XXII

A job well done had never felt so loathsome to Raphael. Piranhas gnawed at his insides with each furtive glance he stole at Jax. They walked the entire way to his laboratory in grim silence.

At first, the courtiers they passed spared them curious looks.

Then they hurried to get out of their way. Even the vampyrés.

Raphael expected a bomb of anger to detonate once the door to the laboratory shut behind them, but one good look at Jax had him reconsidering. A frown of epic proportions rested on his face, but his shoulders were also slumped.

"Thank you," Jax said hoarsely. "For having my back in there. You didn't have to say those things."

"Of course, mate. It was nothing."

"It was something. It was something to me." Jax cleared his throat looking mildly uncomfortable as he held Raphael's gaze. "It's been a long time since… well, since someone's—"

Raphael's gut twisted into a knot, vanquishing the piranhas so close to consuming him whole. "You don't have to do this." Raphael made a vague gesture with his hand at the space between them. A wave of warmth crawled up his cheeks, and he too, cleared his throat. "I get it."

"You don't."

"I do," Raphael promised through a thin smile. He didn't want the praise or thanks being offered to him. It only fed his bothersome guilt.

Jax grew solemn in his regard, before offering a subtle dip of his chin. Relief washed over Raphael at having dodged the claws of his conscience when Jax opened his mouth and said, "You've been a brother to me these past few months. I hope you know you can call me one, too."

Brother.

The word galvanized some deep part inside him that Raphael didn't know what to do with. His mouth went dry before giving a jerky nod. Jax smirked, but it faded when Raphael cleared his throat a second time. Jax's eye trained itself on his neck where the impression of Ruby's grip lingered.

"She shouldn't have done that."

A self-deprecating smile curved Raphael's mouth. "It was bound to happen sooner or later."

Jax frowned. "Ruby trying to kill you?"

"Moreso, us two coming to blows." Raphael leaned forward a bit as if preparing to tell Jax a secret. "If you hadn't noticed, we don't exactly get along. I'm a bad influence, remember? Supporting your completely unhinged theory that reversing Irina's curse means utilizing the thing that created it; dark magic."

Jax gave a grunt. "Unhinged?"

"Aren't all great sorcerers called mad at one point?"

Red spiked Jax's cheeks. "If I was so great my plan would have worked." Raphael watched the muscles flex around Jax's jaw. "If I was so great—"

"They would trust you?"

Jax's lips clamped shut and the red in his cheeks spread to his ears. A bitter seed of guilt uncoiled in Raphael as Jax's anger and pain reignited. But he couldn't stop. The conversation held too much potential to break Jax's remaining faith in the Vranas and lure him to the demon's side.

"They would respect your judgment because you're the only one with the power to reverse Irina's curse?"

"I'm sure I'm not the only one," Jax muttered sourly.

Raphael served him a dry glare. "You are. So, what are you going to do about it, mate? How can I be of service? I don't know every language on the face of the earth like Ruby, but I have been called clever. Also, if I recall correctly, I did stop you from adding too much of whatever that concoction was that could blow a person to pieces into your potion."

"That's the thing," Jax growled in frustration. "I don't know where to go from here. I've exhausted my resources."

Jax raked a hand through his hair before heaving a sigh and plunging deeper into the laboratory. Raphael cringed at its state of disarray. It was far worse than even last night. How is that possible? A sweet yet sour odor perfumed the air, growing stronger with each step Raphael took. His nose scrunched up.

"You certainly have," Raphael remarked.

His gaze slid over the dirtied pile of mortar and petals, fuming distilling columns, and stacks of scrolls and books littered over every surface. He stopped near a shelf stuffed with papers smeared with an oily substance.

Raphael grimaced. "Remind me again how you get anything done in here? Let alone find what you need?"

"I get plenty of things done... though I have been having trouble finding some things, hence the current mess."

"What things?"

