Page 53

Elvira’s arms dropped to her side, her facial features once more human but retaining their pissed expression. Silence filled the room, all of us waiting to see what Helios would do. What I hadn’t expected was for him to give an irritated huff while stuffing his hands into his camo fatigues. A couple of flared tattoos gave away what I thought was most likely annoyance. “Your reactions are unwarranted.” Helios’s tone was flat. Despite the lack of inflection, there was a threat lying there, tingling down my spine. Martin’s spark of magic let me know it felt similarly.

“What is this creature who would dare touch wyvern eggs?” Lazarus hissed, smoke once more slipping from his nose and mouth. Lips curled back, Lazarus’s mouth was now filled with an impressive array of deadly teeth.

A single brow shot upward, Helios’s flat expression only slightly more intrigued. “Wyvern eggs. Is that what they are?” Head cocked to the side, Helios asked, “Would they make acceptable pets?”

“Shit,” Martin whispered, his breath slipping across my ear and making me shiver.

“Pets?” More smoke billowed from Lazarus’s mouth and nose. His eyes shimmered, changing from cool sapphire to fire fueled rubies.

Keir stood, a blanket full of wyvern eggs cradled within his arms. I’ll give Keir this, he was braver than me. Closing the distance between himself and Lazarus cemented the point. “The eggs are well,” Keir said, keeping his voice soft. “And this is Helios. He is a… Well, he’s a djinn.”

Lazarus’s eyes widened, but the revelation did little to cool his rage. “Djinn? They no longer exist.”

Martin whispered, “Unfortunately, that’s not exactly true.”

If Helios heard, he didn’t bother sparing Martin a glance of disapproval or irritation.

I’d expected Keir or Lazarus to educate Helios’s obvious misguided notions regarding wyvern. I had not expected Jima to be their advocate. Regardless, that’s exactly who took Helios down a peg or three.

“They are not pets,” Jima spat. I had no idea when he’d finally transformed from his ferret form to humanoid. All I knew was that when he spoke, Jima was standing between the loveseat and the coffee table the eggs had been calling their temporary home. Hands drawn into tight fists, Jima’s petite body vibrated with righteous rage. Chin thrust out, Jima shook one of his fisted hands in Helios’s direction. “They are sentient creatures, just as I am. Once hatched, you should be so fortunate to have them as an ally or friend.”

Helios’s reaction was fascinating. His deep blue eyes intensely focused on Jima. Far from upset by his dressing down, Helios appeared fascinated. “Fuzzy Britches is considered a pet, and I believe Aurelia would consider her both friend and ally. I do not see the difference.”

Jima’s mouth opened, snapping shut and his cheeks flushed. “I am not educated enough regarding scuttlebutts to understand their thoughts regarding their designation. However, I’ve been told that scuttlebutts are discerning creatures and if they do not wish to be with another, they do not hesitate to make those feelings known. If Fuzzy Britches and her offspring wish to stay with Aurelia, then it is because she has earned the right. It is not a given.”

Helios’s head cocked ever so slightly to the side, as if truly contemplating Jima’s words. “The definition of pet is still murky. I do not fully understand. My lack of knowledge is unacceptable.” Pointing a finger Jima’s direction, Helios declared, “You will teach me the difference.”

This time, when Jima’s mouth dropped open, it stayed there, gaping like a fish. Ever the peacekeeper, Keir cleared his throat and said, “Perhaps this can be discussed at a later time.”

Helios crossed his arms, leaning back on his heels and for all the world, appeared to be pouting. “Waiting is not acceptable. Like Aurelia, I find myself desiring a pet.” Helios unwrapped his arms and moved a hand in the eggs’ direction. “I do not wish to keep making such…mistakes.” That final word seemed to cause Helios physical pain. “I will not squander my opportunity of choice.”

I don’t think any of us knew how to respond to those pain-laced words. Among a pantheon of various species, djinn were unique. Their long lives and endless access to power should be enviable traits, and yet none would feel that way, not even the lowliest lifeform would wish to be a djinn.

Choice.

When I was a child, I’d had fewer choices. All young were like that. Their limited options were done so out of love, affection, and a desire to keep them safe. As adults, those choices became limitless and sometimes overwhelming. There were very few times when those choices were too few to nonexistent. Not having the ability to choose one’s own actions was a concept that was difficult for me to wrap my brain around.

The silence permeating the room was broken when Elvira took a menacing step toward Helios. Her voice was even more malicious when she said, “If you ever threaten my medium again, I will end you.”

Helios’s lips tilted into a mockery of a smirk. “I would enjoy seeing you try.”

Elvira’s expression briefly morphed into something truly horrific before her form thinned until it was practically see-through, and then, she was simply gone.

A collective sigh went through the room. I wouldn’t say all the tension was magically gone, but at least now it felt like I could breathe. When I dared take my eyes off Helios, it was to see something equally peculiar. Lazarus stood next to Keir, almost hovering over him, his attention oddly split between the eggs and Keir. It was a strangely domestic picture.

“Um…” I elbowed Martin in the ribs. “You see what I see?”

Martin leaned in, his breath ghosting over my ear and making me shiver. “I’m not certain what I’m looking at.”

“Exactly,” I agreed. And not only was it Lazarus and Keir that seemed peculiar, it was Jima and Helios also. Well, maybe Jima didn’t appear so odd. The poor ferret shifter stood there, all his bravado used up, shoulders sagging and eyes pointed at the floor. Honestly, I was surprised Jima hadn’t reverted back to his ferret form.

When I glanced back at Helios, I was glad Jima’s gaze was on the floor. The overtly possessive intensity in Helios’s gaze didn’t do my sense of calm an ounce of good. I had no idea what was going through the djinn’s mind and wasn’t sure that was such a bad thing either.

My musings were gratefully interrupted when Henry scampered up the coffee table leg, planting himself in what remained of the wyvern eggs’ earlier nest, the electric heating pad barely covered by a thin towel. Hands fisted on his small hips, Henry grinned and asked, “What did I miss?”

Twenty-Two

Martin