Page 2 of Transfiguration
Did the Pillar of Air have that struggle, Con wondered, as he knew Sam often battled the same need to fly. Why did no one talk about what it meant to be a high-level witch and the struggle for balance with their element? It couldn’t simply be because he didn’t haveofficialDominion training. Rou and Harding had full training, degrees in magic and all that bullshit. Both Pillars, despite being male witches, and Con knew they battled with the call of their element. It was some sort of unspoken bane not found on forums or even mentioned on the deep, dark edges of the web. Frustrating.
It was why Con always took the retrieval jobs for information. Sometimes it was just a jaunt to a library across the world to snatch a book hidden away. Other times it was breaking into the estates of rich witches, unlocking enchanted safes, and stealing all their sacred artifacts. Those were fun. Not because he felt he ever really found anything super informative, but because the Dominion witches were bitches who thought themselves invincible. Until Con waltzed into their homes and robbed them blind without leaving a trace of himself behind. Everyone thought earth had all the power. Wind moved earth all the time, shifting landscapes, building and destroying mountains. Everyone underestimated the wind. Con used that to his advantage.
He gathered his things, the last bits of his short stay, and got into the rental. The drive up to Vegas would take him a while. He mapped it out on his phone, the bunker just outside of Henderson. Hopefully, he could drop the rental off in Vegas and head home before noon. He didn’t do planes unless he had to. Overseas was necessary, but in the USA, he drove. And his real car was parked in a private lot in Vegas, ready for his drive home. Not a quick trip, since his main drag was in Minnesota. Sometimes they lived in Cali, sometimes in Italy, but with the fall sweeping in soon, he wanted to be home, visit his sister’s grave, and ready himself for the cold rise of winter.
His stomach growled, reminding him he hadn’t eaten. But there wasn’t much open at five in the morning, and he didn’t think a gas station burrito would be the best way to spend his day driving. Highway 40 was the straight shot up, but if he took 93 it would give him a chance to lose any suspicion that might arise from seeing him. Caution was key. He decided he’d weave a bit, make a few stops, and arrive in Henderson hopefully unannounced, find the book, and head home.
The plans of mice and men and all that…
TWO
Sam’s level of wariness didn’t change, though Luca knew he was struggling by his silence. When the snark turned off, Sam needed comfort. Too much was happening, with Sam being forced into a role he hated, of witch and of vampire, ally to the Pillar of Earth while the Dominion was coming apart, and Con gone for nearly a month, put the man on edge.
Luca specialized in distraction but being sex on two legs didn’t help them when Sam had to do some big meeting or media thing. Luca said comforting things, hugged Sam when they had a moment, but it always turned to something more.
Sex was easy. Luca had a lifetime of sex or fighting. The past decade, and their intense romance, was still something he feared he didn’t deserve, though he couldn’t recall ever being happier. His default was physical affection. Con was better at pretty, sweet words, even when he had brooding bad boy down to a science. Con wasn’t a talker, so when he spoke, most everyone listened. Sam was all snark and sass. Luca was best at political speech due to years of training under his father, Maxwell Hart, one of the most powerful vampires in the world. Luca’s skill in PC language helped little to ease Sam’s anxiety. He could feel it vibrating off his lover. If he thought they had the time, he’d have tugged Sam into the bathroom to suck him off, hoping to ease some of that lingering tension. But they had been summoned. He hated these sorts of no detail summons. And Sam walked it like he’d been called to the gallows.
Luca studied Sam as they made their way up to the top office, and wondered at the possessive joy he had just staring at the vampire. What they had wasn’t just physical. Luca loved both his men like crazy, couldn’t imagine what his life would have been if he hadn’t met them, but always struggled to show them how he felt.
“What?” Sam asked, sounding tired. “Are you undressing me with your eyes again?”
“Always. Can’t help you’re hot as fuck,” Luca smiled.
Sam gave him a bemused smile. “On the way to see your dad, remember?”
Luca sighed. “Yeah, yeah. He knows we’re a thing.”
“And hasn’t killed me yet. Which I find remarkable every day.”
“Why would he kill you?”
“For dating his beloved son.”
Luca snorted at the wordsbelovedanddating. They were more than dating. Was it strange he’d been thinking about putting a ring on it? Wondering how he’d even do that when they were a very solid trio rather than a duo? He’d never been this happy in his life. He would be happier if Con was home instead of off on some retrieval job.
They stepped off the elevator and headed through the posh lobby. They passed a blond man Luca didn’t know. He greeted them with a nod of his head, and little more than a glance their way.
“Welcome, Mr. Depacio, Mr. Mueller, and have a good evening, Nate,” the receptionist said.
“Evening, Ella,” Nate, the blond guy, said as he headed to the elevator. He glanced their way, paused for a few seconds, and then nodded. “The famous vampire and the boss’s kid.”
“That’s us,” Sam said without correcting him. He was often short with people when they stated that Luca was just Hart’s “kid.” “Have a good night. Hart ready for us?” Sam asked, pausing before the door that led down the hall to the long stretch of big offices. Luca rarely stopped as he’d never been barred from seeing Hart, but maybe Sam had?
“He is,” the receptionist agreed.
The elevator opened, Nate stepped in and the door closed. “Who was that?” Sam asked.
“He’s from I&R,” the receptionist said. “Delivering reports.”
“Ah, so he works with Con,” Luca said, putting a calming hand on Sam’s back. Sometimes he really got up in arms about people he didn’t know in what he considered his space.
“Hart still reads paper reports?” Sam wondered.
“Con does too,” Luca pointed out. Sam thought about that a moment before nodding. Luca opened the door and waited for Sam to enter, following close behind. They needed Con home soon, if only to help ease Sam’s anxiety. They worked as a trio for a reason.
Sam bumped Luca’s shoulder, his tension high, though Luca never felt the same anxiety over visiting Hart as anyone else did. Because Hart was his biological father? Or because Luca had known him his entire life? He couldn’t recall ever hearing affectionate words from the man, though Sam and Con pointed out often enough the many things Hart did to show affection.
Luca reached out and grabbed Sam’s hand. Sam gave him a side-eye but didn’t make him let go as they entered the big office at the end. Hart was on the phone, but waved them in. Page, who had been Seiran Rou’s assistant, now worked for Hart, and motioned for them to sit. Sam shook his head but said nothing. Luca stayed at his side, shrugging a mild apology. They didn’t need to sit and maybe wouldn’t be here long?