"A decoder, for one, that helped me read the grimoire in some amount, albeit a small amount," Jax grumbled. "Some rare stones as well. Mind giving a look under those papers for my fountain pen?"

Raphael scowled at the pile Jax referenced.

"And potentially ruin my suit with whatever yellow substance is all over it? No thanks."

Jax grunted and glanced at his outfit. "New suit?"

"I came into a bit of a windfall recently, so yes, it is new, and expensive." Raphael thought briefly of Tanyel's outrageous payment before pushing her from his mind and wandering closer to a nearby table of jewelry. His hand hovered over a teardrop-shaped sapphire the size of a thumb knuckle.

"Don't touch anything on that table." Raphael froze. Jax wasn't even looking at him. "You'll suffer pain beyond what Irina just endured. Those are my failed siphons… though I suppose I can add the one we used today to the pile."

Raphael let his hand fall back to his side and moved toward Jax. He sat on a high stool pouring over the Gamayun clan's grimoire, back hunched and head making a slow pass from left to right over its pages.

"Not that you asked for my opinion on the matter," Raphael carefully drawled as he neared Jax's side. "But I think you know exactly where to go from here."

The muscles in Jax's back bunched together. "I can't. Jakob was clear in how he wanted this handled: no dark magic."

"Yes, but what are the chances he wouldn't immediately forgive you once Irina's back to her normal hybrid self, regardless of whether you used dark magic?" Raphael countered.

Jax glanced at him. "You're saying it's better to ask for forgiveness than permission."

"It's always the better way."

A moment of silence stretched between them before Jax cleared his throat. "Normally, I would, but another factor is at play."

"Outside Jakob's trust and respect?" Another silence stretched between them, thinner than the last. Raphael wondered if he crossed a line until a chuckle came from Jax that set his arm hair on edge.

"I think I lost that about twenty minutes ago, don't you?" Another acerbic laugh left Jax as he turned in his seat to face Raphael. "That doesn't have me hesitating, especially when I know dark magic is the key to undoing Irina's curse.'

Raphael stood a straighter as he folded his arms over his chest. "What does?"

"My patron, Anubis. He's powerful and merciful. He's gifted me with more autonomy and magic than any patron I've had before. I worry treading into this territory of magic may put him off me. He's been less than receptive to other magics I've dabbled in—" A frown tumbled down Jax's features making him pause for a few seconds "—which I found odd considering…"

He trailed off, his frown superseding his train of thought. Raphael waited a beat before encouraging him to continue.

"It doesn't matter," Jax replied, although displeasure still marred his face.

Apparently, frowns were contagious, for Raphael found his brows drawing together and the corners of his mouth dipping. "You're concerned he'll be put off you? You mean, abandon you?"

Jax tensed. "For lack of a better term, yes."

Raphael took a moment to absorb the affirmation, eyeing Jax hard as he did. "Like after what happened with Deval?" He questioned quietly.

Jax swallowed and his shoulders dropped. As did his frown. "Yes, like that. When they cut me off, or abandoned me, as you so aptly said, for turning Deval into a hybrid and saving his life, it was like being shoved overboard and left adrift at sea. I think the only other way to describe the experience is soul-wrenching, which is why I'm eternally grateful Anubis took pity on me.

"It was the longest, most painful day of my life. I'll never forget it. Never forget how life was so much less without magic in it." Jax rubbed the back of his neck, eye closing as a half-smile, half-grimace passed over his features. "I don't think I can go through that again if I'm being honest."

His words struck a chord in Raphael's blood and jolted something inside of him that left his nerve endings tingling. Raphael breathed through the sensation.

"Didn't you have, er, multiple patrons before?" Raphael asked.

"I did."

"Couldn't that be a work around of sorts? Employ a new patron who wouldn't snub you for a quick dabble in dark magic?"

Jax snorted. "It doesn't work like that. They're not in my employ, I'm in theirs."

"So, there's no way for you to advertise you're looking for more… employment?"

