Page 41 of Sidhe (The Incubus Saga #3)

To appease Nathan, Solrin reached down by his chair and lifted up a mug. The table was a little full with supplies and pieces of wood scattered about it. There was also a covered ice cream pail in the center. Nathan patted the top of it and raised an eyebrow Solrin’s direction.

“Consecrated soil,” Solrin explained. “We’ll need to coat the stakes with it. More effective overall. It also eliminates the need to stake the nachzehrer back into its grave.”

“Holy water too?” Nathan asked, gesturing to a smattering of vials.

“It may have some effect if we run into trouble. I have never dealt with a nachzehrer personally but the lore seems to agree that they react to holy water much like a fictional vampire. We’ll see, I suppose.

” Solrin shrugged, looking a little heavy and dark around the eyes, despite having beaten Nathan downstairs that morning.

“Wow, being a seal never felt so much like Buffy,” Nathan said, and then had to take a moment to realize he’d actually just called himself a seal. They were playing the part for Solrin’s sake, sure, but wonders never ceased.

When Alex showed up with some toast and eggs for Nathan along with a pot of coffee, Nathan pointed at Solrin too. “Better top him off, Al, or he’s bound to fall asleep on me. You sure you don’t want anything to eat?”

Solrin accepted the extra coffee—black, Nathan noted, since the guy didn’t add anything before taking a sip—but politely shook his head in regards to food. “I’m fine. Thank you, Alex.”

Nathan couldn’t help noticing the look Alex gave him as she walked away, something like surprise and maybe a little pride that Nathan was actually pulling this off.

“We really gonna make all this wood into stakes?” Nathan scrunched his brow at the pile in front of him.

“The extras are for entrances,” Solrin said.

“When we find the nachzehrer, placing a stake at each entrance will keep it from escaping. Like a runic trap. I thought a few extras would be helpful. I would feel more pressed for time since there may be another attack tonight, but then…” he trailed a little, his green eye looking up to stare at Nathan directly, “Sasha and Jim are out there. Perhaps they will find our quarry without us.”

There went one of those chills down Nathan’s spine again.

He wondered for a moment if the words were a challenge.

He no longer doubted that Solrin suspected something , but he couldn’t be sure what.

Whether it was something directly about Jim and Sasha, something about the young incubus they were looking for, or something else, Nathan didn’t know.

Solrin had to only ‘suspect’ though, he couldn’t know anything for certain, otherwise he would have acted by now if he was really so intolerant of all things supernatural.

Regardless of what the truth was, Nathan wasn’t about to give anything away. Not until he knew for sure it was safe.

So he grinned. “Hell yeah, man, I sure hope they do. Save us the effort. Let’s get these done then, huh?” he said, working a little more quickly on his current stake after a bite of toast. “But you’re gonna have to keep me entertained or I’ll be the one falling asleep on you .”

Solrin looked a little startled by that but at least his gaze wasn’t scrutinizing anymore. “Keep you entertained?” he repeated skeptically.

“Sure,” Nathan said. “You gotta have some good stories, right? How about…ugliest broad you ever hunted. And don’t leave out the details.

” He leaned over the table and winked. Know your enemy, Nathan figured, much as he hoped on Dave and Walter and everything else holy in his life that Solrin never became that.

After a few moments of gaping, then another handful of quiet contemplation, Solrin’s mouth twitched. “Well…have you ever encountered a harpy before?” he asked with that rare, playful tone. “ Those are ugly.”

As Solrin elaborated on his tale of a harpy in its true form, Nathan practically busted a gut—especially since he’d had firsthand experience with one himself.

He was about to insist the guy show him how it was even possible to behead something with a pickaxe when another early riser joined them in the bar.

Of course Nathan was all smiles as he spotted the rumpled and sleep-deprived looking librarian.

“So I take it the books are winning?” he chuckled as the lanky brunette slumped in barely awake enough to focus.

“No offense, man, but you look like hell.” Nathan pulled out an open chair in offering as he said that.

Iain took it gratefully, rubbing at his eyes and not seeming to notice that Solrin was there or that the guy was a bit put-out about being joined.

“Won’t hear any regrets from me,” Iain said, collapsing in the chair exhaustedly.

