Page 18 of White Little Lies (Four Ways to Fate #3)

18

When I woke up, only Gabriel was in the bed with me. I had my back to him, but the heavy arm around my waist let me know who it was. Or I supposed that wasn’t really true. I would have known it was him with my eyes closed, without him speaking a single word. I wasn’t sure where Mistral had gone. He never seemed to sleep much.

Gabriel shifted at some small movement I must have made. His arm lifted, stroking a lock of hair back from my face.

“That’s how you found me in the woods,” I said. “The cord connecting us. I felt it in Crispin‘s tower, then again last night. Why didn’t you want to talk about it?”

“I worried it might make you pull away,” his voice rumbled against my back.

I supposed it was a valid concern, given how I had been acting. I turned over, pulling the sheets up over my nakedness and re-situating myself on my pillow to face him. Normally I would have gotten dressed at the spring, but I hadn’t protested when Gabriel scooped me up and carried me all the way to Mistral’s bedroom for round two.

“It’s confusing. But it doesn’t bother me.”

He gave me an all too knowing look.

“Okay, it doesn’t bother me yet .”

“And does last night bother you?”

I laughed. “Oh, not in the slightest, though I had hoped Mistral would be here too when I woke up. I should probably be off to find Sebastian soon. He should have found information on our mysterious devil by now.”

“And what about the nymphs?”

I shrugged one shoulder. “Sebastian made a deal with Fiorus. I’ll take him back to their realm, and he can do what needs doing.”

I still wasn’t sure what to think about it. Seraphina was livid about Fiorus poisoning Aaliyah, but she was still hesitant about pulling her out into exile. Of course, if Fiorus’ opposers won, Aaliyah could live in the city and still be connected to the well. I had a feeling that was what the younger nymph would prefer, minus the demise of her father.

Gabriel moved a finger down the crease in my brow.

I frowned at him.

“It is an unfortunate circumstance, but I think we need to focus on the bounty. Lowly human criminals may not take the elf king’s protection seriously.”

I lowered my eyes. I had been trying really hard to not think about that . “They may not even know about the protection order. Word circulated through the magical community, not through the entire city.”

His hand went back around my waist, giving me a light squeeze until I looked at him. “You opened a portal to another realm last night. If Sebastian can find this other devil and discover where your mother is located, you can reach her.”

“Maybe. If she’s in a near realm. A really near realm.”

“If she was unreachable in a far realm, the bounty would not exist. And without the Realm Breaker, she cannot escape to one. Not since the pathways were destroyed.”

He was right. She had to be in a near realm. And ever since Dawn had told me about the female devil, I was wondering if she was actually in the hells. Maybe once I left the Bogs, Sebastian would already have an answer. We could move forward.

The door opened seemingly of its own volition, and Mistral came in carrying a massive silver tray with coffee cups, a carafe, and the biggest stack of waffles I had ever seen. Fresh cut strawberries and a bowl of fluffy whipped cream were next to the waffles.

I salivated at the sight of the food, coffee, and the goblin in a fresh white linen shirt, unbuttoned to show the upper portion of his chest. Even though we’d only gone to bed a few hours ago, I was imagining undoing the rest of those buttons one by one. And that whipped cream—

Gods, what was wrong with me? It was breakfast time. I was supposed to be hungry, not thirsty .

Mistral gave me a knowing smile, then approached the bed with his tray. Gabriel sat up to take it from him, not at all bothered by his present state of nudity. Myself, I was looking around for my clothes, but I didn’t see them anywhere.

“They got a little wet,” Mistral said, reading my expression. “But the sun will have them dry soon enough.”

Frowning, I tugged the sheet up around me, awkwardly reaching for the coffee.

Gabriel poured it for me, giving me a look that said I was being silly, then reached for the only cup of tea on the tray.

“Hey, I’m half human, and I was raised entirely human. We don’t just go walking around naked all the time.”

“Were you not raised in part by werewolves?” Mistral asked playfully.

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, but they only get naked when they shift forms.”

The door that Mistral had left partially ajar creaked open a little further. I heard the sound of little paws scuffing on stone, then Ringo hopped up next to the impressive waffle stack. He licked his chops, then deflated a little as he realized how close behind him Mistral was.

Momentarily giving up on the waffles, he hopped over to me. Also oblivious to my nudity, he crawled onto the sheets covering my lap. He turned wide eyes toward my face. “The forest is noisy today. Lots of chatter. Something happened last night.”

I could tell he was proud to have brought me the news, not realizing that we were what happened last night—or, early this morning, actually. “Lots of chatter?” I asked innocently, glancing over his head at the other two goblins.