"There is, but I won't. Anubis would undoubtedly turn from me with such a snub."

Raphael hummed in acknowledgment then peeled away from where Jax sat. He wandered to a table, playing host to a stack of dirty, empty cauldrons. Apprehension lined his stomach. He did his best not to let it show in his gait or voice.

"What if you had a potential patron waiting in the wings for you then? One that wouldn't turn up its nose at you for practicing in dark magic? One who you could go to if Anubis didn't approve of what you do to save Irina? One that I myself am familiar with?"

It was the first time Raphael had brought a question like this to the table. But it was now or never. They joked before and mockingly invited each other to "join" their side, but this was different.

Raphael's inquisitive tone fished for a real answer.

A lump formed in Raphael's throat the longer the silence dragged on. Maybe I'm not being transparent enough? Or is he really considering it?

His apprehension grew until he couldn't take it anymore and passed a look over his shoulder at Jax. He met his gaze unflinchingly. Raphael immediately picked up on the air of regret shrouding him but made no word to speak. If Jax was going to turn him down, he'd have to say the words aloud.

"It's… more complicated than that."

Raphael nodded in understanding while his body buzzed with a spike of exhilaration. It wasn't an outright no, and he hadn't actually expected Jax to jump ship. He was vulnerable at the moment, not desperate. He simply needed the offer out there. That way, as time ticked away for Irina, he would have Raphael's offer to fall back on.

"Say no more." Raphael shifted back and bumped into the table. He reached back blindly to steady it, face instantly screwing up in disgust. " Mate ." Exasperation filled his voice as he rocked away from the table and displayed a hand with something blue and glittery smeared across his palm.

Jax laughed out an apology.

"Get it off then," Raphael said. "And while you're at it, clean the rest of this place up, too, with your little magic act."

Jax's laughter grew, but he complied. With a quick rap of his walking cane against the ground a warm phantom breeze flew through the room. It swirled around his hand, tickling his skin as it gently eviscerated the mystery substance from his person.

Magic carried several objects across the room toward the cleaning and sanitary stations. Raphael gave a grunt as one of the cauldrons behind him knocked into his shoulder, wobbling in the air as it followed the other soiled instruments to their fate.

"I think half the court would die of shock to know you're such a slob."

Jax rolled his eyes. "Says the complete sociopathic neat freak. Has your set of rooms ever seen a speck of dust? It's unnatural."

Raphael looked away with a shrug. "I'm merely a product of my upbringing, or rather, I am neat and tidy in spite of it. What's your excuse? I have a hard time believing Jakob would have tolerated—" Raphael waved a hand in the air, ducking his head when a ladle zoomed his way, "—this."

"Blame Sebastian." Jax spun back around to face the grimoire. Raphael heard the smile in his voice. "He's the one I got it from."

Raphael let out a little growl as he ducked for cover once more. Some of the tools and instruments sent for cleaning were already returning to their rightful places.

"Duly noted," Raphael grunted, glaring at a passing set of scalpels. He didn't particularly want to know what Jax had used them for. Returning his attention forward, he steeled himself to cross the room and return to Jax's side when he caught sight of a cauldron careening toward him. It was only a few feet away.

He flung out his hands in front of him with a sharp curse and a strange current of electricity followed. It sliced through his body as he braced for impact.

"Shit!" Jax cried out.

Raphael tensed further, but the blow never came. His lungs deflated as he carefully lowered his hands to see the cauldron hovering an inch away from his palms.

"Gods, mate." Raphael exhaled loudly through his nose, shaking his head as he side-stepped the cauldron. He left his hands raised on the off chance its stasis suddenly disappeared. "Trying to finish the job Ruby started?"

He received no response to his jest and Raphael's gaze darted to Jax. He looked as if he'd been struck.

"You all right?" The rest of the room remained enthralled in Jax's magic. It writhed over his skin. "Jax?"

"Don't freak out."

