Page 38 of Immortal Consequences (The Souls of Blackwood Academy #1)

Emilio

Emilio had the instinctive feeling that he had missed something.

That somewhere along the line, a piece of the puzzle had shifted without him knowing, and now he was left scrambling, attempting to play catch-up.

It was the only thing that could explain why Augustine Hughes, of all people, had decided to join them in the Ether.

Emilio hadn’t been at all surprised when Olivier had appeared behind him almost immediately after crossing the threshold.

He’d silently expected the two of them to partner up, especially given the fact that Olivier knew that reaping wasn’t exactly Emilio’s specialty.

But what he hadn’t expected was to find August beside Olivier.

It felt unexplainably strange, not to mention wildly out of character.

The weirdest part was the way Olivier was acting, as though it were perfectly normal that he was now working alongside August, and that this supposed partnership required no explanation.

They’d spent the first hour crossing through a few different doors, traversing the various landscapes of the Ether.

August and Olivier kept whispering to one another.

Emilio didn’t want to admit it, but he felt acutely dejected.

It was clear they were leaving him out of something, and Emilio couldn’t help but feel as though his presence was just a formality.

Like they’d allowed him to join merely out of pity.

After crossing through a desert landscape riddled with spindly trees and craggy mountains, they came upon a crooked door marked with geometric shapes.

August placed his hand on the door. “This is it. It’s behind this one.

” He had, of course, insisted on finding his target soul first. Olivier seemed perfectly content to follow his orders, which infuriated Emilio to no end.

Usually, Olivier would find some snarky quip to challenge August with, but this time… nothing.

When they crossed through, they entered a new landscape. It was a dense, lush forest filled with towering redwood trees, eucalyptus and pine overwhelming Emilio’s senses. Fireflies hovered in the air, their tiny bodies emanating a soft yellow glow.

“This way,” commanded August. He trudged forward, swatting a firefly away from his face with comical exaggeration.

Emilio attempted to get Olivier’s attention, desperate to ask him what the hell was going on, but Olivier seemed completely oblivious.

Even once they found August’s target soul, an old man trapped within a protective ward made of bramble and thorned vines, Olivier kept his gaze squarely fixed on August.

Despite their having stuck together so far, August insisted on dismantling the protective ward on his own.

Something about his technique required total isolation.

So, much to Emilio’s relief, he and Olivier were finally awarded a moment to themselves.

The two of them retreated farther into the woods, offering August the space he had requested.

Olivier was leaning against the trunk of a tree, his eyes still glued to August and whatever he was doing to the ward. God—had he always been this interested in August?

After a few painful minutes of silence, Emilio finally caved in. He couldn’t help himself.

“You’re staring,” he muttered, tugging at the sleeves of his sweater.

Olivier crossed his arms and looked up in confusion. “Pardon?”

“Actually, you’re gawking.”

“And apparently having a stroke. What on earth are you talking about?”

Emilio sighed. Screw it. He might as well just put it out there and ask.

“Is there something going on between you two?”

“Is there— what? ” Olivier nearly slipped from his position against the tree. “Emilio, my love, have you lost your mind? Are you running a fever?”

“You haven’t stopped staring at him,” muttered Emilio, feeling a bit foolish. “I mean…you were practically drooling just then.” He glanced up at Olivier through his lashes and found him staring back with the oddest expression on his face. Lips curled up slightly. Eyes beaming.

“What?” Emilio asked. “What’s that look for?”

Olivier’s face split into a grin.

“You’re jealous.”

Emilio scoffed.

“I am not. ”

“You are.”

“I’m not jealous.”

“You are the epitome of jealousy.”

“You’re being stupid.” Emilio turned away from him, staring at the canopy of trees above them. “I’m just—I’m looking out for you. I know August is nice to look at, and it’s easy to get distracted by him, but—”

“You think August is nice to look at?”

Emilio glanced over his shoulder. Olivier was no longer smiling.

“Well, obviously.” Emilio gestured toward August in the distance. He was still working on dismantling the protective ward, dark brows creased together in concentration and mouth twisted into a withering frown. “He’s…him.”

A similar crease formed between Olivier’s brows.

Emilio sighed. “What?”

“Well…” Olivier shook his head and cleared his throat. “I just didn’t realize he was your type.”

Emilio inspected him for a moment. Wait. Brooding eyes. Downturned mouth. Nervous fidget in his hands.

“Oh my God,” Emilio whispered, his lips curving into a smile.

“What?”

“ You’re jealous.”

Olivier chuckled. “Oh, don’t be ridiculous—”

“You are! Look at you. You’re all red and squirmy.” It was true. Olivier’s cheeks were flushed and he was anxiously tugging at the collar of his shirt. “You’re jealous. You can’t stand that I find him attractive.”

“Look, I have no problem with you finding him attractive. We obviously both agree that Augustine Hughes is gorgeous. I mean, we’re not blind, for Christ’s sake—”

“I didn’t say gorgeous …”

“—and either way, there’s nothing going on between us. We just came to an agreement that an alliance would be beneficial.”

The wonderful feeling building in Emilio’s stomach vanished, replaced by a horrible sense of impending doom.

“You made an alliance with August?” Emilio echoed in confusion. “Why would you do that?”

“Because…” Olivier shrugged, kicking a pebble beneath hisfeet.

“Wow.” Emilio chuckled. “What a detailed explanation. Thankyou.”

“I know what I’m doing.”

