Page 11 of Adepts and Alchemists

“Kind of.” It was exactly like a bomb.

“There’s potential energy and if you smash it or split it, it can become really dangerous. But that means...” He paled, looking like he might be sick. “You blew up.”

I nodded. “To the human eye, that’s what it looked like. It felt even worse.”

“It sounds awful.”

I nodded again. “It happened in slow-motion, so Murrain could draw out my suffering.”

“That son of a bitch,” RJ said with real heat. He paused for a second before he tacked on a sheepish, “Who is Murrain?”

I leaned back onto the bed when he’d finished with my abdomen, glorying in the feeling of being mostly clean. And it saved me from leaving suspicious stains on the motel’s bedsheets.

“No one you need to worry about. It’s best if you stay out of this business entirely.”

RJ shook his head and I could tell from the stubborn set of his jaw what he was going to say before he even opened his mouth. He and Anthony had a similiar look when they got their back up about something.

“Lydia is my friend too. I want to help.”

I rolled over onto my side with a sigh, patting the bed. “I thought you might say that. Lay down next to me.”

RJ eyed the bed cautiously. There was a bit of heat to the look, but it was overshadowed by the concern dripping off him. “Why?”

“Because I’m looking to ravish you, of course,” I said dryly before rolling my eyes. “Relax. I’m not trying to bed you.”

Was there a tiny bit of disappointment in his expression?

“Then what—“

“I’m just looking for a nice Boy Scout to debauch,” I continued with a smile. “It’s one of the merit badges I haven’t earned yet.”

Which only earned me a pleased half-smile, not a sharp retort. “Funny. What’s the real reason?”

“If you’re tagging along, you have to respect your limits. Starting with this one: you can’t fight Murrain’s sorcerers. Period.”

“Why not?”

“Because you’re only human.” I studied him for a moment. “Lydia thought of you with at least a little fondness, which means I’ll do what I can to keep you alive.”

“Thanks,” he said facetiously.

“RJ, if we’re attacked and I say run, you run. Understood?”

He nodded once before climbing into the bed, settling awkwardly on top of the covers, his back to me.

And I didn’t believe his sincerity one bit. I was going to have to chain him to a radiator or something to keep him from being a gallant hero. I knew his type.

Chapter Six

Indigo

“It’s like your jaw unhinged,” Poppy said, staring at Angelo with a look of deep disquiet. “I don’t think that a side of bacon is supposed to vanish that quickly.”

The demon simply quirked a brow at Poppy, licking his fingers in a taunt. At least, that was how it felt to me, at any rate. Every action the incubus performed managed to piss me off more than the last. The almost sultry look he gave her made my blood boil. He flicked a styrofoam cup full of cheap coffee into his mouth like it was room-temperature juice, not a steaming cup of joe before crumpling the cup beneath a fraction of his strength. He wasn’t looking at the trash can, but he managed to send the litter sailing directly into its open maw, regardless.

Annoying.

“There’s a lot of things I’m good at eating,” he said, and I expected him to wiggle those sculpted brows at her.