He shook his head before leaving me to walk around the front of the building.
Feeling recharged, I headed back into my lab, more determined than ever. That walk hopefully helped my subconscious come up with some solutions. I wanted this done sooner rather than later. I even thought of a couple of safety measures to make sure it was useless to anyone other than who I created them for.
Chapter Eleven
Nothing was going right this week. It was already Friday and I felt like I hadn’t accomplished anything. I had hit a bump where the MBG prototype was concerned, and each day it sucked away my magic with all the attempts. At one point, I’d thought I was getting closer, but then I was proved wrong when fireworks exploded from the canister as soon as I turned it on. Today, I had tried using a witch’s magic, and it was fine up until it decided it wasn’t, blowing all the lights in my lab. At least I knew it wasn’t just my magic the MBG couldn’t handle. After about a level B magic-user, the device couldn’t handle the load.
And that was the problem. The intent was to take magic from powerful beings. If it couldn’t handle the magic of a mid-level witch, then I still had a long way to go. All the books pointed me in the right direction, but there seemed to be something missing. Theory said it should work. Practice proved it wrong, and I wasn’t sure how to get around it.
I rubbed at my face, suppressing a groan as the frustration bubbled up inside of me. This shouldn’t be so complicated.
“Sounds like you need a break,” Lombardi’s voice broke the silence, and I jumped, turning to face him. “Come on.” He jerked his head toward the door that was now open behind him.
“Don’t scare me like that.”
“You’re doing it again. You’re overworking yourself, and it hasn’t even been a week. Let’s go for a walk. You could use the fresh air.”
“I’m fine.”
“The last time you left this lab was at two this morning. It is now dinner time. Let’s go.” His voice hardened, the command nonnegotiable. He wasn’t going to let me win this battle.
I quickly wiped the counter down and disposed of the cloths before following Lombardi out of the building and into the back garden. I looked up at the sun, noticing the darkening sky. He wasn’t kidding. I’d worked straight through the day. I rolled my shoulders, trying to loosen up the tightness that had built up in them.
“I talked to Hale and Tek,” Lombardi said, still leading the way.
Surprise and excitement filtered through me. Hale and Tek were the Blackfoot brothers I had met when I’d helped Shanton. Hale was the nice brother, with the patience of a god. He had the ability to feel through the earth and find that which wasn’t natural. He was also sensitive to magic in general. His brother, Tek, the surly overbearing one. He could commune with Nature, which I thought was pretty cool.
They were currently babysitting a behesiff that had attached itself to me. Apparently, he liked the taste of my magic and decided to become my guardian. But city life was not the kind of life for him so the brothers took it upon themselves to watch over the guy until I could visit again. They’d sent an update once a week so far, and I’d begun to look forward to them. The behesiff was a bit of a beast, but I couldn’t hate the big guy. He was just as protective as the guys around me and had stayed by my side the entire time after we’d retrieved the weapon of the elementalists.
I had to admit, I missed him too. He managed to easily wedge himself into my heart and some nights I missed feeling his weight pressed against my side. I quickly realized that was his way of saying, “I’m still here,” and I grew to like those touches. Guilt gnawed at me when I thought about having to leave him with the Natives, but they didn’t care and it looked like the behesiff was having the time of his life. He was such a ham.
“Show me,” I said, holding my hand up.
Lombardi chuckled before pulling out a small brown envelope and handing it over to me. I tore it open to get out the photos, looking down at them. They were pictures of the behesiff as he posed. Apparently, he thought it was hilarious that Tek or Hale took his pictures, and they were sure he knew what they were going to do with them.
I smiled as I saw the beast lying on the ground, on his back, the sun shining against his gray coat spotted with black dots. He looked like a lion with the dark brown mane, but twice the size and more vicious and dangerous. His two barbed tails were stretched out, and he stared into the camera with slitted yellow eyes, tongue hanging out like he was having the time of his life. Two long incisors peeked through his lips.
