Page 122 of By the Horns
Raptor heads deeper into the alleyway, following it until we’re far from the King’s Onion and very far from our assigned nest at Master Jay’s dormitory. He scans the stonework, and then releases my hand. A moment later, he pulls a heavy brick free from the wall and sets it on the ground. Then he gestures that I should look for myself.
I peek inside. Even though it’s dark, I can see what looks like two small bottles, and a tiny scroll of a note. With a glance at Raptor, I reach for the note first. “Two potions?”
“Yours and mine, aye. I thought Naiah would pull through.” He grins down at me, proud. “Now you have options.”
Options. It’s not what I’d expected. I pull the tiny scroll open and squint at it, but it’s too dark and Naiah’s handwriting is too tiny. “I can’t read it.”
“Allow me.” He takes the note and studies it for a moment, then begins to read. “ ‘As requested, the potion to remove a mancer’s power is enclosed within. Do keep in mind that this potion is magical, and will remove your magic from you, like cauterizing a wound. It won’t be painful, but the effects are permanent. I cannot reverse it. My payment is due within a sevenday.’ Signed, Naiah.”
He pulls the bottles free from the hidey-hole and offers me a round one with a pale liquid inside. “Mine is a dark potion. This one is yours.”
“I see she’s labeled it very helpfully.” There’s a tiny frowny face on mine. Charming. I turn it over in my hand, thinking. “It’s permanent?”
“Aye. I don’t know how it works or how Naiah manages to make her potions, but she’s never wrong. If she says it’s permanent, I believe her.” He studies me. “You know I’ll support you whatever you choose.”
“And if I take this now and we forget all about me being a mancer? And we lose all the riches I’ve been shown below because my memory is terrible?”
Raptor shrugs and rolls up the note, tossing it back into the hidden nook. “If it makes you happy, I’m all for it. I don’t mind doing things the hard way, as long as we do them together.”
I consider it.
I consider it very hard. Life would certainly be easier if the dead weren’t mumbling in my ears every time I went into the Everbelow. I wouldn’t be distracted by nearby murders—though hopefully that fades with time. I would be just like everyone else, succeeding in the guild on my own merits, or failing because of the same thing. I would be normal. Safe.
Or…I could keep my powers. Ensure that our Five—when we pass the tests—will be successful. Help the guild with retrievals when someone is stranded or lost deep in the tunnels.
I can be a boon to the guild.
Or I can blend in with the crowd.
I hold the potion out to him. “Think Naiah gives refunds?”
Raptor snorts. “She absolutely, positively does not. Come on. Kipp and Arrod are probably wondering where we’ve wandered off to. I’d hate for them to come looking for us just when I’ve got my muzzle up your skirts.”
“Pfft. I’m not wearing skirts.”
“Good, because I was lying. Iwouldn’thate for them to find me between your thighs.” He gives me a lascivious stare. “I think they should.”
Gods. “Put that rock back in its place and let’s get home. I want to touch you all over. I want to bite you in all the places the ratlings didn’t.”
The smile he gives me is pure wickedness.
After replacing the stone in the wall, we race back to the dorm, breathless with excitement. I’m getting more and more aroused with every moment that passes, and I can’t wait to touch him. Can’t wait to truly let go and just enjoy everything. I want his knot. I want his tongue. I want his gentle hands, his large callused fingers, his sweetly filthy words as he touches me. He pushes the door to the nest open, turning to look at me. “I want you naked. Right now.”
A shiver of delight moves up my spine. “Same goes for you.”
The moment we step inside, though, we run into Kipp and Arrod. They’re sitting in the main study by the fire, and both look up the moment we come in. Arrod’s expression is delighted and full of relief as he surges forward. “There you are! We’ve been worried sick! You’ve both been gone for days!”
Raptor clears his throat and shifts on his feet. “We were at the hospital first, and then we had to see Head Guild Master Rooster. Everything’s fine.”
“I’m glad to hear that,” Arrod says, and he truly does look thrilled. He gestures that we should sit by the fire with him and Kipp. “Come and tell us everything!”
Oh, mucking hells.
Next to me, Raptor hesitates. He knows just as well as I do that if we sit with Arrod and Kipp to fill them in, we’re going to be here all night. There’s so much to cover. “Ah…it’s best if Master Jay is here before we retell everything.”
I nod, hoping I don’t seem too anxious to get away. “Yes. Exactly.”
Arrod’s expression falls a bit. “Oh. He’s not here.”