“Clearly not.”

Olivier pushed himself away from the tree and crossed the space between them in a few long strides.

He towered over Emilio in a way that made Emilio feel impossibly small.

Usually, he enjoyed the feeling. It was strangely comforting.

But now, with that scornful look in Olivier’s eyes and the seriousness in his expression, the feeling was less than ideal.

“If you have something to say—then say it.” Olivier inspected Emilio’s face, and Emilio could practically feel his eyes against his skin. “Is there any other reason that you wouldn’t want me working with August? Any at all.”

Emilio swallowed.

“No.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m…” Warmth spread through Emilio’s neck, rising to his cheeks. “I don’t know.”

“Emilio…” Olivier’s expression softened. The disdain in his eyes morphed into something else. It took Emilio a second to realize that he recognized it. It was the same thing he felt inside himself. The same breathtaking feeling that flooded through him every time he looked at Olivier.

Longing.

Emilio had the sudden urge to reach up, grab Olivier by the shoulders and place his mouth upon his.

He could do it. He knew he could. But he was so scared.

He was scared of rejection. Of ruining what they already had.

Of finding out that maybe the terrifying feelings he felt for Olivier weren’t reciprocated.

But most of all…he was scared of losing him.

“It’s done.” August appeared in front of them, dusting off his hands.

Olivier let out a sigh and stepped away from Emilio.

“Already?” he asked, a slight hint of annoyance in his voice.

“Don’t sound so surprised.” August looked between them, as though he sensed he had interrupted something. “We should move on to the next soul. Olivier, I assume you’d like to go next?”

Emilio couldn’t stop the question from pouring out of him. “You’re not going to leave?”

August raised his brows in bemusement.

“Why would I do that?”

“Well, you have no use for us anymore,” Emilio muttered. “You’ve already finished your part. What’s stopping you from just going back to Blackwood?”

August sighed and turned away, fixing his gaze on Olivier.

“Can you handle this?”

A foreign sense of rage burned inside Emilio, a buildup of frustration that had him stepping forward and blurting out a response.

“I’m not his dog. ”

August blinked in surprise. Emilio flinched, anticipating some sort of rebuttal, but none came.

Instead, August merely nodded his head and said, “No. You’re right.

I’m sorry.” He sighed and stepped closer.

“Look, Emilio. I have no hidden agenda here. I think an alliance between us… all of us …would be beneficial. So—no. I’m not going to just leave.

I said I would help both of you, and I will. ”

Emilio stared back in bewilderment. That wasn’t the response he had expected.

“Oh.”

August smirked. “Now…if we’re done with the interrogation, we should probably move on to the next soul. I don’t know about you two, but I’m ready to—”

His words were cut short when the ground began to shake. The leaves on the trees shivered, a horrible cracking sound erupting from below them. Emilio glanced at Olivier, panic coursing through him.

“Did you…feel that?”

August looked between them. “We need to find the next door. Now. ”

But just as the words left his lips, a crack split the ground between them, sending Emilio and Olivier flying in one direction and August in another.

The crack widened into a gaping rift, chunks of earth crumbling and falling into the unending abyss.

It only grew wider with every passing second, and Emilio found himself scrambling backward as the abyss widened, threatening to pull him under.

A set of hands wrapped around his chest and tugged him to safety just as the crack split beneath his legs.

Olivier’s lips brushed against Emilio’s ear, his ragged breaths echoing behind him.

“Are you—are you all right?”

Emilio shook his head. No. I’m not. But he couldn’t get the words to come out.

His mind had shut off, his body running on autopilot.

Through the chaos, he could vaguely see August on the other side of the fissure, hoisting himself onto his feet.

He seemed fine, though his arms were coated in fresh cuts, blood staining his white shirt.

“Go!” he heard August call out from the other side, his voice muffled by the roar of the earthquake. “Find your door! I’ll locateyou!”

Olivier grabbed Emilio by the wrist and began to run. A glowing path led them through the crumbling forest, but all Emilio could focus on was Olivier next to him.

He couldn’t let go.

He couldn’t lose him.

The thought propelled him forward. He clung to it with feverish determination. Even once they located the door and sprinted through it, falling into a different landscape, safely away from the crumbling forest, the thought still echoed in his mind like an incessant warning bell.

He couldn’t lose him. He couldn’t lose him. He couldn’t–

“Emilio.” Olivier was staring at him with wild and frantic eyes. “Breathe. It’s okay. You’re safe.”

But he couldn’t. He couldn’t stop the panic rising in his throat.

Everything was entropy and chaos, a never-ending stream of noise and color and—

“You’re safe,” Olivier repeated, his voice a steady presence. And then he gently lowered his forehead onto Emilio’s, and everything seemed to soften. The cadence of Emilio’s breathing. The sound of the wind against his ears.

Emilio opened his eyes. Olivier stared back at him.

“Better?”

Emilio managed a feeble nod. “Yeah. Better.”

Olivier hesitated, forehead still pressed against Emilio’s, before reluctantly pulling away. A tense silence stretched between them, the weight of the moment lingering in the air.

Olivier cleared his throat. “Well. Probably best if we keep moving.” He hesitated, staring down at Emilio, before turning on his heels and walking away.

The fear no longer shackled Emilio as he walked steadily behind Olivier, matching his pace. But despite the calm that had washed over him, there was still that single thought bouncing around in his head, plaguing him. A thought he was certain would never go away.

He couldn’t lose him.