City of the Lost (Chronicles of Arcana Book 2)
Page 18
We turned a corner and then another. My eyes scanned the map, checking off the route as we went, looking for doors, hidden passageways, anything that might lead to a secret lair. But as the minutes ticked by, my heart sank.
And then we came upon a dead end.
“Fuck.” I folded up the map. “Let’s retrace our steps then take another route.”
Noir followed me back the way we’d come, but the futility of this exercise was a bitter taste on my tongue. The Shedim weren’t down here amongst the stench of shit. We were wasting our time and meanwhile Elora had my guys. A week. She’d had them a week and every minute, every hour, that she kept them was a fresh shard burrowing under my nails. My fingers prickled as if in response, and a cursory inspection revealed the damn talons again. Stupid things—always showed up when not needed. I’d have to report to Gil once we got back. He’d been keeping note off my new abilities. Trying to figure out what the heck was happening to me. I hoped to God that whatever it was, was kickass enough to rip Elora’s smug face off.
“We’ll get them back, Wila. I promise,” Noir said. “We have the gala tomorrow, and between us, we’ll get the information we need.”
Ah, the gala, a chance to dress up and mingle with the elite, but also the perfect opportunity to meet the new Draconi ambassador. The perfect chance to discover what the heck had happened to Valance.
I linked arms with Noir. “Come on, let’s get this over with. If we stay down here any longer than necessary, I swear the stink is gonna get into my skin.”
With a chuckle, he picked up the pace.
Wet footprints led out of my bathroom and vanished into the hallway carpet. Seriously? Again? I’d let it go the first time, but Noir really needed to stick to the fourth floor and his own bathroom ... Azren’s bathroom. I’d have to have words with him about this. My bathroom was my fluffy, pink haven. It smelled of ... My raspberry body wash! Urgh. What the heck? Now that was going too far. Okay, calm down Bastion, the bottle cost a bomb but making Noir feel really bad about using it might mean a brand new bottle. Funny how the thought of new stuff always succeeded in making me feel better. Locking the door, I switched on the hot water and stepped under the spray.
Time to wash away the icky stench.
A half hour later, dressed in a casual, knee-length skirt and camisole top, I found Noir lounging in the ... lounge, nursing a cup of tea. Gilbert had prepared a tray and it sat on the coffee table in front of Noir. There were even scones—warm, buttery, ready-to-be-slathered-with-jam-and-cream scones. Mmmm. The television was on low, some chat show with people shouting at each other.
Noir set down his cup when I entered, his gaze widening slightly as he took in my attire.
I rolled my eyes. “Yes, it’s a skirt. Yes, I do have legs, and no, I don’t show them off enough.” I gave him a twirl.
He bit back a smile and poured some tea into my special cup. “Skirts suit you. You have nice legs.”
“Nice? Heck, I have epic legs.” I sniffed. Did he think a compliment would let him off the hook for using my shower? He was going to have to do better than that. I crossed my arms under my breasts. “You have your own shower, you know.”
He balked. “Um, yes.” His expression cleared, and he raised an arm to sniff his pit. “Do I still smell?”
“What? No. I mean why are you using mine?”
“Using your what?”
Oh, look at him and his poker face. “My shower.”
He frowned looking sincerely confused. “Wila, I did not use your shower.”
“Oh, really? Tell that to the wet footprints and the raspberry haze.” A thought occurred to me. “In fact ...” I bounded onto the sofa and stuck my nose into the crook of his neck before inhaling deeply. A fresh, zesty tang filled my head and my stomach contracted then flipped hard. Oh, God. He smelled good. Too good.
“Wila?”
His voice sounded strange. Strangled and then I realized where my hand was—high up on his thigh, right by his ... “Whoa!” I backed up. Hands in the air. “Shit, Noir. I’m sorry.”
He took a moment, swallowed and licked his lips. “Would you mind explaining what you were doing? Because it seemed to me that you were sniffing me?”
I winced. “I thought you’d smell of raspberries.”
He frowned in confusion. “And why in the world would you think that?”
“Someone’s been using my bathroom. Since the only people living here who’d use a shower are you, me and Tay, and Tay isn’t here, I thought it was you.”
He canted his head. “No. Definitely not me.” He made an ‘o’ with his mouth. “Wait, Trevor said Tay swung by earlier. Maybe he took a shower then?”
“Yeah. That explains it.”
“Are you going to sniff him too?” Noir asked with a small smile.
Sniffing Tay meant getting close which was a bad, bad idea. “It’s cool. I’ll just have words. I know it seems petty but that’s my space, you know?”
“I get it. I get this must be hard for you, having Tay and me invade your home like this.”
Wait, did he think I didn’t like having them here? “God, no! I love you guys being here. You have no idea how grateful I am for the protection. I just like my privacy is all.”