He nodded, not noticing my nervous glance. “The land got really loud, then suddenly very quiet. Now everyone is talking about it.”

I wasn’t sure who everyone was. Maybe he meant the tiny goblins that would lurk on stone ledges throughout the Citadel. “You tell me if they say anything else, okay?”

He nodded excitedly, then glanced back at the waffles.

“Go ahead,” I laughed.

Gabriel frowned as Ringo hopped over to the waffles and took one off the top of the pile with his little paws.

Mistral just seemed to find it all terribly amusing. He walked around the bed, then sat a little behind me so I could lean my back against his chest. My nerves instantly quieted.

He leaned forward, grazing my cheek with his. “You should eat. I believe the land will remain silent today. Gabriel can accompany you home without worry.” He lowered his voice, though everyone would still hear. “Though I do wish I could go with you.”

I pulled away enough to look at him. “Do you really?” He always seemed so unfazed by things. I wasn’t sure how much he truly cared to be involved.

“Of course. Not only to join in your adventures, but—” He looked past me at Gabriel. “It is lonely here, sometimes.”

The pair exchanged a look that I would probably never understand. It was clear they both knew each other better than anyone else.

Clearing his throat to break the tension, Gabriel fixed a plate with three waffles piled high with strawberries and whipped cream, then handed it to me.

I looked down at the plate. “Do you really think I’m going to eat all of that?”

He smirked. “I thought you might have worked up an appetite. You know, when the land got all loud then quiet.”

I snatched the plate before he could say anything more in front of Ringo. Even though the little goblin was far older than I was, he was still rather childlike. I didn’t want to give him any nightmares.

Mistral waited for my reaction as I cut into the pancakes, making sure I had a plump slice of strawberry and a dollop of whipped cream on my first bite. I chewed, then nearly died right then and there. “Gods, that’s good. Why is everything you guys make so incredible?”

Chuckling, Mistral reached around me for his cup of coffee. “Trust me, Eva. It’s the least we can do.”

No fae or devils accosted us on the way home, and that included Sebastian. I had expected him to be waiting outside the gates when we arrived, but he was nowhere to be seen. The sky above us was gloomy and gray, but I was in relatively high spirits despite everything.

Not having to deal with Sebastian was just a bonus.

“I smell troll,” Gabriel said as we ascended the steps to my apartment.

“Troll?” Ringo gasped into my ear.

I furrowed my brow. Dawn was the only troll-blooded person I knew, but I hadn’t expected her return so soon. And I would have expected a call from Braxton the moment she arrived. He had never really enjoyed Dawn’s company, and I couldn’t blame him. She was an acquired taste.

We reached the landing and I put my key in the door, but it was already unlocked. Bracing myself, I opened it and went inside. Sure enough, Dawn was sitting on the sofa, a new periwinkle cup in hand. There was another on the low coffee table, presumably for me.

As we walked past the kitchen and into the living room, Dawn’s eyes started with Gabriel‘s feet, tracing a slow lingering line all the way up to his face. “So sad that he has a shirt on this time,” she said wistfully.

I rolled my eyes as I approached the sofa. “I thought you liked elves .”

She leaned forward, picking up the other cup and handing it to me as I sat. “I might have a crush, but I can still appreciate fine artwork, Eva.”

Braxton came out of his room at the sound of our voices. He walked toward the kitchen. “Don’t hate me, Eva. She wanted to see who you would come home with if you didn’t have any warning.”

Of course she did. “You know, you don’t have to do what she says.”

He opened the fridge, taking out a carton of milk. “Hey, she paid me twenty bucks.”

“I will wait in your bedroom,” Gabriel sighed, clearly tired of the conversation.

As soon as my bedroom door was open, Ringo made a run for it. Drinking straight out of the carton, Braxton returned to his room, and suddenly Dawn and I were alone.

I took a sip of the fresh latte. I’d had plenty of coffee, but damn, those gargoyles could really brew a nice cup. “I have my friend looking into Rian, if that’s why you’re here. ”

Dawn angled her impressively long legs toward mine. Her pantsuit today was a saturated dark purple. She looked great in jewel tones, and she knew it. “How long will that take?”

I shrugged. “Not long, but I’ll let you know.” I studied her expression, from her small smile to the glint in her dark eyes. “You’ve learned something new.”

Her smile kicked up a notch, and she nodded.

“And you’re trying to figure out what you can get from me in return.” I didn’t say it like it was a question.

She smiled broad enough to show her perfect white teeth. “Yes, that was my intention, but my curiosity is getting the better of me. Tell me what you were doing all night with your very large, very handsome goblin, and I’ll give you my information for free.”

I glared at her. “If I have to tell you something in exchange, then it’s not free.”

