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Chapter 8

The vampire scribe,Pierce, arrived around lunchtime the next day and met with Reynard privately in the conference room, since Pierce refused to discuss anything with the "duke killer" present. I wasn't entirely sure what to make of the name the vampires had given me, and instead avoided them, preferring to check in with Madame Matase.

She sat at the reception desk, knitting needles set aside as she spoke on the phone and scanned the guest book, booking some potential guests a room for next week. She wore black lace, and had her tumble of dark hair pinned back, adding a touch of glamor to our tired foyer. Madame Matase had been one of my lucky finds, like Zodiac.

I got a glimpse of the book, noting lots of names. That was good. We might actually make a profit soon, if occupancy stayed up once the novelty of a Lost Ones hotel wore off.

She ended the call and smiled up at me. "Hello, darling. How are you?"

"Oh, I'm fine. Has there been any more unusual activity with the wards?"

"There was, Adam, yes. Two nights ago, in fact. How did you know?"

"I see." When Zee and I had been getting up close and personal in my room. I suspected we'd found our culprit. Me. "Did the wards swell again?"

"They did, yes. Just a little. Do you know what's causing it?"

"I think so, yes. It's nothing to worry about." Not for her, anyway. But I was going to need to examine my own cursework and the glamor trapped beneath it, and patch any leaks. I wasn't a natural curse maker. Curses were sorcery. Which was probably why the desperate, last-ditch one I'd performed on myself was beginning to fail. Hiring a licensed sorcerer was out of the question. They had to report to the authorities any unregistered cursework, and mine was definitely unregistered.

"Mr. Adam Vex?" a soft, delicate male voice, sweetly slithered into my preoccupied thoughts, demanding I pay attention.

I turned to find a tall, androgenous fae peering down their fine nose at me. They wore a one-third length, dark duster coat over a dark gray suit. A badge flashed at their hip, which they made sure to show me with a flick of their lean fingers. Their pale green hair had been trimmed at jaw length, into a perfect bob.

Mercy, they were pretty.

"Good day to you Mr. Vex. My name is Agent Elion Leomaris with the Special Supernatural Division." They pronounced every word slowly, stretching each syllable to beyond an inch of its life.

Wait. The SSD? The supernatural police.

"Oh dear."

"Excuse me?"

"Nothing." I casually propped an elbow on the front desk. "All our business licenses are up to date, and our Lost Ones licenses too. We're all above board. Absolutely legitimate. Nothing untoward happening here. It's really quite boring, actually." Definitely no dead demons in the flowerbeds, no human protestor's corpse somewhere hidden, or an interdimensional, incorporeal shadowbeast in the attic. And definitely not anything so powerful living under the SOS Hotel roof, that it would see my home, my life, immediately shut down and quarantined.

I smiled, my one hundred percent human, innocent Adam Vex smile.

"I'm here at the request of one Detective Somers," he said, his voice as soft as silk. "I believe you've met?"

"Detective Somers? Yes, we met. I'll be honest though. His baseless accusations regarding my business partner are bordering on racism against demons."

The tall, lean fae propped their hands on their hips, shifting their coattails back, and sighed. "Yes, that is not unusual, unfortunately. But some of his accusations are quite serious in nature, and do warrant a follow up from my department, hence my arrival. Perhaps we might discuss this in private?"

"Now?"

"Yes."

"Oh, well, there's an ongoing meeting in the conference room, and the bar and restaurant are busy with lunchtime. Uhm, so there really isn't anywhere."

"Your room, perhaps?"

"My room?" I did have a seating area in my room, but I'd never used it for formal meetings. "I suppose that will do. Madame Matase, if Lord Reynard should finish his meeting early, please tell him I'm meeting with Agent Leomaris in my room." I tried to convey that she should send Reynard up immediately, since he was much better at these things than I was.

She nodded. "I will do, Adam."

My thoughts raced as I climbed into the elevator with the SSD agent. The fae were notorious liars and con artists, which made them excellent at detecting liars and con artists. Hopefully, Agent Leomaris was here to tick a few boxes and that would be the end of the matter.

At my room, I invited them in, and quickly scanned the floor for any dirty or bloody laundry. I hadn't slept much after leaving Zee at Razorsedge, and had tidied my room instead. That burst of cleanliness happened to be perfect timing.

