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“What is it?”
I glanced around the kitchen and behind me, but it seemed to be just the three of us. “Where’s Mav?”
“Still in stasis, you feral squirrel.” Stone chortled.
I glared at him for the squirrel comment. What the fuck was that supposed to mean? But I didn’t have time to get sidetracked with arguing with him. “Good. I tattooed Ivan with enchanted ink. It helped to store the power his wraithshade generated so that he didn’t have to sleep for two or three days every week. Would that work on you guys?”
Stone’s face barely registered an acknowledgment that I’d spoken. Lux’s eyebrows lifted as he seemed to be pondering the idea for a minute. I glanced between them, waiting for a yes, a no, a maybe, anything. Then Lux nodded slowly, saying, “It has potential. If it worked on him, it might work on us.”
“Will it work on me?”
He pressed his lips together into a contemplative frown. “I’m not sure. How stable is the enchantment?”
“It’s solid. No problems Ivan ever complained about.”
He nodded. “Do me or Stone first. Something small, like a patch test, and we’ll see how it holds up for a few days before we try it on you or Mav.”
I held up a finger about to argue a point, but Stone coughed, interrupting before I could get a word in. “Suck my dick, man. You test it.” He punctuated his statement with a sip of his coffee.
Lux smirked. “Fine. I’ll be the guinea pig.”
I smiled as sweetly as I could. “Great. By the way, Maverick can fuck off. He can stay in stasis forever, for all I care.”
Stone laughed hard, spitting coffee back into his mug and falling into a coughing fit. Lux grinned with a tinge of pity in his eyes. “I understand, Tess, but we do need him, unfortunately.”
I rolled my eyes, groaning. “Fine.”
We couldn’t be sure it would work on me, since I wasn’t actually a Hellborne. Apparently, seraphim didn’t usually claim humans, so we didn’t know how my power would ebb and flow, whether it was derived from Maverick’s or just based off of his power source. If it was the former, it’d be like gaining sustenance from a feeding tube attached to his stomach. If it was the latter, it was more like eating out of his refrigerator.
Chapter Fifty-Seven: Homecoming
Tess
Lux teleported me home,straight into my bedroom, to avoid surprising Addie and giving her a heart attack. The comforting scents of my clean laundry air freshener and the familiar belongings greeted me, a stark contrast to the guest room I had been staying in, grateful as I was for it. Though I had kept texting her updates, I hadn’t seen Addie in a long time. All I wanted was to hang out, watchThe Witcherand drink wine with her. A return to some normalcy.
Lux stood silently by the door, his presence as commanding as ever. The room seemed to shrink around his broad shoulders and intense gaze. He agreed to give me a few days to get the ink from the shop and enchant it. Then he and Stone would meet me at the shop, and wewould test the tattoo idea on him first. His eyes, glowing faintly with an otherworldly light, searched my face. For what, I didn’t know.
“Are you sure you’re alright?” His voice, a low rumble, resonated through the room.
“I’m fine,” I assured him, though the lingering tension in my muscles told a different story. “I’ll do a quick ward of the apartment right away.”
As agreed, Lux didn’t stay long. He lingered just enough to ensure I was telling the truth. Once satisfied, he disappeared, leaving the room significantly emptier. The moment he was gone, I rushed out the door to find Addie, my heart pounding with anticipation.
As I turned the corner, the cozy aura of the living room and the soft glow of the TV enveloped me with warmth. The aroma of buttered popcorn wafted through the air, blending with Addie’s vanilla candles. There she was, wrapped in a fluffy blanket, her eyes glued to Netflix, a half-empty mug of tea on the coffee table in front of her.
“Hey, Addie!” I called out, my voice breaking the serene quiet of the room.
She screamed and jumped in fright. On her feet in seconds, she turned, her eyes wide in surprise before a grin spread across her face.
“It’s only me. Sorry. Didn’t mean to shock you.”
“Tess! You’re back! Where have you been?” She sprang at me and wrapped her arms around me, squeezing me tight and bawling on my shoulder.
“I’m so sorry you were worried about me, Ad,” I whispered.
“So worried. I called a billion times. It’s been a week! Are you okay?”
“I’m alright.”
