I open my mouth to do exactly that, but nothing comes out. Luckily for me, Elliot always has something to say.
“What do you mean?” he asks.
Dame casts a wary glance between us, his brows furrowed.
“What was Iris doing upstairs?” he says, words clipped.
Elliot draws on his usual sarcasm, the easy smirk sliding into place as he drapes an arm around me. I try not to squirm under Dame’s watchful gaze, but I can’t quite lean into the embrace. Not entirely.
“What do you think she was doing upstairs?” Elliot answers.
Dame’s teeth grind as he glances around at the people lingering by the stairs. Most have returned to their chatter, but he still lowers his voice.
“Elliot, you know the rules?—”
“Yeah, Dame.” Elliot cuts him off, meeting his gaze head-on. “I know the rules. Do you?”
Dame grows silent, but Elliot doesn’t wait for a response.
He pushes past him, yanking me along.
“What the fuck was that?” I ask, just barely managing to keep my feet under me.
Elliot ignores me as we move deeper into the den, where he pulls us into a dark corner and mutters a name under his breath.
“Dred,” he calls out in a heated whisper. When there is no answer, he calls again. “Dredrick.”
I’m wondering whether letting him be my rescuer was a wise decision when a dark figure emerges from the shadows.
“Mate, you need to up these wards,” the man mutters, sweeping his hand through the air. “These seals are fucking ancient.”
“Yeah, sure,” Elliot replies. “Can you do the whole house?”
Dred shrugs and stuffs his hands in his pockets.
“Depends. What are we hiding?”
Elliot tips his head in my direction.
“Her.”
Me?
Dred laughs, and I catch a glimpse of two gleaming white fangs sitting pretty in his mouth—vampire.
“You’re joking,” he says, accent thicker in the midst of his laughter.
Elliot shakes his head, gripping me a little tighter.
“I’m not,” he answers.
“Cross, look at her.” Dred gestures vaguely at my body, hand waving up and down. “That’shard to forget.”
You know, maybe I’ll kill three men tonight.
“He asked you a yes or no question,” I cut in. “We don’t need the commentary.”
Dred blinks, finally acknowledging me directly, and we survey one another.
