“You hear about attacks on the news all the time,” he said quietly, almost to himself, but there was a catch in his voice that caught my attention.
“Weres,” I said, “the attacks are nearly always caused by weres, not shifters.”
He gave me a wide-eyed look. “There’s a difference?”
“Weres are born, shifters are created, it’s a pretty huge difference. The sides don’t mix, some kind of feud.” I shrugged. Sticking my nose into the murky political dealings between the shifters and the weres was far above my pay-grade. I had no interest in having my ass handed to me because they took particular offence to my intrusion.
“I don’t know, it’s kind of hard to believe that I wouldn’t have realised my trainer wasn’t human.”
I opened my mouth to answer but the sound of footsteps on the stairs signalled the arrival of the other students. Clamping my lips shut, I plastered a smile on my face and turned to greet the others, but instead of the students it was Grey’s intense gaze that found mine.
His eyes softened and he took a step into the space.
“Jenna, I—” Eli shuffled, cutting Grey off mid-sentence. His eyes darkened as they fastened onto the other man. I’d heard the phrase if looks could kill before but I’d never seen it used with such alacrity before.
“I didn’t realise you’d have company.” Grey’s voice was stiff, all the tenderness I’d seen just moments before was gone as though it had never been. But I’d seen it and my heart thudded painfully against my chest.
“This is my job,” I said, equally curt. He wasn’t going to make me feel guilty, he was the one acting like a bloody moody teenager with all the storming off he’d been doing lately.
“I thought working with Division 6 was your job?”
Sighing, I brushed my arm over my face, pushing the damp strands of hair that had escaped my french plait.
“Do you need something?”
His attention flicked from my face to Eli’s before returning to me once more.
“Sophia, wants us all at the office pronto,” he said flatly. “She’s got an update…”
“Have they found—”
Grey cleared his throat and raised an eyebrow in Eli’s direction.
“Now is not the time to discuss sensitive information.”
He was right, of course, but that didn’t mean that the sting in his tone of voice didn’t hurt. I felt like a naughty schoolgirl who’d just been caught trying to cheat on a test.
“I’ll go,” Eli said softly.
“That would be best.” Grey’s words were like ice and the temperature in the room plummeted despite the radiators lining the wall that were currently blasting out heat.
“I’ll see you soon, Eli,” I said.
His expression instantly brightened and he shot me a thousand watt smile. “I look forward to it.” There was a note of heat in his voice, as though my words had said more than I’d intended. He paused next to me and pressed the staff into my hands, his fingers lingering a little longer than was strictly necessary on mine.
It shouldn’t have been possible for Grey to look any angrier but he managed it anyway, his expression thunderous as Eli strode out past him, a smug smile twisting his lips into a grin. I waited for the sound of Eli’s footsteps to fade before I gave Grey my full attention.
“You should go,” I said. “I’ll have to get Megan to cancel the class and getting her on the phone this time of the morning can be a little difficult.”
“I can wait.”
There was no warmth in his words and I curled my fingers into the palm of my hands, digging my nails into the soft flesh in an attempt to keep my temper under wraps. Just who the hell did he think he was, marching in here and throwing his weight around like he owned the joint?
Grabbing my staff, I carried it back to the closet along with Eli’s. Setting them inside, I turned to find my path blocked by Grey.
“I thought I knew you better,” he said, his voice rough as his eyes searched my face.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“There’s something between us and you’re just going to through it all away on him?”
The sour note as he emphasised the word ‘him,’ as though it were a dirty word, set my blood boiling. Grey had always been a presumptuous arse at times but this was taking it to new heights.
I sucked in a breath through my nose. He was too close to me and I could smell the vanilla and smoky wood scent that came from his magic. Just beneath it all, if I closed my eyes and breathed him in, was the sting of salt and musk, the scent of his skin, the one that was uniquely his. I knew if I pressed my face into the curve of his throat, it would be so much stronger. And despite the anger I felt, I wanted to press my face in against his neck. I wanted to taste his skin beneath my tongue, slide my fingers beneath his shirt, and feel the hard press of his muscled chest against my palms.
Instead of doing what I wanted, I thought about punching him, relishing the idea as I imagined the look of surprise and then anger that would cross his face.
“How can there ever be anything between us, Grey? When I needed you most, you weren’t there. You abandoned me for your precious Division 6, and even if you haven’t moved on, I have.”
The words flooded from me as though they had a life of their own. I regretted them, but there was also a part of me that knew deep down he needed to hear it. He’d broken what little trust I’d managed to build with him all those years before when he let those in charge hand me over to the creature that still haunted my nightmares. He hadn’t even tried to stop them and it was that kind of betrayal that I wasn’t sure if I could ever forgive, no matter how much I wanted to, no matter how much I cared for him. Grey was the man who’d let me face the monster alone. It had been a valuable lesson. Relying on others, thinking they wouldn’t let you down, was a weakness I couldn’t afford to have. And his actions had insured I understood the truth. Whether he liked it or not, Grey had helped shape me into the person that now stood before him.
“I tried, Jenna, I really did… I know you don’t believe that but—”
I cut him off with a shake of my head.
