Chapter 23

CHAPTER 23

XANDER

" T his is it," I announce as we arrive at a nondescript wooden door in an alley off the main road. Beige and cream limestone buildings line the quaint street filled with small eateries and shops. Wide sidewalks are filled with tourists and locals alike during the dinner rush. The buzz of the crowd died off as we left the main area and entered a more residential part.

"Are you sure?" Briar asks as she stares down at the worn slip of paper with "36 Rue Cler" written on it. None of us need the paper. We all have it memorized, but I think Briar finds comfort in having something of her mom here with us.

Things with Briar have been… different since she found me after I lost it with Bastian. I don't know what I expected when I heard her walk up behind me. I would've deserved yelling and blaming for upsetting Bastian. What I didn't expect was Briar's honesty and vulnerability. She gave me more insight into why Bastian does what he does than anyone has in the past fifteen years.

She also shredded my damn heart with how much pain infused her words. Briar's poker face is exceptional, so I rarely know what she's thinking or feeling. While the abuse she's dealt with would be enough to drown anyone, I thought Briar was the exception. With how stoic she is most of the time, I figured she wasn't as emotionally affected by it—not like Bastian was by his trauma, anyway.

Hearing her talk about the times she thought about dying to get away from it all was enough to undo me. I simultaneously wanted to murder everyone who ever hurt her and wrap her up in a hug and never let her go. While I wasn't able to kill anyone right then, I did hold her trembling frame in my arms for a while. It soothed a part of me that never felt calm before meeting her.

Talking with Briar also made me realize maybe I'm not as okay as I thought I was. Nothing happened to me, so I should be fine. But seeing how much my twin hurt was so much worse than getting hurt myself. I've tried so hard to be enough to make up for letting Bastian down that I've ignored my own feelings for a long time.

"Yeah, sweetheart, I'm sure." The way Briar's eyes widen at the endearment and my soft tone make me feel like an even bigger dick. I'm trying to believe her that I won't drag her down, but it's hard. I've felt responsible for all the bad things that happened for so long that it's my default setting now.

For some reason, Briar wants me. Pushing her away only hurts her, when all I want to do is keep her safe. If she's determined to be with me, then I need to get my shit together and be the man and mate she deserves.

"Um, yeah. I guess we should go in," Briar stammers. My mouth curves up in a small smile at how cute Briar is when she blushes. Shaking her head at herself, she reaches for the wooden door. Predictably, Kai steps in front of her to go into the building first. He's always been protective of everyone he cares about, but since meeting Briar, Kai's protectiveness is through the roof.

Briar rolls her eyes at my oldest brother before following him inside. Saint heads in after, leaving just Bastian and me. Everything's been strained with Bastian since I yelled at him. Neither of us really know what to say to the other but being at odds with each other hurts both of us.

Shoving my hand through my hair, I try to figure out how to resolve it. "Hey, Bastian?"

He doesn't turn around to look at me, but he does stop walking. "Yeah, Xan?"

"Love you," I rasp, unsure how to convey everything I feel.

Bastian turns around to face me, gaze shining with love and worry. "Fuck, man, you know I love your dumbass too." A half smile crosses my lips at his response. "I'd do anything for you, you know that. Just… don't leave me. Please. I need you too."

Hearing the pain in my twin's voice hurts way worse than a bullet to the chest. "I'm not planning on going anywhere. I don't regret saving you from getting shot, but I won't make that a habit, okay?"

He snorts. "I guess that'll have to do, twinnie. I don't know what happened between you and pretty girl, but you've been doing better with her for the past couple of days. Try not to fuck it up again."

It's my turn to huff a laugh. "That's the goal."

"Good. Ready to go in?" Bastian asks.

"Yeah, let's go." I gesture for Bastian to go ahead of me. Entering after him, I close the heavy dark wood door behind us. I look around at the deep navy walls, dark herringbone wood floors, and the black wrought iron staircase. There's nothing in here other than the staircase that disappears through the ceiling painted to match the walls. Up we go, I guess.

My boots clank on the skinny metal rungs of the spiral stairs. This staircase could definitely make someone motion sick with how tight the curve is. The winding stairs end at the second floor. The walls and ceiling are deep burgundy, only broken up by a dark wood door with a brass doorknob on the opposite end. That's where we find Kai, Saint, and Briar looking at the door in confusion.

"Is it locked?" I ask.

Briar turns around to look at me distractedly. "Yeah. I don't see any keyhole or a way to get it open."