“But it’s also not terribly expensive, especially given what I’ve learned.”

I glanced at my closed bedroom door, then shook my head in defeat. “We’re… seeing each other.”

“Well obviously . I’ll need a little more than that.”

“Fine,” I huffed. “We’re sleeping together.”

“And what about the high goblin of the Citadel?” She asked slyly.

My mouth gaped and I almost spilled my coffee. “How do you even know about that!”

Her eyes sparkled. “So it’s true then. Honestly, when my goblin contacts mentioned it, I thought they had to be mistaken. My little Eva, dating not just one goblin, but two?”

I glared at her. “It’s complicated.”

“I’m sure it is,” she laughed. “And that look on your face is worth far more than anything else I could have gotten out of you.” She leaned forward. “Now would you like to hear the little tidbit I brought for you?”

“Yes,” I grumbled, lifting my coffee for another sip.

She sipped her coffee too, her eyes still shining with laughter. “I’ve been tipping heavily at Lapis Brews,” she lifted her cup, “and in exchange the gargoyles have been speaking more freely around me. Word is, the angelic Lucas is on a warpath.”

I sputtered on my coffee. Gods, not Lucas. After not running into him for the past week, I’d been hoping he’d finally given up on interfering with my search for my mom.

Dawn lifted a brow. “Interesting. You’ve gone two shades paler just at the mention of his name.”

“Just tell me what you know.”

She wrinkled her nose at my tone, but continued, “He believes he’s been betrayed. Someone called in a favor, presenting him with one of his feathers, but now he believes the feather was stolen. The favor he was doing wasn’t for the person he thought.”

“His feather?” I asked.

“Yes, something else I learned from the gargoyles. When an angelic owes someone a debt, they will give that person one of the feathers from their wings. When that person would like to settle their debt, they present the feather.”

So had my mom had a feather? But if the favor called in wasn’t actually from her, that would mean— “Who does he think someone tricked him?”

Dawn shrugged. “The gargoyles weren’t sure, they just knew that he was hunting someone, and that was why.”

So that’s where he had been, hunting whoever had actually tasked him with killing night runners. But that same person had also asked him to protect me… And then there was Marcie, the celestial woman who was working with him, who had tried to warn me away from the guys…

Just what in the hells was going on?

We both turned at the sound of voices outside my front door proceeding a knock. Recognizing the voices, I called out, “Come in!”

The door opened, and in walked Elena and Crispin, clearly already deep in their own conversation. They stopped talking as they realized I wasn’t the only one in the room, then Elena’s face lit up.

“Is this your old boss?” She approached the sofa, nearly tripping over her own brown boots. Along with the boots she wore torn jeans, a striped tank top, and a jean jacket. “What perfect timing. I spoke to Rian this morning.”

Dawn gave me a horrified expression. “Just how many people have you told?”

“Not that many!” I promised. “But she had to know enough to ask around.”

“And she is?” Dawn asked tersely.

Elena did a little bow. “Princess Millelena, at your service.”

Crispin rolled his eyes at Elena as he moved to sit beside me on the sofa. “She’s Eva’s old boss, not a queen from a neighboring kingdom.” He straightened his moss-green shirt, which somehow matched his tweed trousers, then put a companionable arm around my shoulders.

I wiggled a bit at a tickle of magic between us. I was enjoying seeing Dawn with her jaw agape at a total loss for words, but when she looked back and forth between the three of us, her eyes lingered on Crispin’s arm around me.

Seeming to finally realize what he had done, he withdrew it.

“ Anyways ,” Elena drew out the word as she slunk forward, then sat cross legged on the floor. “Rian is single and he’s intrigued. He remembered you, and said he would like to meet for tea.”

Dawn lifted a hand to her chest. I thought she might pass out then and there. “He—wait. He wants to meet me? He wants… tea?”

Grinning, Elena nodded.

I couldn’t help but match her grin. Honestly, I hadn’t expected this outcome. A lot of the older elves weren’t really interested in outsiders, especially outsiders with troll blood.

Dawn tore her eyes from Elena, then looked at me. “Eva… What do I do?”

I had absolutely never seen her like this, and I had to admit, it made me feel a little sentimental toward her. I gave her an encouraging smile. “You go to tea.”

She lifted her forgotten coffee cup, but didn’t drink. It seemed more like she was just lifting it out of reflex. “I go to tea,” she repeated.

I nodded. “And if you get any more information from the gargoyles, you give it to your beloved Eva for free.”

Crispin watched the exchange with an amused expression before lightly placing a hand on my shoulder and leaning toward my ear. “When you have a moment, I need to speak with you. Alone.”

His tone was far more serious than I had ever heard it. And just like that, the lighthearted moment was broken.