Now I just felt petty. So what if they’d used my shower. They were giving up their time to be here for me. Man, I needed to deal with my issues.
Noir nodded. “I understand. I’m the same.”
“You are?”
He gave me a lopsided smile which turned his intense face boyish. My heart squeezed slightly, and I reached out to ruffle his damp hair.
His pupils dilated. “What was that for?”
My throat was suddenly thick with a new emotion. “Nothing.”
He reached across and brushed a thumb down my cheek, skimming the corner of my mouth. “You are a funny thing, Bastion.”
“You’re one to talk, accidental boob groper.”
Color bloomed high on his cheekbones. “Yes, well ...” He tucked in his chin.
Ha, he was flustered. I loved it when he was flustered. I ducked my head to look into his face. “Was it good? Eh? Was it good for you, Noir?”
He raised his head and our gazes met with a zing. My breath caught and pinched my throat. His phone rang with authority from the coffee table, and we both jerked away from each other.
Noir stared at the mobile phone as it alternated between vibrate and ring, but made no move to answer it.
I nudged him with my elbow. “Ha. Yeah. You better grab that.”
“It will be work.”
Which would mean he’d have to leave. So much for clearing his calendar. “You need to work, Noir. Answer it.”
He took a shuddering breath and then picked up the phone. “Noir.” His voice was clipped, annoyed, yet professional. It conveyed his irritation at being disturbed on his day off, but left room for the caller to petition him with whatever issue they were calling about. “Yes. No. I already explained that. No, don’t.” A deep sigh. “I’ll be right over.” He hung up and pinched the bridge of his nose.
I shrugged. “You have to go.”
“I have to go.”
I grinned. “Well, it looks like I’ll get to start the next season without you.”
“Like hell.” He grabbed the remote off the table. “I’m taking this with me. We’ll watch it when I get back.”
I cocked my head, looking up at him coquettishly. “Which will be ... when?”
He sighed. “As soon as I can.” His gaze softened and my stomach did that slow flip again.
An outsider would be forgiven for thinking we were a couple. Heck, we’d fallen so easily into living together it was scary, but we weren’t a couple. We were friends.
I broke eye contact. “I guess I’ll see you later then.”
“Na-huh.” He made a get up motion with his fingers.
“What?”
“You’re not staying here alone.”
“I won’t be alone. I
have Trevor and Gilbert.”
He arched a skeptical brow. “I’m sure Gilbert will agree that you need to come with me.”
“I certainly do.” Gilbert said from the doorway, making me jump.
I hadn’t even sensed him this time.
“If Hound were here then I’d be less concerned,” Gil continued. “But I haven’t seen him all day.”
“I didn’t see him yesterday either, “Noir added.
Yeah, Hound was AWOL, and it was bugging me. He’d only been a member of the team for a short while, but he’d quickly become part of the furniture. “What if a client comes in? I need to be here.”
“Trevor will take the details, and we’ll call you,” Gilbert said firmly.
It looked like they had an answer for everything. I stood up. “Fine. Where are we going?”
He smiled. “Oh, I’m dropping you off with Tay, and then I’m headed to the office.”
My heart skipped a beat. “Let me change and grab my coat.” I offered him a twinkling smile. “My new, beautiful, extra-enchanted leather dustkicker.”
He rolled his eyes. “You’re welcome, Bastion, and keep the skirt on. It looks good.”
Leaving him chatting to Gil, I headed out of the room to suit up and grab K, because there was no way I was going anywhere without my bolt shooter until Elora was dead.
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Or visit: https://www.amazon.com/City-Everdark-Chronicles-Arcana-Book-ebook/dp/B07FR7B815/
Other books by Debbie Cassidy
The Gatekeeper Chronicles
Coauthored with Jasmine Walt
Marked by Sin
Hunted by Sin
Claimed by Sin
The Witch Blood Chronicles
(Spin-off to the Gatekeeper Chronicles)
Binding Magick
Defying Magick
Embracing Magick
Unleashing Magick
The Fearless Destiny Series
Beyond Everlight
Into Evernight
Under Twilight
The Chronicles of Midnight
Protector of Midnight
Champion of Midnight
Secrets of Midnight
Shades of Midnight
Savior of Midnight
Chronicles of Arcana
City of Demons
City of the Lost
City of the Everdark
Novellas
Blood Blade
About the Author
Debbie Cassidy lives in England, Bedfordshire, with her three kids and very supportive husband. Coffee and chocolate biscuits are her writing fuels of choice, and she is still working on getting that perfect tower of solitude built in her back garden. Obsessed with building new worlds and reading about them, she spends her spare time daydreaming and conversing with the characters in her head – in a totally non psychotic way of course. She writes High Fantasy and Urban Fantasy.
Connect with Debbie via her website at debbiecassidyauthor.com or twitter @authordcassidy. Or sign up to her Newsletter to stay in the know.