sixx.”
I blinked and stared at Olezka.
“Do not fret, my приятель. It has not been nine years.”
“But…” I prompted.
&
nbsp; “It has been ten months.”
“Fudge.”
****
While I knew crying wouldn’t solve anything, I still couldn’t stop the tears from spilling. So what if I was a frustrated crier? It just so happened that some people couldn’t control when they needed to cry. I pressed the heels of my hands under my eyes, avoiding my glasses. Ugh, another chore I had yet to do. I needed to get new glasses. How these managed to survive everything I’d gone through with just scrapes and a few scratches was beyond me, but I needed to get a new – well, two –pairs. One with an updated prescription plus an extra pair because my life had become much more dangerous lately.
After informing me that we’d been gone ten months, which was crazy, I called my parents. They seemed fine with my longer than usual check-in time. Olezka had the foresight to ask Kallan to take my car back to his place, and luckily, my car was already paid off, so there was no risk of it being repossessed. It sat in his driveway for a long time, but otherwise, it was safe.
The apartment Ana and I shared, not so much.
Since our landlord knew we always paid regularly, he let us slide for the first two months, but then our neighbors noticed our absence and reported it to the landlord. He came to our apartment multiple times before entering with his key, but upon seeing no one inside and the place seemingly untouched for two months, he hired a company to pack up our belongings. After another few months, he ended up donating most of it or trying to sell it off to other residents.
He only kept one box in the basement storage, and it was full of personal memorabilia. When I showed up on his doorstep after being gone for ten months, the landlord ran down to grab it for me. He was uninterested in the explanation that Olezka and I worked on before we came over, but then again, I was sure he’d probably heard just about every excuse before. I apologized again before taking the box. While Olezka drove, I rummaged through it, my breath catching in my throat.
There was a picture of Ana and Aunt Lola, but other than that, there wasn’t anything else in there I’d keep. All of our personal effects were gone. How could I tell Ana when she came back? And what if that wasn’t for another ten months? How much time would pass there while we were here?
And forget about my job. After three days of being a no-call-no-show, I was officially terminated. I had no money, no house, no job, and no best friend. Saying I was frustrated would be the understatement of the century. I was overwhelmed with a mental tally sheet that listed all of the millions of things I had to do to get my life back on track plus the knowledge that I had to get everything sorted out before Ana returned. I needed plans in place and underway because she shouldn’t have to go through everything she was enduring in the Light Fae Kingdom and come home to this mess.
“My priyatel?”
I looked up. I hadn’t realized that Olezka got out of the car. Even so, I stared numbly and didn’t respond.
“Sixx.”
“I’m just… We don’t have a home anymore. The landlord sold or gave most of our stuff away. This is all that’s left,” I said miserably, fighting the tears that threatened to spill. “I still have some stuff at my parents’ place, so I can probably squeak by. But Ana… her entire life was in that apartment. I feel sick to my stomach.”
“You will stay with me, and we will restore what we can. She will understand.”
I nodded in agreement. He grabbed my hand, bringing it to his lips before squeezing it tight.
“We will figure it out,” he reassured me.
It made me wonder how often his life had been turned upside down from traveling from one realm to another.
“Besides all of that, we still have to find Cyril,” I muttered.
Truthfully, I wanted to just hide away for a week or two and process everything that had happened. Then again, this was all in a day's work for a sidekick.
Sighing, I shook my head. “Let’s go home and regroup.”
I didn’t miss the pride shining in Olezka’s eyes when I called his house our home.
Chapter 9
“I think I will enjoy watching you wake up beside me,” Olezka said rather loudly. My eyes widened, and I squeaked, lifting my hand to cover his mouth.
“You can’t say stuff like that in public!” I hissed as we stood in line at the local bakery. His lips turned up under my hand, and he nipped at my palm. I glared at him. “Behave.”
“Nyet. With a mate as desirable as you, how can a male resist?” Olezka brushed his thumb over my wrist and pulled my hand away gently, but he didn’t release me. Instead, he brought my hand back to his lips and pressed a kiss there.
“Stop it.”
He hummed and released my hand. As I took another step forward in line, he moved behind me. Wrapping his arms around my waist, he leaned down and nuzzled my neck, which set my cheeks on fire. While I didn’t mind other people’s PDA, I didn’t like the attention it usually brought.
“Olezka…” I warned.
He hummed in my ear again. The person behind us cleared their throat, and I tugged out of his grip.
The barista smiled at us. “Hey, sugar! Come on up. What can I get for you and your handsome man?”