I flipped through the rest of the pictures. One of them, he was in the water, swiping at fish that looked to be jumping out of the water. Another, he was facing off with another creature, this one similar to a bear, and even through the photo, I could see how powerful he was with the straining muscles, the dominant stare, and the curl of his lip as he snarled.
The last piece of paper wasn’t a photo, but a small card with a messy scrawl on it that I quickly learned was Tek’s handwriting. Even his handwriting looked terrible—to match his personality.
Laughter escaped when I finished, and I grinned at Lombardi. His lip twitched. He wouldn’t ask me what it said, even if he was curious, since it was my privacy, but he knew I’d share anyways.
“Says, ‘He’s a pain still, but he can be useful when we need him to be.’ ” Lombardi grinned. No doubt the behesiff was useful. From what everyone told me, they were the king of the jungle. My first meeting with the beast proved it when every other creature in a two-mile radius took off. Only Shanton going all dragon on the creature had him leaving us alone, but only temporarily.
“We’ll have to do a trip out there. I think I’d like to meet the guy.” Something dark and dangerous entered his eyes, and I got a glimpse of Hell.
“What are you planning?” I asked, hesitating.
He blinked and he was back to my Lombardi. “I never met a behesiff before.”
“You are not fighting my kitty.”
Lombardi laughed, his face lightening up with disbelief. “Only you would call him a kitty. That beast is far from a kitty.”
“He is of the Felidae family and so are house cats. Therefore, he’s a kitty.”
Lombardi shook his head. “That is some interesting logic.”
“It’s modus ponens. If behesiffs are in the Felidae family, then they are related to kitties. The behesiffs have been classified by professional researchers and fall into the Felidae family. Therefore, they are related to kitties. They’re big kitties, but they are still kitties.”
“I don’t think modus ponens was meant to be used that way,” Lombardi said. “And while they are the same family, they aren’t of the same species. It’s like saying a tiger is the same as a lion.”
“Oh?” I asked, challenging him. “That’s what makes modus ponens so fun. By the logic I just gave you, they are the same thing. A tiger is a lion is a behesiff is a kitty. Therefore, they are all kitties because they belong in the Felidae family and are related to each other.” I smirked, feeling mischievous. “Alijah is a kitty too.”
“I dare you to say that to his face.”
I blinked innocently. “I will.”
His smile widened, and he raised his hands. “I’m not going to fight you on this. I believe you. They’re both types of felines. But kitties are adorable. I doubt a behesiff is. And Alijah definitely isn’t.”
I pulled out a particular photo and held it up so Lombardi could see. In this photo, the behesiff lounged on top of a massive branch, his barbed tails in the air, obviously from swishing them around, one paw tucked under his head, the other dangling. He looked sleepy in the photo, just lounging around in comfort.
Lombardi stared at it for a few long moments in disbelief. I smirked as he fought his instincts. I knew exactly what he wanted to do. He wanted to fawn over the adorable big guy. Hell, I was fawning over him all the time. All the photos I had of the behesiff found their way to a section of one of my bedroom walls.
�
��I give,” he said, shaking his head. “He is pretty adorable in that photo.”
I grinned big, basking in my victory. “I know.”
“I’d still like to meet the guy.”
“Unfortunately, city life would be bad for him. And Hale said once they give their loyalty to someone, it never fades. We’re connected, even with the distance.” Again, the guilt I felt rose. I knew what it was like to feel abandoned and I didn’t want him feeling that. He was too good to have to deal with it. Only these photos kept me from a full-blown freakout.
Lombardi rubbed his jaw. “We’ll figure something out.” He grabbed my hand. “Don’t feel bad about this. You can see he’s doing fine. All cats are notorious for being independent. And they’re intelligent too. Didn’t you mention it always feels like he’s posing for the photos?”
I nodded.
“He knows you’re still around. He knows he isn’t abandoned. And he knows you’ll be back. Like I said, we’ll figure this out.”