"Please, take a seat, Agent." I gestured at the little table and chairs by the window.

They glided around my room, taking the long route to the chairs, and paused at my shelf of cat figurines. "You like cats, Mr. Vex?"

"I like collecting things."

"I see."

"So, how can I help?" I sat, hoping they'd do the same. They did finally make their way over, swept their coat out, and took a seat in the chair opposite.

"You're aware of Detective Somers's concerns, and I'm sure you're aware a protestor went missing the day this hotel opened."

"I heard about that. How terrible. We, of course, had nothing to do with it."

"I'm sure." They smiled and leaned back in the chair, getting comfortable. Their coat flopped open, showing the gleaming SSD badge. "It's quite admirable, what you're doing here. But also rather foolish. You see, I have spent the last three years attempting to craft order from chaos. Lost Ones, such as myself, were never meant to exist this side of the veil. Some blend in successfully, others have a harder time of it. But one thing remains consistent—trouble follows some wherever they go."

"Humans are the same, I guess. We have good and bad ones, you know?"

They smiled, and a few seconds passed. "Were you aware, the human female you bought this hotel from hasn't been seen since the sale?"

"Oh dear. She was sweet. She liked cats."

"Answer the question, please Mr. Vex." They continued to smile, but their smooth, soft tone now had a barb behind it.

Hm, was Agent Elion Leomaris going to be a problem? "I was made aware, yes. But we had nothing to do with that. The sale was all above board."

Agent Leomaris nodded. "Tell me about your feud with Gideon Cain of Cain Developments."

"Feud?" I laughed. "Oh, we don't have a feud?—"

"Do not lie to me, Mr. Vex." Their pale green eyes narrowed. "Prior to my career as an agent with the Special Supernatural Division, I was a successful bounty hunter for many years. There wasn't a bounty I could not track and capture. Rabid shifters, demon troublemakers, dark sorcerers... No single target escaped my crosshairs, so to speak."

My heart stopped. I coughed, and it kicked back into gear. "Oh? We uh, we don't allow bounty hunters in this hotel, for the safety of our guests."

"Of course not, and I'm no longer a bounty hunter. But do not look at me and assume you can talk me around in circles. One liar to another."

A tiny voice told me to run now. To run and keep on running. Agent Leomaris was going on my Bad People list. "I uh... I'm not lying."

Their mouth teased a laugh that never made it past their thin lips.

This fae scared me more than Detective Somers ever could. I knew their kind—bounty hunters. Hired by the highest bidder to take down anyone and anything. No morals, no code. Just ruthless pursuit of their target. They carried crossbows, and could hit a target a mile away. They hunted their prey to the ends of the known Earth. Was this one here to hunt me, and lying about it in that clever way the fae lied? No. Leomaris couldn't know who or what I was. But I did need to be careful. They were clearly good at their job.

"Between you and me, Gideon Cain is not what he seems. He attempted to kill my business partner." Better to put the fae's focus onto Cain, and off me.

"Is that so?" Their pale eyebrows lifted.

"He's sore because he wasn't able to buy the hotel. Gideon sent a shadowbeast to kidnap Zodiac, and demanded I sell or Zodiac would die. We're lucky we were able to find him in time. We have done nothing wrong, but Gideon Cain won't let it go. Honestly, I'm afraid of what he'll do next." I leaned forward and whispered, "I think he might be an unregistered sorcerer."

The agent's pale eyebrows lifted in alarm. "You didn't report the incident?"

"No, I... I didn't want it known that I couldn't protect Zee. If I can't protect my own business partner, how can I protect anyone? It would damage our reputation—a reputation I'm trying to build."

The ex–bounty hunter cast their gaze out my window. "I understand. Disagreements between Lost Ones that have the potential to escalate are exactly why I'm here. But here is my problem. A missing protestor, a missing vintage human, an unreported disturbance at Cain Towers, multiple massacred demons in Runo potentially linked to your business partner?—"

"There's no proof of that. Zee hasn't done anything wrong." I was getting pretty tired of people accusing Zee without any evidence.

"You misunderstand, Mr. Vex." They reached inside their coat, withdrew a card, and handed it over. "Humans have a saying: there's no smoke without fire. It is my job to discover what is burning. I merely seek the truth. If you help me do that, then you have nothing to worry about."

