King Cave (9 page)

Jack reacted, jerking with a deep inhale before hurdling from the bed. He bellowed in ferocity as he stalked to the living room area grasping at his chest. He lifted the coffee table and pitched it against the wall; the glass shattered as he bent at the waist, yelling, “
Nikki!
” Another furious shout and he roughly seized the golden chair and propelled it into the bookshelf, half the books tumbling to the ground. His chest heaved, and he stared at his now plain palm, his mate mark gone, and
roared
, using that same hand to shove a different row of books off. Then another row. And another.

With his hands gripping the empty shelves, he kept his back to us as his body sagged and his shoulders started quaking. Crying silently. His massive frame drooped against one of the bookshelves, his forehead resting against the wood, as his pain began unleashing in a torrid of soundless sobs, overtaking his fury.

Ezra briskly wiped a hand over his face, and appeared to fortify himself with a gradual, deep breath. Cracking his neck once, he tossed the lipstick aside and moved behind Jack. Ever so gently, he rested one of his hands on Jack’s shoulder.

As I rocked Pearl, only my soft humming was heard on this forsaken day.

Abruptly, Jack turned to Ezra, wrapping his arms around him, and wept — still soundlessly — against his best friend’s shoulder, no words said.

Ezra held him, much like I was holding Pearl, and soothingly rubbed his back.

I doubted Jack felt it. Just as I was betting Pearl couldn’t discern my touch. Their own loss pulling them into a dark abyss I had hoped they would never find.

Ezra and I were still there for them. We always would be.

Though this night was not one I would ever wish to remember.

Dragging minutes passed. Another round of fury unleashed from both of them. This time Pearl also unleashed her anger by blowing up the couches, as Jack froze the bookshelves to crack them with his iced fists. Their tears were ever-flowing.

When they both crashed, falling to the floor, Ezra and I picked them up, lay them in the center of the bed, and crawled in around them, holding them as they wept themselves into a fitful sleep of mental exhaustion.

Ezra eventually left the bed to flip the switch, turning off the glittering golden lights, and only the stars and moon of the spelled ceiling lit his way back through the debris.

My eyes met his troubled gaze as he crawled back in beside Jack.

Without a sound he lifted one of his hands and rested it on Pearl’s side, his fingertips grazing mine in a comforting gesture, before he intertwined our fingers. Our eyes held the truth now. We had both been drawn back into our own haunted memories of when we had lost our mates; the actions of tonight had brought them to the fore. But together, in due course, we fell asleep alongside our heartsick besties.

English accented cursing woke me.

Rolling away from Jack and blinking, I opened sleep-blurry eyes to see Pearl glowing golden in the living room area, one of the couches she had demolished last evening wavering and materializing back into shape…except it didn’t look quite right. It was too long and the color was navy. I watched as she jerked an agitated hand — she was still in her clothes from the previous evening, her golden hair askew around her face — and the couch darkened to black. It was still too long.

She cursed again.

Gently leaving the bed, being careful not to wake Jack or Ezra, I padded toward her on silent feet, but gave her plenty of space, since she wore the furious expression of the tormented. “Pearl,” I whispered, the sun beginning to rise above us and giving enough light from the yellow, orange, and blue ceiling for her to see me clearly, “May I help you?”

Her jaw clenched, and she flicked her hand. The couch turned purple. “I’m trying to clean up the mess.” Another twitch of her hand, and the couch went black and only three cushions long, appearing as it did normally. She nodded once, crossing her arms.

“I can see that,” I murmured softly, prudently, because she was still glowing. “Is there anything I may do to help?”

Perhaps make sure you don’t harm yourself from Mage energy?
I wasn’t sure that was possible, but right now her expression didn’t bode well. She appeared a bit crazed.

Her lips pursed and her gold eyes darted, never staying too long on one area of the hazard zone that had become our living room. “You could dust.” Her words held finality. She raised her hands and a bottle of Windex and a washcloth appeared in her grip. She held them out. “Take the couch first while I continue with the other furniture.”

