Page 107 of Resurrection
How can anyone say a name and also deliver an entire speech without using any other words is beyond me. It must be an inherent talent that only brooding, overbearing men possess. Or it could just be a Sebastian thing.
What sucks is that the numb feeling, the all-consuming darkness which swallowed me whole when I was trying to free Andrei, reacts to it like an enthusiastic pet wiggling its tail and preparing to pounce.
Not to play, or purr, or whatever.
No.
It wants to devour everything in its path.
“I’m doing this, Sebastian.” Gulping down the unease stirring inside me, I square my shoulders. “You can go with me or do whatever it is you think is smart and not stupid. We are wasting time.”
He stares at me so intently that if I wasn’t desperate to stand my ground and do this, I would be running back to my room right now. As it stands, I meet him stare for stare, not backing down.
“We are not wasting time,” Marcus pipes in, no doubt trying to break the tension. “Just waiting on a green light.”
When my eyebrow rises in question, he points to the right side of the theater, at the roof of the adjoining building to be exact. A figure emerges as if spat out by the thick shadows, and without bringing notice to themselves, they dart as fast as abullet across and down the street to join us. When they are close enough for me to distinguish their features, my back stiffens.
Eshe steps up to us, her full, blood-red lips set in a firm line.
Chapter Ninety-Three
SEBASTIAN
There comes a time in a male’s life, no matter how long he lives, when he needs to admit defeat.
That time has come to me now.
There is nothing I can say or do to make April see reason, so as always, I switch tactics. She wasn’t wrong when she said I love playing my games and placing pieces together ahead of time, so that when the moment comes, I have full control of the outcome.
Then I met her.
It all went to shit from there.
All my hard-earned control, all the plans, everything turned on its head, bringing me here. I can push her harder. I can even throw her over my shoulder and take her away kicking and screaming. She might even fight me and kill me in her anger, but it will be worth it if it keeps her alive. What stills my impulse to whisk her away is only one thing.
She will be disappointed.
That more than anything chains my urge to deal with the situation like the barbarian she says I am. I know she needs this or the betrayal she carries will fester and stew until it spills outon all of us and burns us to ashes. I’ll just have to stay on top of things and make sure she survives.
I’ll deal with the aftermath later.
Much, much later if you ask me.
Her hand stiffens where she holds my fingers the second Eshe steps out of the shadows she was wrapping around herself. April might not think that the ancient female will stab her in the back, but I’ve seen it happen too many times to not take it into consideration. While she and April are focused on each other, I glance at Marcus, jerking my chin up in a subtle move.
He nods in understanding.
While I make sure April doesn’t get hurt, he will keep an eye on Eshe. It’s all we can do right now.
“It’s a nest in there,” Eshe mumbles, glancing back at the building over her shoulder. “They are everywhere, like roaches crawling all over the place.”
“That’s fine,” April dismisses her worries, intent on getting this done now.
A bad feeling erodes my gut, burning its way up to my gullet.
“They may have magic, but don’t forget they are only human,” she argues her decision, but the nonchalance is a little too forced. “We are faster, stronger, and let’s hope smarter.” That last part is aimed at me.
“Indeed,” Eshe agrees. “We just need to make sure we stay away from the magic when they fling it at us.”
