Would he be my ally, my enemy, or my lover? Or all three?
Everything would be different if fate hadn’t interfered.
“Wait. What do you mean…precious?” I repeated, the word catching in my throat.
That brilliant gaze flicked to my face, something softer slipping through his irritation, an almost-smile dancing on his lips.
“The cipher only works so many times,” he explained as horror sluiced through my veins. “A powerful tool, but limited in its usage. Which is why it’s been kept locked away. Saved for only the direst of circumstances. You know. Life and death, that sort of thing.”
Fuck. Fuck. Fuckity fuck.
“From the expression on your face, I assume you used the pendant tonight?” His shoulders sagged, the very pictureof defeat. “Please tell me you used it for something important, at least?” he pleaded. “Tell me you didn’t just poke around on one of the Pentarch’s private islands for fun?”
Oh my gods, I was a fool. And he was seriously going to kill me. Deservedly so.
“I followed Giovanni to the Draconi fortress,” I admitted, avoiding his searching gaze. “I used the cipher to sneak through a secret portal and onto the island.”
Gabriel, the room—the entire house—went still.
His jaw flexed, then he moved like a storm, a wall of righteous anger, looming over me. Blue eyes burned, his mask slipping off, and a breath shuddered out of my lungs as I waited for him to shake me. To scream. For that restraint to finally shatter.
Maybe… I would welcome him finally losing control.
Forsomethingto break this dangerous tension brewing between us.
“Have you lost yourfucking mind? Everything we have planned would collapse if your uncle discovered you were still alive, not to mention he would…” His lips clamped together, likely so he didn’t launch into an epic speech of how idiotic I’d acted tonight. “Start from the beginning.”
As succinctly as possible, I explained the fixed gate, the way Giovanni had stepped through Severin’s magic as if he’d done it a hundred times before.
I told him how my uncle had asked the head of the Draconi Brotherhood for a favor. The way Severin had refused. I couldn’t keep my words from tripping over themselves or my hands from squeezing into sweaty fists.
By the time I finished, Gabriel was pacing away to the hearth, the cipher dangling from his fingers like a pendulum.
“Severin and your uncle.A favor.What sort of favor would your uncle need from Severin… and why would the Draconi Master agree to meet in the middle of the night?” he muttered, more to himself than to me. “But he let him use the gate. That’s not a casual favor to grant.”
“No,” I agreed in a hushed tone. “That’s the sort of favor given out of desperation… or to a close ally. And why sneak around? Why wouldn’t Severin just go to the palazzo? He has the perfect excuse since his soldiers are tasked with providing extra security since the bombing.”
After Dante’s house blew up—courtesy of my uncle—the entire Dynasty was under increased security, provided by the Draconi Brotherhood. A boon for us since the heightened surveillance gave Nico unrestricted access to my family’s properties.
Gabriel stopped pacing and looked straight at me.
“You’re sure you saw Severin?” he asked.
Since I was already in enough trouble, I didn’t roll my eyes. “Bald head. Built like a stone pillar? I’ve known Severin Draconi my entire life and seen him more than I would have liked these past few months. Yes, I’m sure it was him.”
“He would never betray us. He must be gathering information on Giovanni,” Gabriel decided. “This favor is concerning, but chances are, Severin only took the meeting to draw out your uncle and try to expose him. But why…”
My throat tightened. “Why all the secrecy?”
“Why all the secrecy?” he repeated. “Nico won’t be back for a few days.”
His gaze slid away, landing somewhere on the wall behind me. “So, we sit tight and wait. I’ll keep my ear to the ground and put out some feelers in case there are anyrumors spreading through the underground networks. Disruptions in the Draconi schedules or anything having to do with Giovanni.”
5
GABREL DOMINICO
Icould barely think past my fear.