Who the hell cleans leather with Windex?
Not to mention, it wasn’t dirty. But…yeah. I would clean alongside her and watch to make sure she didn’t take one of the shards of glass from the shattered coffee table and do something unforgivable.

Taking the items from her hands, I mumbled, “Alright.”

So I cleaned.

And
cleaned
.

And dusted some more while she spent an hour figuring the correct way the golden imperial chair had been…and she went through many different variations.

Jack rolled in bed once, slitting open his red rimmed eyes, only to roll back over.

Pearl handed me a lint brush and pointed at the — now — perfect golden chair.

With hands reeking of Windex, of which half the bottle had gone to scrubbing the couch, I nodded dutifully and started rolling the lint brush meticulously over the spotless golden cushion. Listening to Pearl curse repeatedly as she started on the brown leather love seat — all the while wishing she would fix the damn coffee table so there weren’t so many sharp objects lying about — I bent to reach the golden legs of the chair. Without warning, heated hands rested on my hips and muscled legs brushed the backs of mine. After scenting the air to confirm the individual’s identity, I tilted my head to the side when Ezra leaned over me.

Against my ear, he whispered, “You got this?”

“Have been for the last hour,” I murmured, glancing at Pearl. “Can you handle Jack?”

“Yeah.” Ezra’s heavy sigh was stricken, his warm breath fanning against my neck. “I’m going to find a TV to bring in here. I don’t think he’s getting out of bed for a while. He’s lying awake over there, staring at his hand.”

Straightening, I popped my back, then relaxed against Ezra’s solid strength. He gently massaged my cramped back muscles as we contemplated the new sunlight and the crystal clear blue sky above us. I whispered, “It’s hard to believe beauty can still exist when the world is so bleak.”

He hummed lightly as we watched a bird fly across the sky. “It’s the beauty that helps us return from the harshness. If it wasn’t there, we would have nothing to live for.” With ease, he brushed his lips against the side of my neck. “I’m going to take a shower, then find us a TV.”

The actions of our brief conversation were so domesticated, so
normal
, during this turbulent time; it was exactly what I needed to fortify myself to be who Pearl needed.

I went back to cleaning.

A knock sounded on our door two hours later. I was still helping Pearl, while Ezra sat next to Jack on the bed flipping through channels on the flat screen TV he had found, trying to find a station that didn’t show anything about the riots. The television hung suspended in the air between two dressers.

At the sound of the knock, Ezra and I both froze. Jack didn’t move, which wasn’t surprising, and Pearl continued muttering to herself and pulling on her hair as she — finally — attempted to get the coffee table back to rights. My eyes swung to Ezra, and he blinked, staring at something on the wall. He pointed in the direction of the closets while saying softly, “Your name’s glowing above your closet.”

The knock came again.

I raced across the room to see that, indeed, my name was glowing above the door to my closet. “It could be like a doorbell, telling us which door someone’s knocking on?” I glanced around worriedly. “Maybe they’ll go away?”

Once again the knock sounded, more forcefully this time.

“Or not.” Ezra jumped from the bed and turned toward Pearl. “Think I can move her?”

We stared.

“No,” I whispered, watching as Pearl magically raised the coffee table into the air, which currently looked like a science experiment gone wrong. “I wouldn’t mess with her.”

Ezra ran a hand through his spiked hair. Nodded jerkily. “Alright. We answer. Elder Farrar spelled the rooms. He wouldn’t do this without a foolproof plan.”

Warily, we moved to the door.

Ezra positioned himself behind me like a sentinel so no one could enter.

I slowly opened the door a smidge to peek through the crack.

Amused golden eyes found mine. “‘Bout time, Lil.”

Antonio shoved the door with his hand, bumping my body back against Ezra’s as the door swung open fully. His eyes went wide as he watched Pearl make the freaky coffee table hover before her and spin in a circle so she could see all the wrong angles. His lips pursed as his golden eyes darted to Jack on the bed.

