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My cell phone buzzed in my back pocket as I stormed off toward the water. I yanked it out, surprised. I forgot I even had it with me. I shouldn't have service out here. Glancing at the screen, I saw that I didn't have service. And yet, it was ringing anyway. Creepy fucking demons.
"What?" I demanded into the phone. I didn't have time for White's stupid fucking games right now.
"I can't find it," the demon said in greeting, his voice almost...whiny.
I scanned the water, hoping for some sign of a newly freed kraken. Kai was going to be pissed when she realized what had happened. "You can't find what?" I muttered into the phone.
"The vampire, idiot woman. It's leading me on a wild goose chase."
I growled at him. "Like I give a fuck. Kinda busy right now. You know. In the Indian Ocean. Clear across the fucking world. Why don't you use those resources you're always going on about?"
He huffed impatiently. "Hurry up and come back. I have a job for you."
I rolled my eyes so hard I saw starbursts for a while. "Are you fucking kidding me right now, White? You told me to stay away from the vampire. Now you want me to come back and find the damned thing for you?"
He was silent for so long I started to get worried. It didn't bode well when he was thinking. "I need bait," he said, voice once again calm and measured. Businesslike.
I groaned. "I am not going to come home and play vampire bait for you, asshole. Goodbye."
I hung up on him, ignoring it when the damned phone immediately started ringing again. I swiped the answer button. Then I hauled back and threw the fucking phone as hard as I could, watching happily as it shrank to nothing, glinting in the distance before it splashed into the water.
Halstad came to stand beside me. "That's not good for the environment."
I snorted. "How are we going to find Kai?"
He shrugged. "Not sure. Maybe she'll come find us. But you need to look after your boys first."
I arched a brow at him, and he shrugged again, turning to gesture at Hisashi and Oisin. "I'm sure as shit not handing out hugs and putting Band-Aids on their boo-boos," the mage said helpfully.
They sat on the sand side by side. The fae was dabbing blood from his face, since he'd pushed himself to the point of fucking brain damage.
The fox didn't look much better. He was an albino. So when he went all paler like that, it was worrisome.
"You okay?" I asked, plopping down on the sand between them.
Oisin stared at me with an unfathomable look in his green eyes. "Lovely."
Hisashi laughed, but his deep voice shook. "Are you okay, Gesa?" He pulled me close, using the maneuver to unobtrusively place a big hand over my stomach.
I huffed. "I'm fine. I'm a gryphon, for fuck's sake, not a delicate fucking flower." Even though his concern did make me want to emote all over the place.
I pulled away and gave them both a hand up. "What happened back there?"
Oisin lifted one shoulder in an elegant shrug, still princely and composed, even though he was literally drenched in blood—his and the siren's. "I pulled power from Hisashi through you and Halstad to boost my compulsion magic."
"Like, a fuckton of power," Hisashi muttered, rubbing his solar plexus, where we all seemed to be connected.
I blinked at them. "Never do that again." Idiots.
Oisin tossed his long hair over his shoulder, ignoring the tangles where the blood was starting to...clot. "Never make me."
I stared into those emerald eyes, seeing the anger there. The terror that he must have felt when he realized what was about to happen back there. It was the same thing I’d felt, seeing my entire pride about to wipe each other out. "Done."
He nodded. "Now, let's find your kraken, love. I'm thinking that swim she's always going on about sounds quite nice right now." He plucked at his damp shirt and it made a sucking sound as it pulled away from his chest.
I shook my head. I should be absolutely disgusted right now. But it was actually kind of hot. Seeing Oisin get stabby had a weird effect on my lady bits. Something that lethal shouldn't be so pretty.
He smirked at me as if he knew exactly what I was thinking. I spun back to glare at the water. "Where is she?"
We waited until the sun started to set. There was still no fucking sign of our kraken. Maybe she didn't realize we were the reason she was suddenly free. Maybe she was headed back home. I had no clue.
"We need a boat," Halstad ground out, his gravelly voice making me jump. I had been glaring into the setting sun, willing a giant sea monster to appear while I burned my retinas.
I sighed. "So, we have to go back and talk to the fuckface fish chicks?" I could feel them there, even now. The sirens hadn't shown themselves since I beat the hell out of them. But they were watching. Probably plotting.
"Come on," Halstad said, heaving to his feet and holding out a hand to pull me and Hisashi up from the driftwood log where we were all sitting. "I can start a boat without a key."
We walked the short distance to the docks, where I left Halstad and Hisashi to figure out which boat to steal. I had no clue about that shit. And Oisin was a princess. Princesses didn't drive their own boats.
The redhead leaned against me and I wrapped an arm around him. "Are you really alright?" I asked softly, smoothing a hand over the red silk of his hair, pausing to trace the edge of one perfect, pointed ear.
He sighed. "I will be. I just hate that I still feel...inferior."
I squeezed him, pulling him into a real hug. His slender arms wrapped around my waist and he rested his cheek on my chest. "Stop it with the inferior crap," I muttered. "You're fine just the way you are, fae."
He chuckled. "Oh, I know. I'm so fabulous that even on my worst day, I make other men cry in shame." Then his voice lost its teasing tone. "I still don't like it. Feeling weak."
I rubbed a hand over his back, which was less gory than the front of him. "I know." And I did know. That's why I put up with his irrational anger, his mood swings, his snarking at Halstad constantly.... It was just Oisin's way of coping. It was actually kind of cute, when you saw it for what it was.
Barf.
Oisin tilted his head back and his lush lips curved upward invitingly. His words were mocking, but his eyes were full of emotion. "You do know, don't you? You know all of me, even the things I try to keep hidden away." He lifted onto his tiptoes, lips barely brushing mine. "Which is why I know we'll have those pointy-eared babies one day, no matter what I might have said."
I might have made a sobbing sound before he pressed his lips to mine, silencing me.
The terrible, wonderful, jackass. I crushed his lean body to mine, at a loss for words.
Heavy footsteps on the dock made me pull back. "Aw for fuck's sake," Halstad muttered. "You lot just can't go five damned minutes without playing hide the sausage, can you?"
I snorted. It was a really bad time to be canoodling with my bloody fae. But hey, live while you can, right?
Oisin straightened and preened like a peacock. "Oh do shut up, mage. You're ruining the moment." He grinned, and I knew I was going to hate what came next. "I was just asking Gesa to have my babies."
I bit my lip to keep from shrieking. I still hadn't decided how I was going to share my little secret with Halstad. And now was definitely not the time for that. I yanked on Oisin's hair, making him wince. "Shut up!"
Halstad just shook his head at our stupidity, his voice full of dry sarcasm. "Right. Babies. Just what this bunch of fucktards needs."
He turned and gestured at the boat as the bottom dropped out of my stomach. Right. Well, now we knew just what he thought of that idea. Jesus, Buddha, and Odin, why couldn't I just lead a normal life?
We piled into our stolen boat and Halstad did something with wires and magic that brought it rumbling to life. It was too small to travel far. But we didn't need to sail all the way to mainland. We only needed to find Kai. Then Hisashi could pull us all back home through the otherworld.
Piece of cake.