The snake inside of me doesn’t like the idea, and I let out a long, angry hiss as he stretches inside of me. My animal, like the cat’s, is very much under control. But when I rage out, he’s always the go-to. Thinking about Sassy crying and hurt has him rattling around in fury. Unfortunately, this enormous bus isnotbig enough for me to shift, so I have to calm the fucker. Times like this are when I envy dudes like Tier for their ability to shift in normal places. Khal and I don’t have options, though I suppose the fire chicken and the spicy lizard don’t, either.
That group has five fucking shifters and three of them are too big for the car they’re likely traveling in—maybe we did luck out with this monstrosity?
“Why are you suddenly smiling? I would think you’d be angry.” Dezi looks at me curiously, and I chuckle.
“Oh, I am. But my inner beast is too fucking big for this magical sin wagon. I’m calming him by imagining what happens when five shifters pile into a car with three that have animals too big for vehicles.” I wink, my grin widening as he catches on. “I thought we got the short end of the stick with Rev’s damn tour, but maybe I was wrong, eh?”
His laugh is dark and rich like the red wine he favors. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Ruby emote like this and I’m sort of proud to have achieved it. “Ah, yes. My frugal friend is enormous, and he’s probably the least thrilled with the situation. I know the doctor is snooty, but Diaval has so many quirks and rules in his head. Their voyage is probably quite funny, indeed.”
“Khal is a good peacemaker, though. He and the bear will do their best to mitigate the ill-tempered ancients.” My brows furrows and I tilt my head. “I wonder how often the Prince’s little spy will report in? I’m curious about what they find and how it relates to the bigger picture. Plus, I’m sure our girl will be anxious to make sure her sister is safe.”
The vampire looks over at the group on the couch, clearing his throat. “Oh, Your Highness?”
I snort, covering my hand with my mouth. The dude’s not a bad guy, if not a little fancy-pants, but giving him shit about his title is infinitely amusing. Dezi winks at me as he waits for acknowledgment and when it doesn’t come, he whistles loudly enough to hurtmyears. It’s a feat, given vibration is more important for my species, and I have no idea how he didn’t wince himself.
“Merciful Aed, Ruby. Why thefuckdid you do that?” The Fae grumbles as they all look over at us curiously. “You may have called every fae hound in the fucking region with that. If we have to shake off dogs because of you…”
Fi is cuddling Fidget in her sweatshirt as she yawns. “I agree. Wholly unnecessary, bat boy.”
A loud harrumph signals his dislike of that moniker, but Dezi simply smiles. “It was necessary to garner your attention—or the Fae’s, at least. I require information and he may have it.”
“Heard of Google?” Tiernan grunts as he shakes his head as if to clear the sound out of it.
“Not to defend the bloodsucker, but he can’t Google something only the Prince would know,” I say wryly. “This isn’t an ‘okay, boomer’ moment, man.”
Revelin straightens a bit, his eyes flashing with magic. “Fine. What very important question do you wish me to answer?”
“Give me strength,” Dezi mutters under his breath before cursing in what I assume is Latin. “I would like to know how often you think your minion that went along with the others will report in. It seems a prudent question no one has broached yet. For both a solid flow of information and to reassure the witchling, I’d assume the pixie will definitely relate any harrowing experiences. However, I am curious about less urgent times.”
Fiadh sits up a bit, looking at him expectantly. “Yeah, I’d like to know that, too.”
“Guys… Rowena cannot pop back and forth too often. Every time she does, she risks leading people with ill intent to one or the other group’s location. While my tour stops are well known, the path of your sister’s team is not public knowledge. We want to keep in touch, but not sacrifice security.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. Of course, that asshole is totally right, and it didn’t occur to me. Outside of our extracurricular trips, we have a full Fae royal rock star security contingent. They have a five-person team traveling across unfamiliar lands with no one but themselves to fight off attackers. We definitely wouldn’t want someone following us to send colleagues on the other side to their locations as they travel through solitary lands and roads.
“It pains me to admit, but you are actually correct, young royal. We have an advantage the others do not—though, do not discount the strength of my dragon friend or a phoenix. They are quite formidable on their own, much less in a pair.”
I smirk at him. “You’ve obviously never seen my kind fight, mosquito.”
“This isn’t about swinging our dicks around,” Tiernan cuts in. “None of us are without skills and power. But Revelin is correct to point out that we do not want to bring unwanted attention by having a portal popper going back and forth all the time. It’s not something that happens without leaving a signature.”
“So we will receive communication when needed and not a moment before. Good to know,” Ruby says thoughtfully. “We should make certain to compile all the information we need to when she shows. That way, we won’t forget anything.”
Great. So who gets to keep the rock tour diary? I call dibs on ‘not me.’
Once the effects of the silly Fae liquor have completely worn off, the guys stop watching me as if I’m going to conjure a troll to smack them around. It’s eye roll worthy because I wouldn’t knowhowto do something that complex, nor do I think I’m capable of it. But they’re all convinced that being in Faerie is going to amplify my developing powers as it has before, so I guess their watchful caution is slightly understandable.
Even if it makes me feel like a bunny rabbit being watched by predators for signs of shifting.
Surprisingly, the tour information sent by Revelin’s team while we’ve been crossing the countryside is thorough. I shouldn’t be shocked that his people run things like a well-oiled machine—Darkness Fallsis insanely popular and they sell out every venue, even on my side of the Veil. But the emails for each stop, venue, appearance, and activity are direct, clear, and constructed to make certain my wayward mate and his band mates know exactly what to do for every minute piece of this tour.
Revelin didn’t fuck around with choosing a staff that knows what they’re doing, even if his manager is a snotty bitch. Whoever had me added to the list to receive this is a goddess send—and I suspect it was Tiernan—because my anxiety is easing up quite a bit now that I’m feeling informed.
“How far are we from the first stop?” I ask as I look up from my phone. “Time moves differently here, and that’s goingto take getting used to, I think. My magic can sort of…. sense… it’s not flowing the way I expect.”
Tier puts down his tablet, studying the smart watch on his wrist. “I’d say about two hours of our time. But here… a bit longer. Did you get the email from the tour ops team?”
I nod, biting my lip as I look around. Khol is busy playing some video games with Rev on the big screen and Dezi went to freshen up, so we’re alone in the sitting area. “Thank you for having it sent to me. It’s… a lot. I appreciate being able to prepare myself mentally for all the rigamarole.”