The truth? That was rich, coming from a bounty-hunter fae who had never cared about the truth in their whole life—at least, prior to becoming trapped here.

Leomaris stood and buttoned up their coat. "Also, during my arrival, I noticed your wards have extended far beyond their legal boundaries. This is a breach of city code, and while not my department, I suggest you have someone take a look at it before it gets you into trouble. Trouble is not something you need more of."

"I will do that, thank you. I'll see you out."

We walked back down to the reception desk, and Agent Leomaris said their farewells in their slow, melodic drawl, which seemed to take forever. Their visit had made it very clear, we were on the SSD radar. But now, so was Gideon Cain.

They turned toward the door, and almost walked straight into a sparking zip in the air. Zee burst through, spilling all of his larger-than-life self into Agent Leomaris's path.

"Thank fuck that's over," Zee breathed, grinning. He gave himself a shake, like a wet dog, flinging out his tail, wings, and nails.

"Zee!" He was okay! His little waistcoat had been slung on in haste, his pants were creased too, but otherwise, he looked great.

"D'yah miss me?" He spotted the SSD agent peering at him. "Oh, hellooo Legolas. What tall side order of cool lemonade are you?" Zee purred, stepping close, charm level ramping up to eleven.

It was probably best not to flirt with the SSD agent who had the power to shut us down with a click of their fingers. "Zee, this is Special Agent Leomaris from the Supernatural Division."

"Oh, fuck." Zee sprang back. "You good, Mr. Agent? You look fucking great, very official and... important. I fucking love your coat. Wow, so vintage. And your hair? Gorgeous!" Zee winced, caught my gaze, and his eyes widened in alarm. Swaggering my way, he mouthed silently, "What the fuck?!"

I didn't care. He was here. He was alright. He'd come back! I wanted to run at him, fling myself around him, and smother him in kisses.

"Good day, Adam," Agent Leomaris finally said. "I'm sorry I missed the opportunity to speak with you Zodiac. Perhaps another time?"

Zee draped himself against Madame Matase's desk and saluted. "For sure, Agent Fae."

We all watched the agent leave, and gave it a few beats before breathing out. "Zee! You're?—"

Zee thrust out a hand. "Nope. Don't get close. Meet me in my room in fifteen minutes." He poofed away, leaving me speechless, deflated, and adrift. He was alright, wasn't he? What if he wasn't? What did I do? "Madame Matase." I dashed to her desk. "If you were a demon and you needed a little comfort, what gift would you like?"

"Hm, I don't know. Some sage, perhaps? It's very soothing and clears bad thoughts."

Maybe she was the wrong person to ask. "I don't think Zee is into herbs, at least not those ones."

"Oh, a Squishmallow!" she suggested.

"A what now?"

"A squishy plushie, you know?" She squished her hands together in front of her. "They're adorable. Big eyes. Soft."

"I was thinking more of something I can find now, in the hotel?"

"Oh, well then, I'm not sure."

The conference-room door opened and Pierce emerged, followed by Reynard. Pierce glared daggers at me all the way to the door, and once he was gone, I approached Reynard. "Zee's back. He looks okay, I guess. But I'm not sure. What shall I give him to make him feel appreciated?"

"Well, this is good news, Adam, but we should discuss this contract?—"

"And we will. But I want to give him something, so he knows we missed him."

Reynard thought for a moment. "I find a good cup of tea soothes almost any ailment."

"Uh... he's not really a cup of tea person."

"No, that's true. A cocktail, then?"

"Great idea." I showed him both thumbs, in a thumbs-up, and backed toward the bar. "And we'll talk. Soon. Just... I just need to do this. It's important. You know?"

He smiled. "Of course, Adam. Summon me when you are ready."

"I will do that."

I tried Tom Collins, but his suggestions included a concoction of drugs and alcohol, which I was definitely not giving Zee. I eventually settled on something that soothed me when I was down, and hurried with it to Zee's room. I knocked, and heard his call to enter.

He'd left a trail of clothing, leading toward the bathroom. Steam rolled out around the half-closed door.

I loitered outside. "Hey." I needed to see him. Was he alright? I ached to see him, to hold him, so I knew we were okay. "May I come in?"

"Anytime," he said, sounding a lot less bubbly than he had in the lobby.

