Page 22 of Lower World
They nodded to each other, and Alice joined us at the table. It was like a twilight zone, the two of them getting along without hissing, snarling, and growling. My eyes narrowed on them, but they both had innocent looks plastered all over their faces. Dominic overdid it a smidge, giving away their debauchery. They were up to something, and I had every intention of figuring out what that was. Until I did, I’d be on high alert.
“Let’s hear about all these smart things you want to talk about.” Jabbing her elbows on the table, Alice cupped her jaw with both hands. “We are done talking stupidities.”
I flinched.
Not that it wasn’t deserved, but couldn’t they cut me some slack. All of it was new to me. Doing everything as a group, speaking openly of my next move, worrying about someone else instead of just myself.Kissing,an uninvited voice chirped in my head. My jaw clenched, and a muscle started twitching under my left eye.
“She’s losing her shit,” Alice whispered loudly tilting her head toward Dominic, who was nodding thoughtfully.
“I can hear you,” I deadpanned.
“I know,” she piped in cheerfully.
“Okay, what in all the hells is going on here?” At my words, Alice jumped from her chair, slapping both of her hands on the table with a loud smack.
“I want to tell her. Can I, cat?” She was shivering from excitement that freaked the hell out of me. “Pleeeaaseeee?”
“What are you, a child?” Dominic shook his head, but his mouth was curled at the corners. It had to be a dream. I was probably riding a high from the shifter’s powerful blood. There was no other explanation. “Have at it, human. You will see that I was right.” Folding his arms across his chest, he leaned back on the chair and made it groan.
“First, listen to everything without interrupting.” Pushing the glasses up her nose, Alice turned to face me. She waited until I nodded warily before speaking. “So, since we know that you can make that jerk in the basement tell the truth when you use your juju on him, I had a great idea.”
I was already hating whatever it was.
“You are going to wake him up again while saber tooth over here holds him as tight as a teenager grabbing his willy when jerking off for the first time,” she continued. Dominic barked a laugh, but I was shaking my head, which made Alice talk faster. “That way he won’t be able to move because I’ll be down there too and using your blood. Since Dominic told me I could heal you by touching your blood, I’m going to try and do magic on him. Maybe we can force out whatever he can’t tell us even with you making him say things, you know? It’s a perfect plan, right?” All of it came out in a rush, making me blink fast to sort through the words.
Silence.
She wasn’t even breathing.
“Absolutely not.” My hand sliced the air, finality resonating in my tone, and her face dropped. “Are you insane?” I rounded on Dominic. “You encourage this? What are you trying to do? Get her killed?” But he didn’t even blink an eye at my outburst.
“I told you.” He aimed that at Alice, who stuck her tongue out at him like a petulant child.
“He had nothing to do with it, Brooklyn.” Moping, she plopped back on her chair. “This was my idea, and Dominic did tell me you’d be pissed. I just thought you had more faith in me, that’s all.”
It hurt.
I thought after she healed the wound, it made our friendship somehow more than what it was before that. Ridiculous to think that spoken words in any kind of exchange could tighten a connection, but there it was. And by denying her a very dangerous attempt, Alice thought that I had no faith in her or saw her as someone lesser than me. I wanted with everything in me to blame it on Dominic, but as I thought it, I knew it had nothing to do with the shifter. I just wanted to find someone else to blame instead of myself for once. With a sigh, I scrubbed a hand down my face.
“Alice.” Searching her eyes, my throat tightened from the dejected look she was giving me. “This has nothing to do with my faith in you. When I said thank you and everything else after that, I truly meant it.” Reaching out, I took her hand. She clenched her fingers for a moment before relaxing and wrapping them around mine. “What you are suggesting is not only dangerous if Johnathan is not restrained or somehow manages to make a grab at you.”
Alice frowned, but I could see that she was paying attention and not stubbornly sucking for no reason. My eyes flicked to Dominic, and he gave his consent for me to speak freely about what we discussed. Tightening my hand around hers, I took a deep breath.
“Dominic and I discussed this after you left the room to check on the wolf.” I didn’t care that the said wolf had his ears perked up and was listening to everything. If he dared repeat anything, I would remove the skeleton from his hide while he was still alive. “We don’t think you are a witch, but we are certain of one thing. You are not fully human.”
I expected her to either squeal in excitement or shriek while freaking out. She did none of it, just sat there scanning my face as if searching for deception. I waited for long moments before nudging her hand.
“Nothing to say?”
“I have a feeling that’s not the reason why you don’t want me to help with the dumbass from the basement.”
“As a matter of fact, it has everything to do with it.” I didn’t know how to say it differently and not scare her, so I told her the simple truth. “We don’t know what you could be if not a witch, but I can tell you one thing for sure. Although we’ve never come across someone like you, you are really powerful.” Alice glanced from my face to Dominic, who nodded at her before turning her gaze back to me. “If we agree for you to do what you say and Johnathan somehow escapes his binds, the Syndicate will uproot this entire continent to capture you alive. If you think them hunting us is bad now, you haven’t seen what the Council can do.”
Alice shivered, the color draining from her face. The wolf surprised me by curling his upper lip and snarling while he pressed his side to her leg. Head tilted, I watched the mongrel. Either he truly bonded to Alice by some miracle, or he was a very good actor. I was waiting on the latter while opting on the former. He had protected her from the moment I saw him in her kennel. He almost died when we were attacked to assure that she was safe.
“That scum is not leaving this place alive,” Dominic spat the words in disgust.
“I didn’t say he was or that I want him to.” I rolled my shoulders to relieve the tension there. I hated the fact that Dominic still jabbed here and there like he didn’t trust me. It was exhausting. “All I’m saying is, what if? Are you willing to test that? Because I’m not. I know firsthand what happens to those deemed useful to the Council. I know my way around the cages like the back of my hand. Alice would not survive a day in the underground.”
