It wasn’t a promise that I would do whatever he wanted, but it was the best I could manage, given the circumstances. It was what he’d have to settle on.
“Perfect. I’ll take it all.” The smile on his face wasn’t exactly kind, and the excitement in his eyes told me I might be biting off more than I could chew.
Cole was the one who didn’t move forward, and he turned his head to look up at me. He didn’t bother whispering, since it was obvious that Gethin would hear us anyway with how close he was standing.
“Are you sure about this?”
I wasn’t, but… “I trust Wren.” It was really that simple. I trusted him, and if he thought Gethin could keep us safe, I’d sell myself down the river with whatever favor Gethin wanted from me. It was worth it if it meant I could keep Cole by my side.
He was still hesitating, though.
“Either you want my help or not. The barrier is closing in thirty seconds, and I’m not opening it again. I’d make a decision if I were you.”
Either he was too trusting or extremely cocky, because Gethin turned his back on us and started back down the path I’d watched him come from.
“Sephtis…”
“We don’t have any other options. Come on.” I pushed him forward, and thankfully he let me. When we crossed through the barrier, something in my chest squeezed tight for just a moment… and the small, audiblepopbehind me when it closed was nearly deafening.
But then everything settled. The rain on my skin was cool, stinging… the only thing that felt pressing enough to make me go inside.
It was like I couldfeelthe way this place was safe.
I just didn’t know what the price of that safety would be… and in the end, I didn’t care. Cole’s fingers were still in mine, like he’d forgotten that he needed to pull away. And that feeling was worth everything.
Chapter 23
Cole
I didn’t like Gethin,but I had a feeling that stemmed from the fact that I didn’t trust him.
Wren hadn’t really told us much about him, other than that he was an old coworker who had run afoul of Fate once upon a time and now he was suffering the consequences.
It wasn’t exactly a satisfying explanation, but I wasn’t going to argue with it when I could see the tension spill from Sephtis’s body the second we stepped into the house where the strange man led us.
It still didn’t mean I had to trust him, and I knew at least part of that came from the way he was looking at the man whose hand I was still holding like he was the keys to the kingdom.
I needed to figure out if it was a price I was willing to let Sephtis pay for my safety.
The thought made me flash back to the way I’d picked up that gun and shot a man to make sure Sephtis wasn’t the only one paying a price when it came to me. The memory nearly tore a whimper from my chest.
I’d never done anything like that before—I’d neverhurtanyone before. But in that moment, it had felt so natural.
In that moment, there’d really been no other option. I’d needed to do it because I needed to be on even ground with Sephtis.
I needed to share the weight of what was happening with him, to protect him the way he was protecting me.
I needed…
“I’m not sure how much I can help you, other than the barrier. And if you really are being chased by Death, I can’t promise it’s going to hold up against him. It’s strong, but that’s a whole different level of fucking screwed that I don’t really want to go up against.”
Gethin’s sardonic tone brought me out of the spiral of my thoughts, and I flashed him a look.
“But you are.”
Maybe it was the defiance on my tongue that caught him off guard. “I’mwhat?”
“You’re going up against it. We’re here, aren’t we?” His eyes narrowed, and he leaned forward, looking me up and down.