I nudged the door open and saw his wings first, rising up from where he reclined on the sloped end of the bath. He'd draped his arms over the rolled edges of the tub. A mountain of bubbles spilled onto the floor and hid the rest of him from view. His wet hair clung to his face, making him seem leaner and harder, but then he smiled, and the heavy burden of guilt lifted off my shoulders.

"Why are you holding a bowl of cheesy pasta?"

"It's mac and cheese. It's for you, but I... maybe later? I guess." I hunted around for somewhere to put the bowl, but there were bottles, brushes, aftershave, shower gels, and a whole array of body products all over.

"The mac and cheese is for me?" Zee asked, head tilted.

"It's silly, I know. I thought, well, it cheers me up, so I thought you might like it too?"

He beckoned me forward, took the bowl, and tucked in. "This is good," he mumbled around a mouthful. "Chef étrange make this?"

"Especially for you."

"This is the best fucking thing I've ever eaten."

I sat myself on the floor by the bath, and leaned against the side panel. "Do you mind if I stay?"

"I need you here," he said casually, then devoured the mac and cheese, and handed me the bowl to set aside. "That was so good. Mac and cheese is the fucking best."

"I'm glad. Madame Matase suggested a Squishmallow, but I don't know what that is."

He rolled his eyes up in thought. "Is it edible?"

"I don't think so."

He sighed, and draped himself against the back of the tub again. "This is good. You brought me mac and cheese. I have bubbles. I'm good."

He was back, but it seemed a bit too good to be true. "Are you good?"

"I will be." He stared at the ceiling.

I propped my chin on my arm, resting on the side of the bath, and studied his face, with its strong lines and angles. His little horn ring glinted, and his hair had dried some, springing out. He truly was beautiful, in a chaotic way. "I didn't think I'd see you again."

"Kitten, you're not getting rid of me that easily."

A sob wedged in my throat. "You said... it was over."

"For Sebastien. So he'd let you go." He turned his head, looking over. "Sorry. But you shouldn't have been there. Also, what the fuck, Adam? I told you to stay away."

"I know, I'm sorry."

"Sebastien is my battle. You can't fight him for me."

"I'm so sorry." He didn't fight that battle either, but I wasn't getting into that with him now. He was here, he was okay, and that was all that mattered.

"I know you are, Kitten. I can't stay fucking mad at you. What did I miss? What the fuck was that agent here for? No wait, tell me something fun. Nothing heavy."

"Oh erm..." Nothing heavy. "I sort of told Reynard I'm into him."

Zee's eyes widened. He twisted in the tub, getting closer. Water and bubbles sloshed. "Oh my fuck, give me the tea. Did you fuck? Please, tell me you fucked. No, wait, don't tell me. I wasn't here and I fucking missed it! Ugh, was it filthy? Was there hair pulling? Did he spank you?"

I laughed. "Stop! That didn't happen."

"You told him you want to climb him like a pole, and what did he say?"

"He kind of—sort of accepted it."

Zee rolled his eyes, then his head. "Did it go something like this?" He cleared his throat and donned a Reynard voice. "That's inappropriate of you, Adam. I only get it up for right angles and proper grammar."

"It's uncanny how good you are at impersonating him, almost as though you watch him?"

"I watch him because I don't trust him ... and also, he has the finest fucking ass this side of the veil. Those fucking pants... Have you seen how they sculpt his peachy cheeks?"

"I can't say I've noticed." I had definitely noticed.

"No, of course you haven't, Adam."

"Oh, please stop." I chuckled. "Zee, he makes me crazy. He got all bossy in Razorsedge, and I sort of liked it. A lot."

Zee's eyes glowed brighter. "Oh, babycakes, you got it bad. Seb put you in the red room, right? He said as much. Did you use the cuffs?"

I recalled the horror of the slings falling from the ceiling. "We didn't really get that far."

"I'm telling you, Daddy Fuck-Hard is a control freak. Total dom. You remember when he went rabid and we had to hold him down? You remember what happened?" Zee grinned.

I couldn't forget how aroused Reynard had been when we'd held him down and force-fed him my blood. He hadn't been all that surprised by the dangling leather and chain contraption either. "He saw your video, on your socials. You were holding a chain?—"

Zee jolted. "Vampire Daddy saw that?"

"He was speechless after."

"I told you! Control is his kink. I called it. He liked it, my video?"

"I think so. He did that thing where he can't say what's in his head, so he goes still and quiet."