“I’m just not going to be very useful for the first few months I’m here.

Sorting through all that shit is a chore .

But it’ll be worth it,” he announced with a firm finger pointed at Nathan before very quickly deflating again.

“At least it damn well better be. Poor Walter’s still asleep. ”

Nathan shook his head, smiling wide as he looked over at Solrin and—scowl or no scowl—brightly introduced the seal to their resident research librarian.

“You met Iain yet, Sol? He got caught up in a hunt with us not long ago and ended up getting recruited. Not a seal, but he’s working to get a good library for us so research goes a bit smoother for the average Gatehouse passerby.

Iain Wilde,” he looked at Iain with a gesture across the table, “Sonji Lorin. Solrin he goes by mainly. Or Sol, if I can get away with it. Unless he doesn’t like you. ” He grinned.

As generally nervous and even a little shy as Iain could be, he never failed to beam out a smile.

“Hi,” he said brightly to Solrin, leaning over the table and extending a hand.

“Sure, yeah, the seal Nathan and the others are working with in town. Shit, you’re younger than I thought you’d be.

Guess I’ve just seen a lot more older seals passing through.

” Iain’s hand remained hovering over the table a while and Nathan feared that Solrin would leave it there.

“I promise he doesn’t bite,” Nathan said.

“Shows how much you know,” Iain snarked back. He left his hand suspended, patiently certain that Solrin would take it.

Finally, Solrin did, rising from his seat somewhat to shake Iain’s hand good and firm before letting go. “Yes,” Solrin said slowly, “there are more older seals, I suppose. I started young. You are also…fairly young.” His green eye swept over Iain gaugingly, sizing him up, Nathan figured.

Iain was far from being a threat and definitely didn’t look like one, and while he was a changeling, he hadn’t shown any evidence of abilities yet. Nathan hoped Solrin picked up on the ‘good guy’ part and nothing else.

“Don’t suppose you wanna help us out here?” Nathan asked Iain. “I’m sure one of us has an extra knife.”

“Sure,” Iain nodded enthusiastically, “I was a boy scout, if you can believe it. Talk about some fucked up shit, like a god damn cult, I swear. Couldn’t get out fast enough, but at least I learned a couple things.

I’ll just grab some coffee.” He rose to head into the kitchen where Alex had disappeared to again.

Nathan couldn’t help noticing that Iain tossed an extra smile Solrin’s way before he left, shyly but all genuine. Either Solrin was caught off guard by the gesture or Iain’s grin was just that infectious, because Solrin’s mouth twitched in response.

Maybe all the guy really needed was the chance to make some friends. Iain was a good start. Nathan noticed how tense Solrin was at first having the extra company, but eventually he relaxed and almost would have seemed perfectly normal if not for his formal language and odd appearance.

“So a nachzehrer, huh?” Iain asked curiously, helping Nathan and Solrin pack up the gear once they had finished whittling.

“That sounds way messed up. Cool . Don’t suppose you remember where you read up on it?

” he asked Solrin with that same shy smile.

“I started backwards in the alphabet for shelving. Makes it seem like less work even though it’s the same.

Anyway, it would be good to get something about this nach thing in there if you can tell me anything. ”

“Yes, I…I believe it was in an anthology about vampire myths, since nachzehrer’s are often more associated with them,” Solrin said. “I may have the book with me. I could…grab it for you?” he offered a little awkwardly. “I was going to get a jacket since it is still raining.”

A bit of thunder rolled overhead as if to say, no, actually, it’s storming , but thanks anyway.

Nathan had seen a few flashes of lightning too.

“Good idea, I think I’ll grab mine. And Iain could use any extra help he can get, right, man?

” Nathan winked at the brunette. He wasn’t trying to play matchmaker or anything; he had no reason to assume Solrin was interested in dudes.

But two solitary type guys would make pretty good friends, he figured; it certainly couldn’t hurt.

Iain smiled blindingly again, nodding. “Fuck yeah, that’d be awesome, Sol. Oh, and uhh…” he called after Nathan and Solrin as they left the supplies on the table and both headed upstairs to grab their jackets, “you guys be careful when you head out, okay? Nasty day and all.”