Page 37 of Outlaw Witch

Nodding to myself, I stride through the doors with pep in my step. Instantly coming up short when I spot Zeph right inside the building.

Fuck, did he just witness my mini mental pep talk?

I decide to shrug it off. Who cares if he did? The guy doesn’t like me anyway and I don’t care if he thinks I’m a few sandwiches short of a picnic.

I’m kind of glad it’s him here to meet me. I don’t think I could cope with Roscoe’s enthusiasm right now.

“Just you, is it?”

I nod and hitch up my backpack and he nods curtly.

“Fine. We’ll head up now.”

He leads the way to the bank of elevators and I try not to stare at his ass as he pulls ahead of me. He’s wearing workout clothes again, although I’m pretty sure they’re different from the ones he was wearing earlier.

What follows is an intensely awkward elevator ride where Zeph stares at the side of my head the entire time, frowning like he’s trying and failing to figure me out.

Good luck with that, buddy. Better men have tried and failed.

“So have you updated Fabian on why I’m actually here, or am I going to have to pretend to be one of Roscoe’s hookups that knows blood magic?”

“We told him,” he grunts.

Aaand that’s the extent of our conversation. He doesn’t speak again and I clam up too until we both break out of the metal prison like we’re running low on air.

Zeph leads me a little further into their apartment than I ventured earlier. Skirting past the kitchen, we head into the living room, which is kitted out with a massive TV and sound system and a couple of comfy-looking couches. It’s there that we find Fabian, who immediately gets to his feet and stalks toward me.

He makes an imposing figure and I freeze, like he’s a predator and I’m his prey.

... at least until he opens his mouth.

“I’m just going to apologize right now for this morning. I didn’t know who you were and these two numbskulls hadn’t filled me in on their little scheme. We haven’t exactly had a lot of visitors recently and you kind of knocked me off kilter and I’m pretty sure I came across as rude.”

All of that rambling mess comes out of his mouth in one breath and I find myself smiling at him and shaking his outstretched hand as I reassure him it’s all good. His palm absolutely dwarfs mine, making me feel like a tiny pixie in comparison, especially with Zeph standing nearby like a moody sentry.

“I didn’t even know there was another blood magic user in this city.” He rubs the back of his neck. “I’ve tried a million different things and none of them took. I don’t know if it’s because it’s my own blood I’m dealing with—”

“Kind of like a surgeon trying to work on their own body. You can do it in a pinch, but it might end up messy,” I say, hoping to steer the conversation away from me and my magic. “Shall we take a seat and you can tell me what you’ve tried so far?”

It’s a gentle prod and one inspired by the fact he looks like he’s about to keel over. I’m pretty sure I don’t want to be the one to have to catch him, since he looks a lot heavier than me. I’d wind up crumpling like soggy cardboard.

“Shit, sorry, yes. I should have offered you a seat already. Are you hungry? Need anything to drink?”

“I’m good.” I glance at Zeph, wondering if he’s going to be here watching us the whole time and not participating in the conversation. When he takes a seat on the couch opposite, folding his arms and aggressively crossing one leg over the other, I take that as my answer.

I don’t know why, but I’d pictured Fabian as something of a smooth operator. Something about him being the leader of their little trio of mages had me imagining him as an alpha-hole, all confident and ordering me about.

Like Zeph.

I guess it’s a good thing that he’s not or I might have killed him before long. The vibes that Zeph is somehow still throwing off, despite not saying a word, have me wanting to ruffle his feathers and piss him off.

Instead, Fabian seems to be something of a hot mess, which is oddly putting me at ease. I plop down onto the sofa beside him and give a gentle smile. Bedside manner isn’t really my thing, but I can at least try to make him feel more comfortable than he seems to be right now. I can’t imagine shooting his blood pressure sky high is any good for him or his blood curse.

“Sorry.” He shakes his head and runs a hand through his already disheveled hair. “You showing up has completely thrown me off my game. Or maybe I never had any game to begin with. Or maybe it’s because I’m so damn tired but I can’t sleep and it feels like my head’s this ball of noise. I can’t get to go quiet and it’s driving me slowly insane.” He clutches his temples and I glance at Zeph with wide eyes. Zeph’s frown is firmly in place, but he doesn’t say a word.

Okay, then, I’m guessing this is a pretty regular occurrence, and I’m not actually witnessing Fabian in the middle of a breakdown.

“So—” I prompt him again, figuring it’s better to get things rolling. After all, the faster we’re done, the sooner I can get the hell away from this hornet’s nest and the mage who knows my real identity.

---