Raphael had been ready to cross the room again, but Jax's words froze him. His heart thundered against his chest.

"What is it? Did something poisonous fall on me? Did I… did I breathe something I shouldn't have?"

"No." Jax rose slowly. "Nothing like that."

"Then what?" Raphael demanded. He began to lower his hands more when the cauldron moved with him. "For the love of the Gods," he muttered as he jerked back from it. The cauldron wobbled, then fell to the ground with a clatter. "Go on then, you can't tell a person not to ‘freak out' and then not explain. Very uncool, mate. Very uncool."

Jax's expression deepened as his eye swept over him critically.

"What. Is. It?" Raphael said through gritted teeth.

"The cauldron."

Raphael looked down at it. "Will need to be cleaned again."

Jax shook his head and snatched up his cane. With two raps, all objects in motion stopped midair, then fell to the ground. Raphael flinched at the clatter. "You don't know… the cauldron..."

Raphael looked at it again. There was nothing about it that caught his attention. He ground his teeth and inhaled through his nose before turning his irate regard back to Jax. "What about it? You stopped it—barely in time, I might add. If you hadn't realized, this glorified pot is made of cast iron." Raphael nudged it away with his foot. "Think of the damage that would have done to my face. You know it's how I make half my money. Well, not half—"

"I didn't," Jax interrupted.

Raphael paused and stared at Jax. Comprehension refused to settle upon him. "Didn't what?"

Jax held up a finger. "Remember what I said about not freaking out?" Raphael nodded with an exasperated sigh, but it didn't stop his muscles from tensing. "I didn't stop it. You did."

"No," Raphael replied instantly. " You did. You're a sorcerer. I'm a demon."

"With that display, I disagree."

Silence dominated the room before Raphael let out a boisterous laugh. "That's not possible, mate."

Even as he spoke the words, a tremor of something answered beneath his skin like an electric current. His laughter died down as the tremor transformed into a fine-tuned thrumming that gave him goosebumps. Jax cocked his head, eyeing Raphael like one of his experiments.

The look sent his teeth on edge.

"It's impossible, Jax." Raphael injected every ounce of conviction into his voice.

Because it couldn't be true. It couldn't. That would mean— hell , he had no idea what it would mean. However, he had enough sense to know it wouldn't be good.

A ringing sound issued in his ear, becoming more pronounced as the seconds passed. Raphael stared at Jax unblinkingly. He saw his lips moving, but whatever words he said were muffled by the warning siren going off in his head.

It wasn't until Jax sat back down and gave him a small shrug that he was able to pull himself from his state of shock.

"So, maybe it's not as impossible as you think. Irina's a tribrid, for Gods' sake. River's a—" Jax stopped himself, shaking his head with a weak grin. " William and Deval are hybrids. My apologies, River's lycan heritage on her father's side made me slip." He gave a dismissive wave of his hand. "The point I'm trying to make is that there is a chance you could be as well."

An invisible hand gripped Raphael's heart and squeezed. "A hybrid ? They're only that way because of the vampyré blood they ingest. You explained it to me before, months ago, remember? I might not have understood all the higher points of the magic involved, but the part about the vampyré blood stuck.

"What was it you said? There's some 'transformative' property to their blood because of the necromancy magic used to create the first vampyré. You said yourself that you believed the blood was one of the determining factors of creating a successful hybrid."

Raphael surprised himself with his passionate argument. It bordered on vehemence, and he couldn't put a finger on where such vitriol came from. Perhaps because the prospect of being even more of an outcast in court would sign his death warrant… or because some achingly small part of him wanted it to be true .

The invisible hand tightened.

"Theories can change," Jax replied calmly, although a flush crept onto his face. "This manifestation of power might not be as random as you think. We've spent a lot of time together. It's very likely from being in close company with me that Anubis has seen something in you that is worthy of his gifts."

"Anubis has, but the demons' own godly patron hasn't?" Raphael let doubt flood his voice.