Moving closer to the door, I notice that the brass doorknob has what looks like letters inscribed all around it. Only, the letters aren't in our alphabet. "What's written around the knob?"

"Something in Phoenician," Kai answers. He's the best at languages out of any of us, so it's no surprise he recognized the alphabet. "But none of us can read it, so it's not much help."

Tilting my head in thought, I realize something. "Briar, can your wolf read it?" It might be a long shot, but Dido was Phoenician.

Briar's eyes light up at my suggestion. "I don't know, but I'll ask her. That's a great idea, Xander." My chest puffs up in pride at her praise.

Her eyes go unfocused for a moment before she crouches down in front of the knob. In a move that's too fast for me to react to, Briar shifts one nail into a claw and slashes her palm with it. Blood wells up from the three-inch cut. She grabs the door handle with her bloody hand and mutters something in a language I don't understand. When she twists it, the door swings inward.

She turns around and comes face-to-face with a furious Kai. "What the fuck was that!" he shouts at her when she stands up.

"That was me opening the door, Malachi. You're welcome, by the way," Briar sasses.

This only antagonizes Kai, who crowds Briar against the wall next to the door. He puts one hand around her throat and leans in until their faces are practically touching. The mage takes a step toward them, red sparks shooting from one hand. I groan at the clusterfuck this is going to turn into if they both don't chill the fuck out.

"Kai! Saint! Can you both take a step back and calm down?" Both Kai and Saint whip around to look at me. Kai doesn't let go of Briar, and Saint doesn't let his magic recede. But it's a start. "Saint, Kai's an alpha wolf who's worried about his mate. He would never do anything to hurt Briar. Without a completed mate bond, Kai's a bit more volatile, so cut him some slack. Kai, Briar was doing her best to solve the problem. She didn't think about how her actions would make you feel. You can ask for more consideration in the future without shouting and pinning her to the wall."

Briar is gaping at me in surprise, Saint lets his magic die down, and Kai steps back from Briar and hangs his head. I let out a relieved breath when the tension ratchets down.

"I'm sorry I yelled at you, Briar," Malachi whispers. "You were bleeding, and I lost it because I was worried. Xander's right. I should've kept my cool."

"It's okay, Malachi." Briar walks over to him and leans her head against his chest. Kai tangles his fingers in her hair and holds her to him for a moment. "I'm sorry I didn't think about you being freaked out by the cut and me bleeding."

"You're forgiven, baby girl." Kai holds her for a long moment before stepping back. Briar turns to look at Saint.

"Uh, I guess I'm sorry for thinking about barbequing one of your wolves?" Saint asks rather than states. Briar looks at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. At her pure laughter, the rest of us can't help but join in, diffusing the remaining tension. After getting his mirth under control, Saint moves over to Briar. "Can I heal this for you?"

She gives him a nod. He murmurs something, and the cut starts closing up. I can smell the strong peppery scent of magic in the air as Saint uses healing magic. Once the cut is all healed up, he casts another spell to clean the blood off Briar.

"Thanks." Briar inspects her hand for a moment. That makes me realize that the craziness of Briar partially shifting got lost in all the chaotic aftermath.

"Briar, how'd you partially shift?" I ask.

"Um, I don't know." She shrugs at she looks between her hand and me. "Dido just did it for me. Why?"

"Partial shifting isn't something shifters can do—or at least it wasn't until you," I amend.

Her eyes widen, and then her features fall. "Of course it isn't. Why would anything I do be normal?" She looks like she can't decide whether to cry or break something. I didn't mean to make her feel bad with my question, but I did anyway.

Trying not to let my frustration at myself boil over, I rack my brain for something to make her feel better. Bastian beats me to it. "Pretty girl, normal is boring as fuck. Your partial shift is one of the coolest things I've ever seen. That's an awesome and hella useful ability to have."

Briar takes a deep breath. "Yeah, I guess you're right. We should take a look at what's in here." She avoids eye contact with Bastian and walks over to the door, letting Kai go first before following silently.

A frown tugs at my lips at her response, but we need to focus on the task at hand. I'll see if Kai or Bastian will talk to her more about it after. We all know they'll do a better job at talking to her than me. I have chronic foot-in-mouth syndrome when I'm around Briar, but I'm working on it.

Shoving my hand through my hair, I mentally fortify myself for whatever we're going to find behind this door. I'm the last one through, but I still suck in a breath in shock at what I see.