Page 39 of Vicious Little Vows
Thinking that it wasn’t the worst idea, I sat and removed my boots, flexing my toes within my sweaty socks. Ringo hopped down into my lap for a closer look at the gray grass, but he didn’t touch it. We had established by this point that the grayness wouldn’t kill us, but I certainly didn’t blame him for not touching it when he didn’t have to.
Crispin sat beside us, his eyes on the sunset. The orange and pink hues didn’t reflect off the ground, leaving the gray pure and untouched. The contrast was jarring.
“About what happened back at the Citadel,” Crispin muttered, leaning in toward my shoulder. Gabriel and Sebastian were both turned toward the estate and didn’t react, but I knew they’d hear every word that was said. Talk aboutawkward.
I met Crispin’s cornflower blue eyes and waited for him to continue.
“I believe the magic drew us together to recharge us. It knew what it needed.”
I frowned, not expecting yet another magical theory to explain why he’d kissed me. Why he’dmorethan kissed me. My body hadn’t yet let go of the feeling of him pressed hard against me.
“We need not make a fuss over it,” he pressed.
Still frowning, I shook my head and looked off toward the estate. “Whatever you say.”
“Eva—”
But Mistral was jogging back toward us. He reached the stone wall and climbed over, landing lightly on his feet like a cat. “There is no one here, but there are ample supplies. We can eat, rest, and decide what to do.” Patting Gabriel’s shoulder as he walked past, he moved toward me, offering his hand.
I reluctantly pulled on my boots, boosted Ringo back to my shoulder, then let Mistral help me stand. My legs and feet were already stiff from the short rest. “There’s really no one around?”
A flicker of emotion crossed his face, then was gone. “No one, but perhaps they shall return by nightfall.”
I took my hand from his to dust off my dress. “And don’t you think they’ll be pissed to find a group of strangers eating their food and getting grime on their furniture?”
He smiled softly, and I realized he really didn’t think anyone was returning. He must have found supplies, but no signs of recent life.
“Okay.” I forced a smile. “Let’s go.”
Gabriel boosted me over the wall while the rest of the guys climbed, even Sebastian. I wondered if his impressive shadow magic didn’t work in this realm. I should have asked Crispin about it when I’d had the chance.
Lucas was grumbling that we should just go back to the portal, but sensing Mistral’s mood, I quietly told him to shut up. To my great surprise, he did, and we all walked through the eerily silent estate. I hoped the ghostly quiet wasn’t a portent of things to come. I hoped Mistral’s home realm wasn’t all just as dead as the gray grass and trees behind us.
I knelt before a cabinet,shuffling through sealed jars until I found something appetizing. Night had fallen, and onlya few candles lit the room. I was glad we’d found them first, otherwise I wouldn’t be able to see a damn thing. Finding something recognizable—hopefully—I held the jar up to the candlelight. Preserved cherries were packed tight, a little less red than fresh, but anything was appetizing after not eating all day. I was dizzy and my stomach was burning. Not to mention the dull headache from only having a sip of my morning coffee before all hell broke loose.
I straightened with the jar, then walked to where Crispin was looking through another cupboard. The rest of the guys were roaming the estate, searching for signs of what might have happened to its inhabitants.
I held out the jar. “This looks safe enough.”
His mouth forming a smalloh, Crispin straightened and took the jar. He searched a few drawers until he found a knife, then used it to remove the wax seal before gesturing toward the nearest door with the jar. “Shall we eat outside? It’s creepy in here.”
“That’s an understatement.”
Ringo’s claws clicked across the floor as he darted out from another cupboard to run ahead of us. We’d only been searching for maybe twenty minutes—my watch was dead, but probably wouldn’t work here anyway—but had found little in the way of clues. All the cupboards were stocked and the linens were fresh. No signs of dust. No signs of anything.
At the same time, the fireplaces were swept clean, so no one had made a fire lately even though the night air created quite the draft. There was no dust, but there was also no dirt, like whoever had last visited had taken the time to clean up any debris brought in on their shoes before leaving.
That was, if they wore shoes. There was no clothing anywhere. No shoes or coats by the doors. It was like the entire estate had been prepared for guests, but they never arrived.Even the stables were perfectly clean, with fresh straw waiting for the non-existent horses.
Out on the landing under glittering stars, Crispin, Ringo, and I sat with our jar of cherries. I could sense the other guys out in the darkness. They wouldn’t go far, and I knew Crispin and I were only allowed to roam on our own because they could sense us too.
Crispin handed me the open jar. There was a fork stuck into one of the cherries on top. I hadn’t seen him grab it. I took it out and ate a cherry. It was watery and I probably wouldn’t have eaten more had a cheeseburger been an option, but since it wasn’t, I stabbed two more and forced them down before handing back the jar.
Crispin speared a cherry and offered it to Ringo. “There’s an air of magic to the house, but my senses feel dulled here. It’s nothing I can access.”
“Just like in the pocket realm,” I thought out loud, extending my hand for the fork as Crispin offered it to me.
“Yes,” Crispin lowered his voice, his eyes shining in the darkness. “Which makes me wonder if this is truly Mistral’s home realm.”
