My lips curve, and I give him a shy smile in return. “Can you find me more booze for the girls? That’s why I came in here, anyway. Fae wine would be preferable if you have it.”
His laugh makes me tingle again as he moves away to root through his piles of stolen items. “KK, I’d behappyto do such a small thing if that’s all you’re asking right now. Based on what just happened, I think I’m all in favor of you having ‘girl’s nights’ whenever the fuck you like. Those chicks are good for you; I can see it in your eyes.”
And apparently, taste it in my pussy, but I’m not going to say that out loud, now am I?
Twenty-Eight
JASPER
Once the doc gets the bear up and running again, I can breathe easier. I’m not usually one to be this concerned about people outside of my caliphate, but there are two major reasons I had to act quickly. One, we’re trying to make an alliance with these two jumbled groups, and I believe that is a necessary evil for the success of our mission to stop the coup in Hell. But almost equally important in my mind is the snarling of my fucking dragon that if we are unsympathetic to these outsiders, the shrimp will never forgive us.
I’m not thrilled with the total dissonance between my supernatural beings and myself regarding the lying weasel, but if I want to stay in this form without destruction, I have to give in.
“Now that we have the shifter safe, the Professor needs to take a draught as well.” I look at Zavvie and then the haughty mage. “I’m sure you won’t enjoy this concoction, especially since you’reawareof what’s in it. However, you’ve seen it help the other one, and if you don’t get it down, the air here will start doing to you what it did to him.”
The egotistical shit sighs heavily and finally accepts the potion from Dr. D, and I relax a little more. “Ugh. You’re right; it tastes like ass.”
“Know how that tastes, do you?” I smirk as his eyes widen and I get what looks to be a slight flush of embarrassment on his bearded cheeks. “I thought not. You wouldn’t use that phrase so easily if you enjoyed the lusty pleasures of other men.”
Zavida coughs, looking at me through his tails with a knowing expression before he murmurs, “Jas, I’m ecstatic to see you in a better humor, but um… We need to get to group two before the siren or the dragon go down. It would be very bad if the Fae prince’s bodyguard goes down.”
I nod, sighing heavily. “Gemini, it will be much easier if we all go. We may have to deal with this problem and resume the search in the morning. Everyone is bound to be tired by now, and we’re reaching the point where fresh eyes would be helpful in our areas.”
Lucas coughs, then croaks, “I wouldn’t mind a lie down, to be honest. This is the second time some random poison has almost taken me out in a few months, and though I’m a shifter, it’s making me feel a bit shaky.”
Angelo nods, looking around the stadium. “I agree, actually. This place in particular may require the entirety of our cabal to actually check off the list. It’s so massive that I’m concerned nothing short of the army can truly say it’s been rendered safe.”
I roll my eyes at his theatrics, knowing that his lack of time in our realm has limited his perspective on how powerful demons like us are. “Fine. Zavvie, text Anton and find out where they are so you and the don over there can take us there more quickly.”
My Kitsune pulls his phone out, his fingers flying over his screen in a way that makes the rest of my caliphate look like Luddites. Zavvie’s technical skills are so good that it impresses me sometimes, and it’s making the bear goggle a bit. “Anton says they are on the underground studio levels of the knowledge enclave, and they’ve located one that must have a clue in it. Having us there will actually help, he believes.”
“I know where the enclave is to aim my portal, but I’ll need a little help with their exact location,” Angelo admits. “I didn’t use a studio and never needed the underground.”
“If I may?” the doc speaks up and I blink, almost forgetting that he’s still among us. “I can transport the entire group without suspicion, and I will be able to sense where they are via Master Zavida. Would that be useful?”
Fuck yes, it would.
“That’s incredibly helpful, Doc. We try to use portaling less often to keep his abilities off the radar, and we’ve had to use it more lately than I am comfortable with.”
Everyone looks at me as if I’ve grown another head, and I growl softly. “Look, I realize I’m a grumpy motherfucker on good days, and I’ve been extremely pissed since… we were last here. However, I… I have reason, and that’s not something I can allow to infiltrate this shit any longer. We have to ensure the assholes from the surface don’t die on my watch, especially the other royals, and it occurs to me that if I weren’t so focused on internal conflicts, I might have remembered that they needed protection spells.”
The doc’s flames ignite and feathers fly into the air, then melt into ash before they hit the ground. That makes me look athim in shock, but the emotions that emanate from him aren’t negative. No, they’re actually… full of pride? I shake my head, turning away from the ancient demon to face the group. “Is that okay, or is everyone going to stand around and gape at me like fools?”
“Ah, there he is again,” the elder Gemini says with a chuckle. “For a moment, I thought we’d stepped into an alternate reality. You were far too agreeable just then, Eversore.”
I smirk at the demon as the doctor walks over to Zavida and places a palm on his arm. Zavvie shivers for a second and when the hand is removed, he looks at me pleadingly. Despite my aversion to being publicly affectionate in front of these people, I take his hand. It’s freezing, and I arch a brow at the feathered physician as he creates a large, powerful portal that will allow us all to go through.
He didn’t mention that he was going to turn my mate into a popsicle, and I’m not happy with it.
Zav is betterby the time we cross the barrier into a hallway filled with magical strands lighting it up. My frown deepens as I note the dragon seems to lead them, as he’s standing with his arms crossed in irritation that my brothers haven’t opened the door where the trail ends yet.
“Itold you, bro. Once they’re here, we have to keep you and the singing dude safe before we go in. We’ve been lucky that you didn’t die out in the open, but we have to?—”
I stride over, cutting Salem’s plea off by saying, “He’s right. I take responsibility for not remembering that most of the visitors didnothave demon blood and needed to be protected from the air in Hell. Our royal physician is here with us, and he will offer you the potion we gave the bear and the professor.”
Kaspar looks at me suspiciously, then glares at them. “You took the potion they gave without talking to anyone? Have you lost your damn minds?”
The professor waves his hand at the dragon. “Kas, Angelo helped the doctor brew it with the Kitsuné. I know what’s in it, and it fixed me. It is safe to drink— it also helped Lucas stop suffocating.”