Jax cringed and softened his tone. "Listen, Raphael, you're different from every other demon at court. Maybe that difference is why the demon patron hasn't considered you worthy,"—Raphael swallowed roughly as Jax's reasoning hit too close to home—" but Anubis or some other God has. I really think it plays some kind of factor here."

The level of composure and compassion from Jax left Raphael speechless. His pulse pounded through his head. He couldn't hear his own thoughts let alone sort them out. Instead of replying, Raphael shook his head.

Brow lowering a fraction, Jax continued even more gently, "If it's worth anything, I think you'd make a fine sorcerer. Maybe if you hadn't been made into a demon, some God would have found you regardless and gifted you with power."

Raphael closed his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose. The sentiments didn't help. All he could think of was his past. If he'd been gifted with magic by some Godly patron, he and Layla never would have had to endure their childhood. He would have protected them with his power, lifted them from their pitiful lives, and allowed them to thrive.

Yet no God had chosen to intervene, which was why he couldn't wrap his head around the fact that one would do so now . Especially with his demon ties and now with the untimely discovery of his soulmark.

Raphael blanched. Could that have been the trigger? As if Stella hadn't already ruined his plans and efforts with a single touch and a few damning words—now this? He shuddered.

"Listen, Raphael—"

"Drop it, Jax." Raphael's hand dropped as he opened his eyes and leveled Jax with an intense stare. "Tell no one this happened. Better yet, forget it ever happened. I refuse to be even more of a pariah to my kind than I already am. Besides, I doubt the court would appreciate another hybrid amongst its ranks, given how they've reacted to Irina, let alone a demon hybrid."

Heat scored his voice, but Jax remained indifferent to his anger. In fact, his pensive expression remained firmly intact. After a beat, Jax rose and walked to a nearby bookshelf. His hand skirted over several leather spines before plucking a slim grey book out of the lot. Jax walked over to him.

"You don't have to answer the call of magic. Sorcery is a choice when all is said and done. You can put in the work to show your dedication to a God, but they may not choose to bestow any power on you. Likewise, a God may be inclined to offer you patronage, but you don't have to accept." Jax held out the book. "Before you decide, read this. Nobody needs to know, and no harm will come from it."

The last part was a lie. Harm would most certainly come of it. Most likely in ways Raphael couldn't predict, and those he could.

Like with his death, and Layla's.

Stella's as well, because of their newfound bond.

"How do I know that the demon's patron won't view this as a snub?"

"You don't."

Raphael swallowed thickly. Here was the true test of all his hard work, and likely, the best opportunity he would have to turn Jax. His palms went clammy as he sent a silent prayer to the Gods that Jakob was right, and no sorcerer could resist the allure of dark magic. "I'll read it on one condition."

Jax quirked an eyebrow.

"You do one spell that's considered dark magic." Jax sucked in a breath. Raphael rushed on. "Only one. Nobody needs to know, and you won't hurt anyone with it," Raphael parroted back Jax's logic. "You need to do this. You're running out of options and time with Irina.

"That, and because I think you deserve to prove to yourself that this magic of yours isn't some fluke to do with the mirror or any other excuse Jakob and Ruby might come up with. It's because you're different. You're a master of magic, not a slave to it."

After expelling a long wind of breath, Jax nodded. "Just one spell," Jax agreed his expression unreadable. "As for you, you should know you'll most likely experience more bouts of unexpected magic. In my experience and others that I know, they usually accompany high spikes of emotion or stress."

"Wonderful," Raphael said, voice dryer than the Sahara. As if the weight of the world doesn't already rest on my shoulders.

"Also, the magic won't last forever. Think of this as a trial period of sorts. At some point, the God who gifted you this magic will demand a decision. You'll have to decide then and there if you want to keep the magic and submit to their patronage or not because the offer won't be made again."

It was Raphael's turn to nod as he absorbed the information. Jax held out the book again. This time, he took it.