Page 45 of Vicious Little Vows
Crispin looked toward the doors again. “Well, if it was created to protect this place, perhaps the best way of summoning it would be to cause some damage.”
“Dude, it put you guys in individual stone boxes just because it thought you brought the gray here. Pissing it off seems like a bad idea.” I thought of how easily it had jumped me around. Whatever it was, it waspowerful,at least in this place.
“Have you any better ideas? We can’t simply wait here forever. Not with both Marcie and your mother in peril.”
He was right, but I didn’t like it. The guardian had seemed okay with me—I was pretty sure it put me with Gabriel because I had asked where the guys were—but it was also completely fine with the guys dying horrible deaths.
“We can’t just wait around here forever.” I looked back at Lucas as he spoke. He stood with his arms crossed, looking off in the direction of the portal.
“Eva should leave the estate before we try,” Gabriel said lowly.
“Yeah right!” I sprung to my feet. I still didn’t have my boots on. We had fetched them from inside along with more food and water, but my blisters protested anything but soft grass. “I’mthe only one this thing has been friendly to. If anything, you all should leave the estate, while I do some damage to summon it.”
“Eva is probably right,” Mistral said thoughtfully.
Gabriel turned on him, betrayal clear on his face.
Mistral didn’t flinch. “She reasoned with it before, and I fear our presence will make that impossible. It is more likely to fight us, and Eva risks being caught in the crossfire. She is safer without us.”
“Or we just leave that cursed devil behind,” Gabriel growled. “He is not worth the risk.”
Mistral remained calm, which was impressive as I could feel Gabriel’s anger like tiny hot pokers on my skin. “And without him, we will not have his sister to lead us to our enemy’s lair, and Eva will not have the true power available to her.”
“He’s right,” Crispin said, not meeting anyone’s eyes. “While I am already regretting voicing my idea, if we are to truly weigh Eva’s odds of survival, we need Sebastian, and she must speak with the guardian alone.”
I was honestly shocked they were both being so reasonable, but they were right. Not that I wanted to be left alone with the guardian, but I certainly didn’t want to fight it. And I really didn’t think it would hurt me, while it clearly had no problem with hurting the guys.
Although, getting stuck in a box by myself, without one of the guys to lend me power to escape, had my knees threatening to buckle.
Oblivious to my thoughts, Mistral gripped Gabriel’s shoulder. “We must trust her.” He looked at me. “That is, if she agrees with this choice.”
I made my voice steady, because I knew if I wavered, Gabriel wouldn’t go. “I agree. We need to find Sebastian, and I don’t think the guardian will hurt me.”
“This is absurd,” Gabriel huffed.
It was absurd, it really was, but if Mistral and Crispin could trust in me, then I could trust in myself. I moved closer to Gabriel, taking his hand. “We’ll just give it a few minutes.”
His hand flexed around mine. I knew he hated it a lot, but hey, I could save him too.
Mistral took my other hand as he moved in front of me, his face grim.
I frowned. “You seemed okay with this just two seconds ago. What gives?”
“Just because I can see that having Sebastian with you is your best chance of survival, doesn’t mean I like leaving you with some creature we know little about.” He lifted his free hand to my jaw, then kissed me lightly.
Though the touch was soft, it was laced with power. I gasped, inhaling the scent of ozone and vanilla. The scent of Mistral.
“If we must leave you,” he spoke against my lips, “the least we can do is make sure you have enough magic to face what is to come.”
I had been hoping I wouldn’t need any magic—that the guardian would simply tell me where Sebastian was—but the brush of powerdidmake me feel a little more steady.
Mistral moved enough for Gabriel to kiss me next, and it was no bare brush of lips. He kissed me like he was starving, and I was his favorite dessert. His raw, earthy power soaked into me, enough that my skin held a faint sunlit glow.
Gabriel pulled away reluctantly, his hand lingering on the side of my neck, his fingers stroking down a lock of my hair as he finally released me.
Mistral chuckled, then stepped aside, gesturing for Crispin to step forward.
Crispin looked unsure. He was always so unsure. How had I never noticed it before? Maybe because the mask he usually wore was finally starting to slip.
