“I’m awake,” Nix says quietly, and follows it up with anoofas Luca throws himself at Nix’s chest.
“Thank fuck! I couldn’t feel you, and I thought I was going to have to save us all by myself. I mean, I could, but I don’t like to steal your thunder, you know?”
Again, Nix tries to smile and shies away from his habitual, near-constant checking of his bonds; he can’t bear to see the rainbow without its passionate, heart-warmed red.
Jamie’s red.
Oh, Goddess, Jamie.
Nope. Not doing that right now. He’ll leave them shut down until he’s gotten them out of this. “Thought twinkle-gays were the apex of gays?”
“We are—if it can still be considered an apex at the bottom,” Luca mutters his pun-tastic response and helps Nix into a sitting position.
“Are you okay, Luc? Did they hurt you again?” Nix runs his hands over whatever parts of Luca he can reach and breathes deeply, finding only the softest hint of mocha still buried under Rowan’s spiced rum, despite his anxiety.
“I’m okay. A bit scared. I was awake in the truck after you fainted but played possum. When they pulled us out, I could smell metal and gasoline. It’s like a warehouse or something, maybe? The big guy dropped us in here.”
They’re lying on a stack of collapsed, flattened cardboard boxes in a small storage-type room. It’s nearly pitch-black, without windows, and with only a single heavy metal door. It’s dark, but there’s enough light, given they’re Were—and even more so, given Nix is truly the actual apex predator in the building.
It only takes Nix seconds to assess the situation.
His early Sentinel visits flash back in sharp relief—especially that strangely well-timed conversation with Logan about hostage risks and abductions. The door won’t pose a problem, but it’s what’s on the other side that concerns him. Nix can’t take a chance with Luca getting hurt if Withers is lurking.
While Withers had been reluctant to hurt Nix, he was more than willing to use Luca to get what he wanted. Plus, with his bonds shut down, his own healing could be slower than he’d like. He’s reluctant to be a burden on his mate—especially when Luc is already anxious.
“Did they say anything interesting or just the usual Humperdinck-style monologuing?” Nix asks, curious if Withers had dropped any important insights they could use to end Carnell.
“Not really. That’s Withers, right? He looks exactly like Gray described, but grosser.”
“For sure.”
“He’s as dumb as an upside-down umbrella in a monsoon. He was freaking pissed about some broken spell, and then he was taking a verbal blast from someone he called ‘sir.’ He hung up all huffy and told Gigantor to keep us on ice. Who says that anymore? He said again how he thinks you have magic and that I am an omega. Why would he think that?”
Nix goes to his knees so he can grab Luca by the shoulders and give him a tiny shake. “Baby, you didn’t tell him any different, did you?”
“Fuck, no. My monsoon-umbrella is 100% upright.”
“Good. BigAndStupid is Were, right? I shut down my scent when they came in. I must smell like Gray’s magic alone while you—”
“I smell like Rowan and me.”
Nodding, Nix gets up and puts his ear to the door. He can hear the television playing a talk show on the other side and the occasional guffaw from their jailer.
“As long as it’s just him and us, we can get out of here. Withers is the magical wild card. I think we can get you to safety, and then I can track Carnell and finish this.”
“What? No! We stick together. Leo said we need to stick together.”
Luca stubbornly crosses his arms and clenches his jaw. It’s the look that says Luca will not be moved. Nix doesn’t remind his mate that they were willing to risk it all for brownies a few hours ago.
“What happened to you after I was out? Did Withers knock you out, too?”
Nix freezes.
He doesn’t want to lie, not to Luca, but he can’t think about why Jamie’s bond disappeared. About the agony and the fear. Soon, he will. But he can’t break down here. Whoever is on the other side of this door doesn’t deserve his grief.
“I—no. I think I’ve got a plan—”
“Nix, you have your prevarication face on.”
