“I’m aware.” Ant pulled his hand back from Viktor’s and flexed his fingers, testing his dexterity. The scene reading had left him drained, his magic reserves were depleted, his head felt stuffed with cotton, and his limbs trembled with fatigue. But he made a point of going over the event details he learned so he could report on them later.
Ronald Finch discovered Claudius’s safe at 14:37 based on the time stamp visible on the computer screen. Claudius entered Ronald’s room at 01:23. Edmund and one other (unnamed as yet) vampire were present as accomplices. The pen was a Montblanc, not the generic ballpoint found at the scene. Shell corporation documents included First Raven Holdings, Raven Trust LLC, and Blackfeather Enterprises.
The facts assembled themselves into neat rows, ready for his official report to the Justiciary.
“You’re doing it again,” Viktor said quietly.
Ant blinked. “Doing what?”
“That thing where you retreat into your head and start organizing everything like you’re filing documents.” Viktor reached out and gently cupped Ant’s jaw, turning his face so their eyes met. “You just witnessed a man being murdered,precious. Multiple times, technically. And then Claudius trapped you in a magical torture loop designed to break your mind.”
“The loop was unpleasant,” Ant conceded. “But it failed. I have all the evidence I need to testify.”
“Unpleasant.” Viktor’s laugh was rough and humorless. “You were bleeding from your nose, and your eyes weren’t focusing. I thought…” He cut himself off, his jaw clenching.
Through their bond, Ant felt the sharp edge of Viktor’s fear, the visceral terror that had gripped his mate when he’d seen Ant convulsing in the vision. He’d always been able to read Viktor’s emotions - it was one of the things that kept their relationship strong, because they didn’t need words to explain how they truly felt. But somehow it was as if the act of Viktor diving into the magical trap to anchor him had strengthened their connection even more.
“No matter what happened, you saved me,” Ant said simply. “You always do.”
Viktor’s expression softened. “Damn right I do. Don’t mind me, I’ll be fine.”
Ant leaned into Viktor’s body, letting himself rest there for a moment despite the guards lurking somewhere beyond their barricaded door and Claudius plotting their deaths.
I’m not afraid,Ant realized with some surprise. Theoretically, he knew he should be terrified – at least to some degree. They were trapped in a hostile environment, severely outnumbered, with no communications or backup. Claudius had activated the lockdown wards, just as Viktor had feared he would, and they were effectively cut off from everything and everyone except each other. The fountain that served as the keystone to those wards was protected by centuries of blood magic, and Anthimself was magically and physically exhausted, barely capable of standing, let alone blowing anything up.
By any logical assessment, their situation was catastrophic. But when Ant looked at Viktor - at the determination in his eyes, and the set of his jaw, and the way he was positioned between Ant and the door even when sitting on the bed - he felt no fear at all. Only a profound, bone-deep certainty that they would survive.
“What?” Viktor asked, clearly catching the shift in Ant’s emotional state through their bond.
“I trust you,” Ant said. The words came out more vulnerable than he’d intended, but he didn’t take them back. “Completely and without reservation. And I’m not afraid because you’re here with me.”
Viktor went very still, then he made a low sound in his throat and leaned forward, pressing his forehead against Ant’s.
“You’re going to wreck me, you know that?” Viktor’s voice was rough. “Saying shit like that when we’re trapped in my old coven leader’s murder mansion.”
“It’s how I feel, and it needed to be said.” Ant closed his eyes, breathing in Viktor’s scent. “You’ve protected me from the moment we met, and you just keep doing it. I trust you with my life because I can. No matter who you were when you were here originally, you are mine now, and I know you’ll never let me down.”
“Babe…”
“Also, I love you.” Ant opened his eyes and met Viktor’s startled gaze. “I don’t say it nearly often enough, but I do. I know we’d always agreed we didn’t need any mushy sentiment between us, but I still wanted you to know. And when we’re free from this estate, and Claudius is behind bars, and I don’t feel like I’ve beenrun over by a freight truck, I’m going to demonstrate exactly how much.”
Viktor’s pupils dilated, his eyes flashing briefly red before he got himself under control. “You can’t say things like that right now. Not when I can’t…” He cut himself off with a muttered curse. “You’re exhausted. You need rest, not me pawing at you.”
“I’m stating my intentions for the future,” Ant corrected. “Which will motivate both of us to execute the plan efficiently and survive.”
“Efficiently,” Viktor repeated, shaking his head. But he was smiling now, that private smile he only ever showed Ant. “Only you would make fucking saving our lives sound like a project deadline.”
“That’s an accurate assessment.”
Viktor laughed - a real laugh this time - and then leaned in for a kiss. It was nothing like their usual intensity, because Viktor was clearly aware of Ant’s depleted state. But it still made warmth spread through Ant’s chest, chasing away some of the exhaustion.
When Viktor pulled back, his expression had shifted into something more serious.
“Alright, now we’ve done the mushy stuff, let’s make a decent plan.” Viktor glanced toward the barricaded door, then back at Ant. “You said you need twelve seconds at the fountain to destroy the keystone. I can buy you twelve seconds.”
“Against how many vampires?”
“However many Claudius throws at me.” Viktor’s voice was firm. “I’ll go into my second form. That’ll give me the edge I need.”