I bit my lip and pushed away my doubts, focusing on the scenery as we walked through a tunnel of trees, their branches created an archway to walk under as we moved away from the building.
The silence between us was companionable as we strolled around, surrounded by the wildlife. With it being November, all the leaves were changing color. I smiled and stomped a little, enjoying the crunch of the leaves. Looking at the path ahead of us, it was like walking on a river of fire. I glanced at Lombardi as his eyes skimmed over the scenery. I doubted he was taking much of the sights in. He was doing that scan that predators did, looking for signs of danger, prepared to defend at a drop of a leaf.
“Was Hell hot?” I asked.
His eyes flickered to me, and he gave me a questioning look.
“I was reading about human belief in Heaven and Hell. Hellhounds are supposed to have come from the fiery depths of Hell. What is it actually like there?”
“Their ideology of Hell isn’t too bad. No, there isn’t a ‘Hell’ like they depict. My home is based in what humans called the Otherworld, or more originally, Tír na nÓg. I’d be considered an aes sidhe from my particular pocket of that realm.”
“That is completely different than what I researched,” I said.
Lombardi smirked. “We find entertainment in the fact that the humans believe in Hell so it isn’t widely known. The area I’m from isn’t a pleasant place. It’s desolate and it’s where they send the criminals to perish. Before moving here, I was one of their guards, tasked with catching criminals who escaped through the sidhe. I’d have to bring them back or eliminate them.”
I nodded, completely fascinated with the world Lombardi came from.
“Why did you stop?” I asked.
“I didn’t want to serve under the king.” Lombardi sighed. “This is all dark stuff, I’m sure you don’t want to hear about it.”
“I do,” I said. “I really, really do.”
“You’re not even worried about making me uncomfortable?”
“If I did, you’d tell me to shut up.”
Lombardi thought about that for a moment. “Maybe. But I don’t think I could ever say no to you.” He shook his head and grabbed my arm, looping it with his. “How about we talk more about this over dinner. I need to feed you.”
“I need to get back to work.”
“Not tonight, you don’t. You’re done for the night.”
I sighed and caved. I did need a break anyway. Maybe sleeping on it would help my brain work through my issues.
“Fine.”
He grinned and led the way to his vehicle.
~*~
Twenty minutes later, Lombardi pulled into the parking lot of a small Greek restaurant on the outskirts of the city. Once we were settled into a booth and ordered our drinks, I jumped right back into the conversation.
“So. You’re a Faerie, and you stopped working as a guard. Why?”
“Really?” he asked. “You want to hear about this stuff?”
“It’s about you,” I said and leaned back in the booth, playing with the menu to keep my hands busy. “It’s your history. Of course, I want to learn about it.”
Lombardi took a moment and contemplated what I’d said. When his expression softened, I knew he was going to spill the beans. “There isn’t much to it. I worked for the Lord of the Dead and then once I grew strong enough, broke away.”
“Lord of the Dead. So, Lucifer?” I asked.
Lombardi snorted. “That’s only his recent name. Anyway, I was born in the darkness of the Otherworld and quickly rose in the ranks to become a captain. I had a whole team I commanded when we went on hunts. Think Wild Hunt.”
I raised my eyebrows at this. What everyone learned was vastly different from the truth. It was amazing to see how stories had twisted themselves until the truth no longer had a place in the narrative.
I desperately wanted to ask what ultimately had him deciding to leave his post if he was in such a prominent position, but his expression had grown darker. I decided I’d pushed him enough for today. I had so much to think about now. Hell wasn’t real, so how did Heaven come into this? Lombardi was really a Faerie, or in his words, aes sidhe. And he personally knew Lucifer.
“You’re like a history book,” I said.
“I’m not that old.”
“But you’re immortal,” I pointed out.
He nodded. “Two hundred and fifty-four isn’t all that old. I guess my people would consider me to be in my mid-twenties. I apparently have the attitude for it.”
“Ambitious? Restless? Empowered?” I asked.