Rolling his shoulders, Antonio peered back to us and said softly, “The room is obviously spelled. Only you four and the person who created the spell,” he smirked, “me, can see what is really happening inside. When a door is knocked on, the owner’s name will glow above their closet, which, it appears, you already figured out. Remember to keep your hand on the doorknob, otherwise they won’t be able to see you. To them, the room appears as your old rooms did at the Kings’ houses.” He glanced to Ezra, then back to me. “They won’t even be able to hear the other heartbeats inside.” He held a finger up. “But don’t let them in. If they cross the entrance, the truth will be shown.”

I blinked.

“I also came to tell you there’s a meeting in the Ruler’s main conference room in an hour.” He lifted a hand, which held a large paper bag. “And to give you sustenance. It’s everyone’s favorite.” He passed the bag to me and kissed my cheek, whispering, “Take a shower, Lil. You stink of cleaning products and your hair’s a mess.” He stared at Ezra over my shoulder for a few moments, an unreadable expression on his face, before turning on his heel and sauntering down the hallway. “You’re welcome.”

I started, hollering at his retreating form, “Thank you!”

He waved a negligent hand before turning the corner and disappearing from view.

Ezra and I stood frozen, staring after Antonio, before Ezra tapped the door closed with a swift flick of his finger. His arm curved over my shoulder as he lifted the bag from my hands. Glancing inside it, he hummed in appreciation before bumping me with his elbow. “You don’t reek so bad. Though you do have major bedhead.”

“Thanks,” I muttered, turning to peer into the bag. My stomach growled. “I’m still going to eat before I shower.”

Ezra and I wandered the twisting hallways of King Cave, trying to figure out where the hell we were going. Antonio had kindly placed a map inside our breakfast bag, but we were still lost. Jack remained in bed, and he hadn’t moved or eaten any of the food we left on one of the bedside tables. Pearl had finished reconstructing the coffee table and had moved on to fixing the bookcases. Neither of our best friends were in a state to attend this meeting. Hopefully, it wouldn’t last too long so we could quickly get back to them. So it seemed right on par for this awful morning that, as we rounded a sharp corner, I slammed against an enormous, firm body.

Grunting, I started to fall, but Ezra’s arm blurred. He caught and righted me. Swiftly pulling his hand back, Ezra started to maneuver around the man I had slammed into.

I wasn’t moving. My feet were firmly planted to the cave floor as I stared at a god of a Shifter. Seeing panting in my future, I quickly shut my mouth and stared instead.

“Sorry about that.” The black-haired Shifter grinned. “Who knew King Cave could have danger lurking around the corner?”

My eyes ate up his features as Ezra stepped back beside me, obviously understanding I wasn’t moving anytime soon. “Yeah, who knew?” The Shifter’s brown eyes were very pretty on his rugged, chiseled face. Holding out my hand, I stated, “I’m Lily.”

He chuckled, extending his hand and taking mine in a firm handshake. His gaze never once dipped away from mine, holding eye contact, which was damn impressive. This Shifter was most definitely a strong alpha. Probably my age of twenty or right around there. “I’m Finn, and I know who you are. It’s lovely to meet you.”

After releasing my hand, Finn held out his own map, still holding my gaze. “I got in only an hour ago, so I have no clue where to get something to eat. I’m embarrassingly lost.” He wasn’t embarrassed at all with the way he stepped forward, invading my space.

I didn’t mind one bit. It had been a
long
time since I’d had a bed partner. My hormones kicked into overdrive when his heat pressed against me. “I can’t help you with that,” I murmured, sounding a smidge breathless and tilting my head toward Ezra. “We’re also lost.”

Finn didn’t even glance at Ezra, his eyes leveling with mine as he bent. “That’s a pity.” His dark head tilted as his nostrils flared — a tiny smile etching his yummy lips — more than likely scenting the fact his mere presence was turning me on. “Maybe we can find it together.” Not really a question, more an implied request to something else altogether.