Page 5 of Twist of Fate

Keir pushed back from the table, his chair scraping loudly on the stone floors. “I’d rather be stabbed with a thousand needles than receive another lecture from our King.”

A hearty laugh from the doorway drew another groan from the depths of Connal’s soul. The King Consort’s laugh was unmistakable, especially considering the number of times it had been directed toward them. He pushed to his feet, along with his brothers, and bowed his head to the Consort.

“Oh enough with the formality. You all look like whipped pups. It’s going to be fine, but Keir, I have a sneaking suspicion that you should prepare for a lot of needle pricks if you’d rather have those than another of my mate’s sermons on your behavior.”

Keir’s scowl darkened. “My deepest apologies, Consort Cosmo, for my insult to your mate and my King. Please name my punishment.”

The words sounded like Keir had to force them past a thousand needles in his throat. Connal glanced to his nearly empty goblet. Perhaps another round would soothe his frustrations.

“Keir, as I’ve told you before, we don’t work like that here. You’re allowed to express your frustrations within the safety of the castle. Hell, King Silenus does so himself on an hourly basis. The human realm is different from our home, which is why I’ve been trying to teach you how to navigate here without drawing...heated attention.”

Connal chuckled. “Heated. Like the firefighters.”

“I meant like the hellhounds, but your way works too.”

Throwing back the final dregs of his ale prevented Connal from emitting a swarm of curses. The hellhound champions of the human realm had been the bane of their existence since their arrival. What kind of realm required rules as to why their kind couldn’t reveal themselves to humans? Didn’t the humans have sense enough to know all sorts of creatures from multiple realms roamed their lands?

Connal huffed. Luckily, the King had negotiated with the champions on their behalf; otherwise, they’d have gone to war with the hellhound pack. Such an act would have highly angered Consort Cosmo, however, as he somehow considered the hellhounds friends. Connal shivered. He couldn’t imagine such a horror. Friends? With hellhounds?

Would the horrors never cease?

CHAPTER TWO

“Oh the horror! The pain! Woe is me. Woe, I say!”

Luke looked up from the stack of clothes on his bed and grinned at his best friend and roommate. “Dramatic isn’t a good look for you.”

Gomez flung up his hand and somehow managed to smack himself in the face. “Ow,” Gomez whined. “But also, I always look good. Plus, in case you missed the obvious, I have two broken legs, Luke. I’m allowed to be as dramatic as I want. I can’t pee! Or poo!”

“Technically—”

“Don’t get technical, Luke! You’re abandoning me for a stupid interview, and a stranger is going to have to help me wipe my butt!”

Actually, Gomez was wrong on both counts. Luke had not been helping Gomez wipe his butt, and he wasn’t leaving for an interview. He had a mission. As a very well-paid courier of top-secret corporate information, Luke’s job description—and the intensive military-style training Luke had received along with it—would have blown his friend’s mind.

Unfortunately, Gomez wasn’t allowed to know anything about Luke’s other life. “This is a great opportunity, Go-Go. You know I wouldn’t leave you otherwise.”

Gomez attempted to maneuver his wheelchair into Luke’s bedroom. His dark hair stood up from all angles, so unlike Gomez’s normal perfectly styled messy waves. The poor guy had the worst luck.

Speaking of which, Luke averted another disaster by grabbing the leg braces supporting Gomez’s legs and preventing him from banging one of his casts against the door frame. Luke guided his friend’s wheelchair safely into the room before stepping clear of the danger zone surrounding Gomez.

“Whew, that was almost bad,” Gomez gasped before looking up at Luke. “Not as bad as that tie, though. Please tell me the pain meds are causing hallucinations, and you aren’t planning on wearing that…that…horror! Please, for all that is holy, my eyes.”

Luke held up the sage green monstrosity. He liked the tie. “It brings out the green in my eyes.”

“Oh sweet summer child, is that how the salesperson convinced you to buy it?”

Actually, it was exactly how Luke had been convinced, not that he planned on confessing that sin to his best friend. “You did my colors. I’m a spring. You said I look good in green. I have that color chart thing saved to my phone.”

“Of course you do,” Gomez said as he snatched the tie out of Luke’s hand and tossed it over his shoulder into the hall. “But there’s oh look, Luke has super sexy bedroom eyes green, and then there’s someone save me because that is probably alien blood green.”

Luke gave up. Gomez hated being alone and pouted every time Luke went on a trip. Luckily, his cover career as a corporate training specialist meant he had a ready excuse for travel. Unfortunately, Gomez knew good and well Luke wouldn’t leave him in his current injured state for a random training class Luke had never mentioned. Luke had to think fast when he’d gotten the last-minute call for an urgent delivery. Hence the job interview for a promotion that would keep Luke’s cover intact and provide a reasonable excuse as to why he’d leave Gomez in such a sorry state.

“Do you really have to go?” Gomez whined as he performed his best pouty face. “Haven’t these heathens ever heard of video conferencing? It’s all the rage.”

“This is the in-person portion of the process.”

Gomez dropped his head back and whimpered. “But Luke, stranger danger. Someone else is going to touch my no-no parts!”