I had no objections. And neither did Isaac, apparently, as he went into the kitchen and began messing with the coffeemaker.
It reminded me of the last guy who‘d made me coffee. In fact, the pug-in-a-cowboy-hat mug that Octavian had served me was still sitting on the coffee table, its contents even chunkier than they’d been when I’d tasted them. They’d somehow escaped the Tendrils’ attack.
So had most of my apartment, I realized, taking a good look around for the first time since my return. There were a few rips in the furniture, a few dings in the coffee table that might have come from a Tendril or a sword, but otherwise, there was little evidence of what had taken place here only a few days ago.
Esmer had gone back to studying everything around her. I still couldn’t put my finger on what I’d seen in her eyes at the door—ajitteriness, maybe, like this situation had shaken her beneath her tough exterior—but I wasn’t going to press it. Maybe even the self-assured, world-wise Esmer was simply nervous about finally meeting in person.
“You can sit, too,” I told her.
She did, taking the same chair Alastor had used a few days ago. I wondered if any wisps of his masculine, intoxicating scent remained—and if she could smell them.
“So, uh…this is a little weird, right?” I said, feeling my usual urge to fill the awkward silence with talking. “I mean, on the one hand, it’s great to see you guys. I mean really, really great. And sort of a relief, honestly. I felt pretty sure I knew you guys well, but there was always that tiny little fear in the back of my mind, like—maybe this is some creepy middle-aged guy catfishing me.You know.”
She laughed, lounging back in the chair with a casualness that wassoEsmer I felt another wave of relief.
“What’s that look for?” she asked.
“Just…” I shrugged and smiled. “You’re just like I thought you’d be. I mean…maybe I was expecting a few more piercings. And darker eye makeup. But otherwise…”
“You’re like I thought you’d be, too,” she said. “Maybe a little less mousy than I expected.”
“Hey now.”
compliment, Goldie. I can see why you’ve got some hot magical billionaire guy drooling over you.” Despite the smile on her lips, something about her expression had gone strange and hollow again, and I was just about to probe things a little when Isaac wandered in with the coffee.
”Isn’t Isaac exactly how you imagined, too?” Esmer said, that hollowness in her eyes disappearing as quickly as it had appeared. “I knew him the moment I saw him.” Her grin widened as her eyes slid back to me. “He didn’t believe I was me, though. Even though he cheated and had his little hacker friends find a picture of me before we met up.”
“I thought it would help me spot you,” he said, his pale cheeks reddening slightly. “How was I supposed to know you’d cut your hair?”
“Girls change their hairstyles,” she countered. “And most people still recognize them afterwards.”
“It was a lot longer before,” he said. He used his hands to indicate a length halfway down his torso, and looked in my direction like I could offer him backup. “And it waswavy.”
“You’re on your own for this one,” I told him.
Esmer gave Isaac a teasing look. “You know I’m going to rub this in your face until the end of time, right?”
Isaac shook his head and handed me the mug before sitting down on the other end of the couch.
I took a long sip of the coffee, enjoying the immediate boost to my system, then set the mug on the table, right next to the pug-in-a-cowboy-hat one. As much as I wanted to sit here and enjoy this moment, I didn’t have the time for a social visit.
“Look, I know you guys came a long way,” I began, “But things are a little complicated right now and I really—”
“Nope, you’re not doing this,” Esmer said, leaning forward once more. “I knew you were going to try and brush us off, and Isaac and I have already decided we’re not going to stand for it.”
I glanced toward Isaac, who was nodding in agreement. “We can help you, Marigold.”
“I know youwantto help,” I said, “But you have no idea—”
“I have more of an idea than you think.” Esmer’s voice was both hard and quiet, and the look in her eyes when her gaze met mine unsettled me in a way I wasn’t anticipating.
“I do, too,” Isaac said from beside me. “I’ve been doing research on some of the things you told us before you disappeared. You won’t believe what I dug up.”
I still couldn’t take my eyes from Esmer. Her tough, casual façade had slipped away again, and she stared back at me with a wild, almost fearful intensity. Her hands were curled into tight fists on her knees, like she was trying to hold herself together.
Something was going on here. Something I didn’t fully understand.
“You should listen to him,” she told me, and though her tone was surprisingly normal, I couldn’t ignore that haunted look in her eyes. “To both of us. You’re not in this alone anymore. And neither of us is going anywhere until you tell us exactly what happened.”