His eyes lit with amusement. “Maybe more like impatient, reckless, and impulsive.”
“Now you’re sounding like an old man.” I leaned back in my seat and took a sip of my water. “Frankly, I can’t wait to be in my mid-twenties.”
He tilted his head to the side, curiosity brightening his eyes. “Expand.”
“Well, look at you. If you’re considered a twenty-something-year-old, then you’re a successful one. You built BMS up from nothing, you have connections with people others would pee themselves to even approach. You know a dragon personally. You took what was probably just a thought, maybe something you said as a joke or in passing, and leaped with it, and stuck the landing. That’s ambitious. Not many would have risked it.”
“Except you.”
I smirked. “Of course. Like I said, ambitious.”
“Or reckless.” He chuckled as our drinks were served. The rest of the night went by quickly as the conversation between Lombardi and me kept flowing. Outside of work, he was easy to speak to. He listened and saw past the words that were said and into the true meaning. Being a hellhound made him a great judge of character.
Lombardi may not have been considered old among his people, but he had a wide array of stories about his past to share, and I spent half the night laughing.
“Did you really punch Shanton when you first met him?” I asked.
“I thought he was an asshole. I still think he’s an asshole, but he’s not too bad. Not when you compare him to the other dragons.”
“What did he do when you punched him?”
Lombardi rubbed at his jaw. “Punched me back. I flew through a wall.”
I laughed, my stomaching aching as I tried to breathe. “I wish I was there to see that. And let me guess. You guys became best friends?”
“Not until after I knocked him out for taking my motorcycle and crashing it.”
“He did what?”
Lombardi nodded. “He said he wanted to pay me back for shoving him off a building. If there is one thing you need to remember about dragons, remember that they can hold a grudge.” He chuckled to himself as he flagged down our server. “Ready for part two?”
“There’s more to this date?” I asked, excited about that. I was enjoying my time with him and didn’t want it to end.
“Of course. I’m more than just a dinner date.”
Once he paid, we headed toward the outskirts
of the city in his SUV.
“Um, Lombardi, while I’m all for this, I really hope you aren’t taking me outside the city limits. Last time, a tree tried to eat me.”
“I promise we aren’t. Laila, you’ll always be safe with me. I’d never let anyone hurt you.”
Warmth curled inside of me, his words stoking a fire. I found myself believing him. “I know.”
A few minutes later, he pulled into a gravel parking lot and turned off the vehicle, darkness wrapping around us.
“Where are we?” I asked.
“A small running trail. There’s a spot out here I want to show you” He jumped out of the SUV and came to my side, opening my door for me.
With his hand on my arm, he helped me out and then held my hand as he led the way into the trees.
“Mother Nature isn’t going to try to eat me, is she?” I asked.
“No, she won’t. We’re still in the city limits, she won’t hurt us.”
“What about other creepy crawlies?” I asked.
“They can smell me. They’ll stay away.”
I leaned forward and sniffed. “You don’t stink,” I said playfully, understanding that he meant he smelled like a predator, even by other predators.
The pathway was barely lit by the moonlight, and only Lombardi’s confidence in where he was going kept me from throwing around my magic. We walked through the woods, up a slight hill. The only time the calm silence was broken was when he warned me about fallen logs and reaching branches. It was kind of nice.
I wasn’t much of a fan of forests. I only went into them out of necessity. I preferred the city life. I knew the dangers there. I didn’t know all the dangers of a forest and the beasts within them.
If we weren’t in city limits, I would have been panicking, but I trusted Lombardi and knew he was badass enough to keep the other predators away. That allowed me to enjoy the night time hike.
There was one particular sound that caught my attention. It reminding me of a bird, and its call sounded like a lullaby as it echoed through the air. I wanted to go investigate and only Lombardi’s firm grip on my hand kept me from going off the path. It was probably for the best. The last thing I wanted was to get lost. That would have been embarrassing.
Magical Seclusion Page 13