A weird sense of pride filled me when she called him mine. I mean, I knew he was mine, but hearing it from a stranger still sounded strange. But the good sort.
“I’ll have a medium cappuccino, and he…”
“Large coffee, black. Please, and thanks,” Olezka finished for me.
The barista was around my age, maybe a little younger. Cute. But she kept it professional, not trying to be flirty with Olezka or imply we weren’t together. Olezka paid while I moved to stand at the other end of the counter to wait for our coffees. He came over, holding a…
“Oh, my God.” My mouth watered at the sight of the cheese Danish. I reached out to grab it, but Olezka pulled it out of my reach.
“Oh, nyet. This is mine.” Olezka took his time biting into it, making a big show out of how magnificent it tasted.
“And you’re mine, so what’s yours is mine, right?” I joked.
Olezka smiled, leaned down, and brushed his lips against mine. I wrapped my hand around his shirt and blinked up slowly at him.
“Hello, Пчелка.”
“Hello, cheese Danish.” I grabbed the hand that held the pastry and giggled as I snapped my teeth at it. Olezka pulled it out of reach once more and wrapped an arm around my stomach, stopping me from falling.
“Whoopsie!” I laughed.
The other patrons mostly ignored us, though a few turned to watch. An older lady just smiled with a quiet laugh while a middle-aged couple looked pissed. As soon as they called our order, we grabbed it and headed toward the door. Olezka finally handed me the Danish, and I took a hearty bite. The way we interacted and the semblance of routine in which we found ourselves made me feel more secure and balanced than I’d felt in more days than I could count.
The night before was… not good. After finding out my life had been upended in chaos, I took it pretty hard. Like, eat a lot of ice cream, maybe drink a little, and cry even more, hard. Olezka stayed with me during my self-induced pity party and didn’t pass the first bit of judgment. We both woke refreshed and ready to tackle the day. First, we would try to see if we could track down any of Ana's or my stuff.
We walked out of the coffee shop, serenaded by the tiny bell over the door, and the crisp autumn air smacked us in the face. I shivered and leaned a little closer to Olezka’s body heat.
“Kallan called me when he heard we had arrived back in town,” Olezka said, squeezing my hip.
“Oh?”
“The unfinished business we were investigating before our impromptu vacation is, unfortunately, stirring up the pot again. I think there is an excellent chance that someone else re-entered this realm as well,” Olezka explained.
My hands were full of pastry and coffee, but at the ominous tone of his words, I wished I could reach out and grip his hand. He seemed to intuit my fear and pressed a co
mforting kiss on the side of my head.
“You think he would leave her in the other town?” Ugh. I was not good at disguising my words.
“She is with her family, which means she is safe. I’m not surprised that he would be willing to come here to check on things, but it is… what is the word?”
“Coincidental?” I offered.
What were the chances Key would just happen to come back the same day we did? Was he trying to find me again? After all, even Erebus said it – I was Ana’s weakness. They could easily use me to get her to do whatever they wanted.
“I believe Cyril is behind it,” Olezka added grimly. “I will speak with some of the other Sentinel members to see if they know of a way to break your contract with him. I do not trust the male.”
I bit my lip and held my tongue. Cyril seemed harmless enough to me and even seemed to hate Key as much as I did. At the very least, I didn’t think he trusted him. My instincts didn’t flare in the red danger zone with Cyril, but this wasn’t the time to fight my mate.
Plus, we still had a full day to get through. Fortunately, I’d squirreled away a decent chunk of money in my savings account, though I’d planned to use it for a vacation with Ana. Now, I would have to spend a good bit of it today to buy some clothes and then search the local Goodwill stores to see if we could spot any of our things. While I worked on that, Olezka would try to find a trail for Cyril. He asked Kallan and other coworkers to keep an eye out for the incubus, but I wasn’t naïve enough to think he would do it unless it was in his interest to do so.
****
“Shower. I’ll start dinner.”
I nodded, feeling utterly worn out and too tired to argue. It had been an unbearably long day, and neither one of us had any luck doing the things we’d set out to do. With heavy feet, I climbed the stairs with every intention of using the shower in our room. So weird. I’d lived there less than a full day, and I was already calling it our room in my head. Even though ten months had passed here in the human realm while we were on the other side of the Veil, for me, it felt like two months at most. It shouldn’t feel this comfortable to be living with a guy yet. It shouldn’t move this fast. At least, that was what my brain said. Then I thought about how sweet and patient he had been with me today even when I got a little snippy. It was hard to come to terms with the fact that most of our things were gone forever. Oh, well. We knew it was a long shot.
Sixx and the Incubus: The Sidekick Chronicles Page 6