"Fuck..." He sloshed back in the tub. "Maybe Reyzee ain't such a crazy fucking idea? Not that I care, right? Fucking Reynard is your thing, not mine."

I smiled at him, glad to have him back. "I missed you."

"Pfft, I was gone for like a day."

"Yeah, but it felt like forever."

"Zodiac, gone for less than a day," he said, all dramatic-like. "And in a day, you made moves on Vampire Daddy. C'mon, like you care what happens to me."

"I do care. A lot. Like... a lot, Zee." I propped my chin on my folded arm again and huffed. "Please don't leave again."

"Kitten, this shithole hotel? You? I know a good thing when I see it. I ain't going anywhere."

"What about Sebastien?"

"He's fine. Just so long as I go back once an' a while so he can get his rocks off, then he'll let me go again. It's a small price to pay to return to you and this place. Trust me. I can handle him."

"Did he hurt you, though?"

Zee closed his eyes and laid back, keeping his eyes closed. "You want me to answer that?"

"It's wrong, Zee."

"It doesn't fucking matter."

"It does."

"I'm telling you it doesn't."

"And I'm telling you that I—" I cut myself off before saying too much.

He cracked an eye open. "You what?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"It's nothing."

"The fuck? It's not nothing if you can't say it."

I shrugged, and scooted across the short space to lean against the opposite wall, needing a bit more room to gather up all my leaking feelings.

"Kitten." Zee huffed. "Talk to me."

"He hurts you, and I can't let it go like you can. I just can't. Because when you're gone, when you're there, with him, it hurts inside. It hurts my heart. I want to hurt him for what he does to you, Zee." The list of people I wanted to brutally deal with only had a few names on it, but Sebastien's was right up there.

"Kitten, look at me." He clutched the side of the bath, wings spread behind him, horns and hair gleaming wet. "You can't let him get inside you, that's where his power is. If you make it so it doesn't hurt, he can't control you."

"Is that where you are? It doesn't hurt you anymore so it doesn't matter?"

"Mostly. I stopped caring about me years ago."

"When you were sold?"

"When I was sold." Zee slunk back into the water. "I can help the others by having Seb focus on me. Then I come back here, and I know what it's like to have this life, even if it's not meant for me. I still have it for a short while. It's enough. Can you have me, like this, like I am, Adam? With half of me here and half there? Because if you can't, then maybe I shouldn't come back? If all it's going to do is hurt you?"

No, no, no, no. I'd make it work. "I can have you, even if it's just half of you. If that's all you can give."

"Okay." He nodded.

"Okay."

"No chasing after Sebastien?" he asked.

"No chasing after Sebastien," I grumbled. Breaking his contract wasn't technically chasing after Sebastien. "I care about you," I mumbled, because if I said it any louder, he'd hear the wobble in my voice.

He smiled in sympathy. "You think you do because you're sad, grumpy, feeling guilty, and you haven't eaten mac and cheese yet."

He was wrong. I knew my heart—the truest part of me—and it cared for Zodiac in ways that went far beyond friendship. But maybe it was a good thing he didn't believe me. "You want ice cream?"

"Is that what follows mac and cheese?"

"Every time."

"Then fuck yes, I'm all in." He flopped back in the tub.

I climbed to my feet, and collected his mac and cheese bowl to take back to the kitchen.

"After, can we spoon?" he asked, when I was almost out the door.

His big eyes explained his meaning. This wasn't about sex, but comfort. "I'd like that."

When I returned to his room with bowls of ice cream, I found him sitting cross-legged on his bed, wrapped from the waist down in a towel, with his tail idly flip-flopping beside him. After climbing on beside him, we ate ice cream, chatted about the hotel, and about plans for its future, avoiding any topics too personal or heavy—and Reynard.

When tiredness claimed us both, Zee crawled under the sheets, and I undressed and climbed in beside him. His soft breaths in the quiet of his dark room were almost comfort enough. Did I roll into his arms? What if I got hard? How did this work? I hadn't ever been close enough to someone to snuggle before.

"Come here, Kitten." Zee scooped me into his arms and spooned close, wrapping me in seven feet of demon, plus wings and tail. I sighed, cocooned in firm, muscular warmth. We'd hurt each other with our words, and we were a long way from perfect, but this was good.

There really was no better place to be, than with the people you cared about the most.

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