Chapter 274

After mom, Cora, and Tony leave, I send an experimental shout down my bond to Luca telling him to come up for dinner. I mean, we’re too far apart right now for us to pass emotions, but Jackson heard my wolf all the way from his room before – can Luca do the same?

As I begin to clear the plates from the table and send them down in the dumbwaiter, wondering if I’ll have to just go downstairs myself and grab Luca and Ben, I’m startled a bit out of my thoughts when Jackson places a gentle hand on my back. I jump a bit, nearly dropping the plates in my hand, as I snap my head up to look at him.

Jackson grins down at me. “You have to get better at paying attention to your surroundings if you’re going to be an effective spy,” he murmurs, though there’s no real critique in his words. I grin, stepping closer to him as he starts to take the plates from my hands, wanting to help.

“How do you know that looking distracted wasn’t just part of my cover? That I wanted you to think I was distracted so I could lure you in?”

“Because,” he says dryly, smirking at me as we walk towards the dumbwaiter together. “I could feel your worry down the bond.”

I scowl as he pulls open the tiny elevator’s door and we begin to stack the dirty plates inside. “Yeah well,” I sigh. “A real target wouldn’t be able to feel my emotions.”

“Good,” Jackson growls as we finish stacking plates. “I’m selfish about those – I like keeping that all to myself.” I grin as Jackson pushes the dumbwaiter door shut and presses the button for the little bell that’s next to the door before putting a hand on my hip, pulling me towards him as he sits down on Rafe’s bed and looks seriously into my face, settling me so that I’m standing between his knees. “Seriously, Ariel? What’s wrong?”

I bite my lip and shrug. “It was…just a scary morning, wasn’t it?”

Jackson shakes his head, raising a hand so that his thumb brushes over my cheek. “I know it’s more than that,” he whispers. And I close my eyes, a whoosh of air coming from between my lips as I let myself remember it, let myself…notice it.

This new thing that’s awake in me now, a darkness that curls and smirks just…just like he did. I lean a little closer to Jackson, wanting him near, and his hands are instantly there, folding neatly around my waist, holding me steady.

“I want to tell you,” I whisper, nodding. “But…I want to tell mom as well. Is that okay? If I told you both together, tomorrow?”

“Of course,” he answers, moving his hands around my back and letting me fall against him, wrapping me up in a tight hug that does wonders for my fears.

I sigh, tucking my head close against him, my forehead resting against his neck as I take a deep breath of his scent. Jackson who is just…so good to me. And so safe. The darkness is still there, but in Jackson’s arms it seems to matter less.

“Of course, Ariel,” Jackson murmurs, running his hand softly up and down my back. “Whatever you want, love.” I nod my head against him, taking one deep breath after another.

But a minute or two later, I raise my head when I hear the door creak open.

“Um,” Ben calls out, peeking into the room. “Don’t you guys feel like you should start…locking this? Or something?”

I grin, standing up straighter, peering towards the door with a bit of delight as I see Luca come into the room after him.

“Oh, well, if the door couldn’t hold back Jackson and Luca,” Jesse answers, dry, looking up from his spot at the center of the room where he and Rafe are breaking up what’s left of the old door, “then what’s the point of a lock?” Ben and Luca laugh as they come in and immediately help my brother and cousin stack the pieces of the door up by the fire, where I can use them as firewood.

“How’d you two know when it was time to come up?” Rafe asks, peering interestedly at Luca and Ben as Jackson and I make our way over, greeting our friends.

“Oh, I just had a little feeling, like a voice on the wind,” Luca says with a happy sigh, gathering me up into his arms for a hug and beaming down at me. “That was cool, by the way. I didn’t know we could talk that far.”

“Well apparently we can!” I say, laughing a little, likewise pleased. Subtly, in my heart, I feel Jackson close down our connection, though – not wanting me to have full access to how my increasing connection with Luca makes him feel. Still, the fact that he needed to close it down at all…kind of tells me what I need to know.

Still, I put it aside, knowing that it’s not going to do much to address it now.

“So,” I say, putting my hands on my hips and looking between Luca and Ben. “How are we handling this?”

“You two,” Rafe says, pointing between me and Jesse, “are filling in these two,” he gestures at Luca and Ben.

“Are we?” Jesse asks, curious.

“Yes, because we two,” Rafe continues, pointing now between himself and Jackson. “Need to get our strategy together for the draft.”

“Right,” Jackson says with a sigh, dropping his head into his hand and then dragging his palm down over the length of his face. “I can’t believe…we have to do all of that. After everything that happened today.”

“Life keeps moving, even if we have a weird morning,” Rafe sighs, likewise shaking his head a little and looking tired.

“Weird morning,” Ben says, hands on his hips. “Seriously? That’s how you’re categorizing it after the door got shattered and the Queen got summoned, and Rafe was all…put through a meat grinder? And…did…I mean did I see it right? Does Jesse have some kind of weird…shadow?”

“I mean, sort of,” I say with a sigh, slipping a hand around Ben’s waist and pulling him towards the couch. “Come on, Jesse and I will catch you up. But also,” I turn towards my brother and Jackson even as they start over towards Rafe’s bed, where they’ll work tonight. “Can you guys make sure you put Tony on our draft team?”

“Seriously?” Rafe asks, turning to stare at me. “You want Tony? Even though we’ve…never worked with him?”

“We have worked with him all year, Rafe,” I say, snapping my hands immediately to my waist. “Plus, he is our friend!”

“Being our friend does not mean he’s a good strategic pick for the draft, Ariel,” Rafe counters, frowning at me. “Besides, he’s your friend – I still don’t get the guy.”

“Tony is trustworthy,” I counter, crossing my arms and glaring at Rafe. “What’s there to get?”

“Why do you think he’s so trustworthy, Ariel?” Rafe asks, taking a step towards me, glaring back. “We barely know him!”

“Oh, we know him,” I say, waving a dismissive hand that makes me feel like mom. “Besides, I just know!”

“Your gut feeling aside, Ariel,” Jackson says, his arms folded over his chest as he looks warily between Rafe and me. “I’m not sure how important it’s going to be to have an another ambassador on our team,” he says, giving me an apologetic shrug. “Especially if we already have Ben.”

“Wait, what?” Ben asks, stepping forward to peer at Jacks.

Jackson just stands still, looking at Ben. “You’re going to need to tell me what part of that was confusing.”

“Um, the part where you said that Tony guy was an ambassador,” he says, taking a step towards Rafe and Jacks, peering at them curiously. “He’s not a warrior?”

“He is not a warrior,” Luca replies, frowning at Tony now in turn. “He’d have been in our classes.”

“Well, he’s not an ambassador,” Ben says, giving us a shrug. “I mean, I always thought he was a little…scrawny, for a warrior. But he wasn’t in my class, and Ariel would have mentioned him as an espionage Cadet. Right?”

Everyone turns to me then as my mouth falls open and I shake my head. Because he is certainly not an Espionage cadet.

So…what the hell is he?