“I don’t want to hear the excuses. I needed you and you weren’t there. I’m not sure what else there is to say on the subject.”
He looked pained as he dragged in a shaky breath, as though my words had wounded him so deeply that even the simple act of breathing was too much. Looking into his eyes, I wanted to take my words back, but I couldn’t. It was the truth and it hung between us, thickening the air until it was almost unbearable.
“I need to get ready,” I said finally.
Emotions warred in his eyes and for a moment I thought he was going to speak. He edged closer, his fingers flexing almost of their own accord but at the last second he changed his mind. Grey stepped aside, his expression shuttered once more and I knew the moment, our moment, had passed. Whatever might have been between us was gone, dead. He’d had the opportunity to open up to me, and maybe if he had things could have been different, but I was done with trusting him blindly.
When it came to the job, I would follow him into Hell itself, but where my emotions and my heart were concerned, I just wasn’t willing to risk them on someone I couldn’t trust.
“I’ll wait in the car for you.” He turned swiftly and strode away, crossing the floor in two strides, and then he was gone.
My breath escaped in a whoosh and I flopped back against the wall. It was better this way. At least we both knew where we stood.
Stop lying, Jenna.
I wanted it to be better, for my words to have anesthetized the longing in my soul, but it hadn’t. If anything, it had made it worse, and watching him walk away was almost as bad as his first betrayal.
Chapter 25
We arrived at the Division 6 building a short while later. Grey had retreated behind his usual professional façade, and if I hadn’t seen the pain in his eyes, I wouldn’t have believed that he’d ever felt anythi
ng for me.
Sophia stood in the car-park as we pulled up. Her thin-lipped countenance was almost unreadable, but as Grey killed the engine, I could see the flicker of irritation that lit her eyes.
“Don’t bother getting out,” she said as I started to push open the car door. “You’re not staying.”
“Where is everyone else?” I asked, scanning the place for Alex but he was nowhere to be seen.
“Gone ahead with the others,” she said. “You missed the briefing, so you’ll have to rely on them to fill you in on the information we’ve gathered.”
“So we are going to Whitby,” he said. I shot him a sideways glance. I hadn’t been aware there had been a question over whether we would go to Whitby or not.
“We’ve spoken to the team up North and they’re happy for you to consult with them on this.”
“Consult?” I couldn’t keep the incredulity from my voice.
“Yes, Ms. Faith, consult. Do you have a problem with that?”
“I’m not interested in taking a backseat on this,” I said. “Carmine is mine, she’s my responsibility and I’m not going to sit by and watch others get killed all because I’m supposed to play nice with the local Division 6 crew.”
Sophia’s lips stretched into a smile. The change in her appearance was so subtle that if I hadn’t watched it happen, I might have missed it. Her mouth drew back further, her face taking on an inhuman quality as her cheeks grew hollow and her skin thinner. It was like staring at a skull, one with a thin layer of grey skin pulled taut over the bones.
It started as a feeling of unease that wormed its way beneath my skin, prickling at each one of my nerve endings as it slithered and spread its way through my body.
“Don’t test me,” she said, her voice little more than a whisper. “If you screw this up, I will end you.”
“You can’t say that, Sophia.” There was an edge to Grey’s voice, an unspoken warning.
Her gaze slid away from me and over to Grey and I found I could draw a breath. The feeling of dread didn’t fade but it hadn’t grown any stronger, either, and for that at least I was grateful. Whatever she was, Sophia was not something to be underestimated.
“I can bring you to heel as I did before, druid.” Her words were honeyed yet they left me feeling cold.
What the hell did she mean by that? I wanted to look at Grey, to get a read on what he was feeling, but I couldn’t bring myself to look away from the horror-show that was Sophia.
Her gaze swivelled back to me once more and the dread I’d been feeling kicked up a notch, quickly becoming terror. And I knew terror like that, it slid around me like a familiar embrace, sealing the air in my lungs as every alarm bell went off in my head.
The tattoo across my back tingled in response and I knew if I could see the viper, that it would have writhed under Sophia’s scrutiny.
“You will work with them and do exactly as they say, am I clear?”
I tried to clamp my lips shut but I couldn’t bring myself to do it. I couldn’t ignore her. She commanded an answer and I would give it, or worse would come. This was a truth I knew with a bone deep certainty.
“We’re clear…”
Her expression snapped back and I found myself staring into the familiar face of Sophia. All traces of the inhuman creature that lurked beneath her glamour remained. Gritting my teeth, I uncurled my fingers and the warm stickiness of my own blood coated my nails.
“Off you go, then…” she said cheerfully.
The engine roared to life and Grey tore out of the car-park as though every demon in Hell was chasing us. Glancing over at him, I noted his ashen colour. Not much could frighten him, but whatever had happened between him and Sophia was enough to terrify him.
I stared down at my palms and bloody half-moons that were slowly beginning to close over. Sophia was not something to be messed with, she was clearly dangerous. So why, then, did I get the feeling that before too long I would have to face her? I’d felt only a fraction of what she could do, only a fool would willingly go head to head with someone like her.
