Dark Champion (Flirting with Monsters #4) - Eva Chase Page 0,51

to the end, and heaven help anyone who got in my way.

14

Sorsha

As he smoothed another dab of aloe gel over the burns on my back, Snap’s hands couldn’t have been gentler, but my skin was so raw that I winced anyway. He made a fierce hissing sound through his teeth.

“I’d devour the sphinx without any regrets whatsoever,” he declared.

Of the many things I could have pointed the finger at Tempest for, flambéing my body wasn’t one of them. This had definitely been a self-barbequing. But I couldn’t quite bring myself to correct my lover, any more than I wanted to ask if anyone had heard anything about a sudden blaze in downtown Pisa last night. Denial might be a river in Egypt, but I could transport it to Italy if I wanted to, thank you very much.

None of my companions had mentioned the flashfire, but then, we’d driven right back to Rome, and they weren’t exactly avid watchers of the news. And maybe they wouldn’t have thought much of it anyway. A block of shops and all their contents incinerated? Just the dangers of mortal living.

I wished I could dismiss it that easily—and at the same time the thought of ever overcoming the guilt twisting through my gut horrified me.

“If that would be enough to end her, we’d toss her right to you,” Omen said from the doorway, although he’d know even better than I did that Tempest wasn’t likely to let anyone toss her anywhere in the first place.

I shifted where I was lying chest-down on my bed so I could pull my hair out of the way. Snap smeared more of the aloe—my second coating since I’d returned last night—across the back of my neck. “How are we going to come at her next, now that she won’t be accepting any friendship bracelets from you?”

“I’ve been thinking about that while you’ve been sleeping,” the hellhound shifter said, as if my repose had been pure laziness and not a physical necessity. “With our best option for stealth out the window, we may need to return to your old strategy of strength in numbers. Perhaps we can round up a shadowkind or two with some ability that proves to be a game-changer.”

“I think our hacker friend can come up with a few more people with Company connections for me to sweet-talk in the meantime,” Ruse said, sauntering past Omen into the bedroom and propping himself against the small dresser. “Might as well wring everything we can out of them.”

Thorn formed out of the shadows at the base of the bed so he could get in on the conversation too. “I could attempt to speak to my wingéd brethren once more. They were hesitant to become involved, but if I could quickly see to their concerns… It might be a simple matter.” He sounded doubtful, though.

“I will aid you in whatever their demands require,” Flint put in, peering over Omen’s shoulder.

A second later, Antic bounded in, her kindergartener-sized body jittering with excitement. “I know! You all haven’t been thinking big enough. You’ve only been looking mortal-side. Why don’t I go through a rift and see if I can round up some real help from the shadow realm?”

Omen folded his arms over his chest. “We don’t need a horde of gnomes and pixies.”

“Hey, a horde can get plenty done! And I can convince beings bigger than me! One of my best friends was a sea dragon, I’ll have you know.”

Between the lot of them, there was barely space to move in here anymore. I made a grumbling sound and reached toward the stack of clothes beside my bed. “Whose idea was it to have a strategy meeting in my bedroom—and while I’m shirtless? Let her go through the rift. There are a hell of a lot more of you on that side than here. I’m sure she’ll find someone.”

“Off with you, then,” Omen told the imp. “We’ll see how long it takes for you to find that someone.”

“Aye, aye, captain!” She saluted him and scampered back out, which didn’t exactly open up a whole lot more space. I tugged on my shirt, careful of the sensitive patches of healing skin on my neck, back, and arms.

Snap rested a protective hand on my hip. “You and I could go looking for shadowkind together, Peach,” he said. “I can spot the ones in the shadows—but you’re better at explaining how much we need their help.”

Omen gave a definitive clap. “Perfect. I’ll search around the