mauling everyone I could that wasn’t Skoll. Eyeballs and throats squelched and erupted under my deadly gifts.
I let out a shriek when the last body fell and shifted back. We all did. The crew renovating Scorchwood was going to have a huge mess to deal with. There was blood everywhere. The warden’s old apartment was deathly silent.
Skoll scowled and raked his bloody fingers through his hair.
“I forgot how miserable this place is.”
The heat was on in this prison area, so it wasn’t horribly cold, but it was still dire in here, even without the dead bodies. I threw the door open to the apartment. Fergus was sitting up and rubbing his head.
Kudan was gone. He portalled out. We lost him.
Chapter 38
Rei
T
his was a wonderful birthday, even if I was in prison. Faust didn’t make me work on his files, and he didn’t just bring me that delicious cupcake. He brought leftovers with him for lunch, and it was this fantastic goat cheese pizza. He cooked it himself too. I didn’t take Faust for a pizza-eating, cupcake delivering wolf, but I was here for it.
I was leaning back in my chair, patting a massive puppy belly.
“What else do you do besides cook amazing pizza? Tell me something no one else knows about you.”
“I will if you will. And it doesn’t have to be what you are either. Tell me a secret, Rei.”
“You have yourself a deal.”
“I live in a cabin in the woods. I own ten acres of land, and I built my house with my own two hands. I love being out there, and I’ve never brought anyone home. I’ve been fine with that, but I’ll be honest. It’s starting to feel a little lonely.”
He looked at me with his amber eyes like he wanted me to be the first person who saw the cabin he made. And that was way too much pressure. I was a serial dater with commitment issues, and Faust looked vulnerable right now. I always fucked things up and ran before they could hurt me first. And I never dated shifters because they could scent I wasn’t what I said I was. I avoided the supernatural community in general and stuck to humans when it came to dating. I shouldn’t even be thinking like this about Faust. Or Dakarys and Rajack for that matter. Jobs were jobs. Feelings shouldn’t get involved.
“Why hasn’t anyone seen your place before?”
Faust just smirked at me, and gods, he looked so sexy when he did that.
“That’s not how this game works, Rei. It’s your turn. You can ask me something else once you’ve spilled a secret. And that’s how it goes. This game is a lot more fun with beer, but I can’t sneak that in here.”
I let out a groan.
“Please don’t mention alcohol. I could really go for a cold beer or warm sake.”
Faust laughed.
“I’m sure you can get hooch in your cell block. We haven’t tossed the cells or bathrooms in a while. Every gang does something different with theirs. You’re stalling.”
“No, I just perked up when you mentioned booze. There’s a difference. You already know a lot about my past. I’m trying to think of something you couldn’t find online. I’m assuming you’ve already dug through my social media?”
“Does that upset you?”
“Are you still stalking me?”
“No. I’m stalking the Aether Circle now. I’m going to bring that entire coven down.”
I usually would have noped right out of there if anyone had dug through my adoption records and social media and admitted it to my face. I should have been doing that with Faust instead of sitting here sharing secrets and eating his pizza and cupcakes. So, why wasn’t I? Why was I so drawn to him? Maybe because he was willing to wipe out the entire Aether Circle for me. As far as impressive things guys could do for girls went, that was right up at the top.
“Okay, here’s something you might not have found. How did you know pizza was one of my top foods outside of Hauser’s steak and mac and cheese? Did he tell you?”
His entire face just lit up.
“He didn’t, and I didn’t know. It’s one of my favorite foods too. You’ve had Hauser’s steak, but you haven’t had mine.”
That feeling was back in my gut. I mean, Faust was offering me his meat. It came from a cow, but I was seriously wondering about his meat. What the fuck was happening? It was time. Hauser said I could trust him, and I