With a sideways look in Grey’s direction, my heart flipped over in my chest as I realised he was gripping the steering wheel as though his life depended on it. There was only one reason I would do something that stupid, and as I watched him, I knew deep down I had my answer.
Chapter 26
Grey didn’t relax until we’d put a good hundred miles of road between us and Sophia, and even then he remained ashen.
Two and half hours into the journey he pulled over into a service station. My stomach grumbled as soon as I laid eyes on the familiar golden arches of McDonalds. Eating immediately after training was my usual routine but today had been different.
I didn’t want to stop. Now that we were travelling toward Whitby, I could feel Carmine pulling at me. It was probably all in my head but that didn’t mean I could shake the feeling that she knew we were on our way. Finding her and putting a stop to the atrocities she was committing was my top priority and so stopping, even if it was just to grab some food and take a bathroom break, felt like too much of a delay.
Not that it was the only reason. Every time I closed my eyes I could see the look on Sophia’s face as though it were etched onto the inside of my eyelids. Her threat echoed in my head. Perhaps that was part of her ability? If it was, it was a damn good one.
“You want the usual?” Grey asked, nodding toward the entrance to the fast-food restaurant.
“Yeah.” It was weird to think that he knew me so well that I had a regular order.
He took off, his stride long and confident as he ate up the distance and disappeared through the double doors. He’d barely spoke ten words to me since he’d found me in the studio with Eli. And the awkward tension was beginning to wear thin on me.
I leaned against the hood of the car, letting the warmth from the engine soak into me as I stared up at the leaden sky.
Even though we were quite a bit away from it, the rumble of traffic on the motorway still drowned out almost everything else. I reclined against the car, watching the birds flitting about overhead and the rumble faded into the background, nothing more than a hum of activity.
Grey’s reaction to Sophia still bothered me. He didn’t want to talk about it, that much was clear but it didn’t stop me from being curious. Something had definitely happened between them, and considering the kind of creature Sophia seemed to be hiding beneath her glamour, I knew theirs wasn’t a pleasant past.
“No onions and extra cheese,” Grey said, his voice cutting into my rumination.
Sitting up, I took the proffered bag of food as he sat the milkshakes down on the bonnet. Opening my mouth to speak, my stomach chose that exact moment to grumble its appreciation and it drew the ghost of a smile from Grey.
Unwrapping my burger, I demolished it in seconds, quickly reaching for the next one as I stuffed fries into my mouth faster than I could chew.
Grey cocked a quizzical eyebrow in my direction. “You know, no one is going to take your food away from you.”
Swallowing the fries, I grinned up at him. “Trust me, I’m doing this for your sake. You don’t want to get stuck in a car with me when I’m grumpy.”
Grey’s laughter relaxed the tension in his shoulders and the haunted look in his eyes faded. “I remember how cross you get,” he said. “Goddess help any man who gets between you and your food.”
I shoved another fistful of fries into my mouth. It was good to see him laughing. Things hadn’t been the same since I’d agreed to come back to Division 6. I hadn’t thought it possible but he was actually more reserved, holding himself with an iron will that set my teeth on edge.
But this man, eyes alight with joy, this was the Grey I knew, the man I’d fallen for all those years before.
“Any word from Alex?” I asked. “Surprised we haven’t heard from him.”
“They took the helicopter.”
“Wow, clearly Sophia isn’t pulling any punches on this on
e.” I wrinkled my nose. “Why waste a good helicopter ride on him, though?”
“He wasn’t her first choice but he gets carsick,” Grey said with a grin. “Trap him in a car on the motorway and he goes through sick-bags faster than he can run his mouth. Sophia got the bill for the last trip and she swore it’d be cheaper to let him ride the helicopter than pay for the car to be professionally cleaned after he was sick in it.”
“Holy shit,” I said, “anyone might think she had a heart after all.”
Grey’s grin widened. “She definitely doesn’t. The real reason she agreed to it at all was that she was in the car with him when his stomach went nuclear.”
I swallowed past the lump of burger in my mouth and stared at Grey. “He was sick on her?”
Grey broke down in laughter, the sound wiping out the hum of traffic in the distance entirely. His eyes crinkled at the corners and my heart leaped in my chest. My fingers tingled, longing to reach out and touch his cheek.
“I’ve never seen Sophia speechless before,” Grey said between bouts of laughter. “That was the only time it happened.”
“Wait, you were in the car, too?”
“Passenger side. Sophia was driving and Alex was right behind her. I thought she was going to kill him.”
“Now that I can believe.”
He nodded, his laughter fading as he returned his attention to the now cold burger in his hands.
“Are you worried about facing Carmine?”
His question took me by surprise and I had to fight not to choke on one of the fries.
“Why would you ask that?”
“Because the last time you saw her, you were with him.”
“You make it sound like I was there willingly. I was his prisoner the entire time. He kept me locked in a goddamned cage.” I couldn’t keep the bitter note from my voice. The moment I thought about the cage, goosebumps broke out on my arms.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean for it to sound like that—”
“Stop, I’m the one who should be sorry…” I put the burger down and wiped my hands on one of the thin paper napkins from the bag. “This whole case is just messing with my head. I can’t help but feel responsible for everything that’s happened.”
Stakes and Stones Page 20