Damn. Maybe I’d gotten too trusting of Luca too quickly. I kept that silly hope that maybe he was the Luca that Yosef knew. That he would help me get home if pushed against a wall.
Shit, was I going to have to slay a dragon?
CHAPTER25
LUCA
Seeing Olivia in my home, attacking Lila, put me in panic mode. I knew in the back of my mind that leadership wouldn’t let me keep someone as valuable as Lila forever. Still, I held onto a small sliver of hope that they would forget about her.
She wanted to leave now, but the options were minimal. We were in a warded town, and therefore, there was nowhere to hide for long. It was essentially about buying time. I didn’t want anyone taking her away from me. Not to mention the hell that would await her if they captured her again.
Ultimately, my mission wasn’t to Lila. I could not forget that. I had a duty to uphold, and getting distracted by a woman would put everything in jeopardy. With no escape, I would be killed or tortured once they found us. However, if we were able to break the ward in time, I could finally leave. With her.
Lila walked closer to me, putting a hand on my chest. I loved feeling her touch, it was addicting. I hated to lose it.
She looked up at me with those siren eyes of hers, and I fought hard not to look away, ashamed I couldn’t think of any way to protect her. “Look, Luca. I know you don’t owe me anything. You saved me, even if it was for a short time. And the sex has been great, really it has. Chef’s kiss. But if you can’t or won’t help me, then let me go. I’m banking on you not being an asshole. If I’m part dragon, are you really going to turn your back on me?”
I grabbed her hand and kissed her palm. “You don’t have to argue your point to me. I just think it might be futile. False hope.”
“I’d rather die than be enslaved. You understand?”
I could see the passion in her eyes, and I didn’t doubt it. It made me want to fight harder. The city wasn’t large, but it was big enough that we might have a couple of days to hide before we were found, depending on when they started looking and how aggressive the search would be. There was one place I’d gone to often that, to my knowledge, no one else ever ventured. It wouldn’t hold against an attack, and my wards could be broken by fae in this town. However, if no one looked right away, it was a location to bide our time in hopes that Lila’s powers returned, and she could break the town barrier.
I kept hold of her hand, looking around the room, already thinking of the provisions we would need. “There is a place that I go to often. No one else knows about it.”
Her eyes widened in hope. “Where? Wait, why do you go there if you have your own home?”
I would tell her, but my home really wasn’t my own. I had no expectation of true privacy and naturally assumed that an appointed fae could utilize witch magic to listen into every home. Our leadership was not above doing such things.
“I’ll tell you later.”
“Well, let’s go there?”
“No, we have to accept our fate.” I quickly bent forward and leaned into her ear before she could argue. “Play along.”
I hoped she was as smart as I thought she was and would understand that this was all an act in case we were being heard.
She leaned away from me, brows furrowed together, but there was a boldness in her eyes that I chose to accept as understanding. She put a hand on her hips and marched toward my room. “Fine, be an asshole and let me get caught.”
I sighed. She was playing the part. As long as she understood that I wouldn’t let anything happen to her without dying first, I could get us to my secret location.
* * *
Lila looked around the space, her face a mask of confusion and displeasure. “A cave? You brought us to a cave.”
I knew she wouldn’t like it, but it was all I could think of. It was on the outskirts of town, dark, damp, and cold. It wasn’t meant to be a place to camp. I only communicated here. We’d brought blankets and other items, like food, but it wouldn’t be a comfortable space. We couldn’t even stay in the car because I thought it best to leave it at my house to make people believe I was home until, of course, they knocked on the door.
The walk was long, about fifteen miles, but Lila moved on foot with no complaints. She was strong. I’d known that from the start. Still, she was not from here and advanced enough not to want to sleep on an uneven cave floor.
We’d moved deep into the cave, down one of many passageways that I hoped would make us harder to track down. It was also warmer, located near a body of water. The lake inside the cave was warm and would be good to get water and to bathe.
I put our things down on the outskirts of the lake and moved to light the collection of wood I always used for a fire. I’d have to get more wood to last us because going in and out of the cave would be dangerous. I wanted to lessen those trips.
Lila continued to survey the area, using a spark of icy light, which floated in the palm of her hand. “Don’t get me wrong, beggars can’t be choosers. Plus, this cenote is kind of cool.”
I blew out a fiery breath, easily lighting the wood encircled by several rocks. I glanced over at her, confused. “I don’t think I know that word.”
“It’s like a sinkhole full of water. Like a natural pool or hot spring. It’s usually found in caves in the human world. Very beautiful. Look, thank you for risking it all to help me. I’m going to get us out of here. But in the meantime, you’ve got to tell me why you come here. It’s safe now to talk, right? What would you have to hide from your leadership that you need this kind of privacy?”
