Chapter 10

After finishing the bottle of wine together, James helped Sebastian clean up the kitchen. It was comfortably domestic, easy, like they were already familiar with each other's routines. James never would have thought they would work so well together.

"I might go back to the piano," Sebastian said when all the dishes were put away.

"Sounds good." James followed. It was too early to go to bed, and there really wasn't anything else he wanted to do alone in the dark house.

He sat on a chair by the guitars and watched Sebastian play. James wasn't sure if Sebastian realized, but this was doing a much better job of seducing him than the blatant advances. As he watched, it was easy to imagine allowing Sebastian into his life, despite his anxieties.

James had enjoyed the evening with Sebastian in a way he hadn't with anyone in a long time. But James knew getting close to Sebastian wasn't a risk he should take. He didn't trust the man and couldn't ignore that fact outside his fantasies. James found himself wishing things weren't so complicated, that he knew what was going on here with the house and why Sebastian hadn't been forthcoming. Then maybe he could see the two of them together.

James didn't necessarily want to be alone for the rest of his life, romantically speaking. He could accept dealing with his fears for the right person. It was too bad finding that person was so messy. The dating process itself wasn't something James dealt with comfortably, and really, Sebastian was the worst possible person to take those risks with. James didn't know if Sebastian liked him for more than his physical appeal, and even if he ignored all other obstacles, someone hiding out here didn't seem like the type to be looking for companionship.

However, James could watch Sebastian play piano and enjoy the view. He could daydream and fill his head with pretty pictures of Sebastian and himself, even if none of it would ever happen for real.

James blamed his sentimentality on the wine and the lack of distraction his phone typically provided. He wasn't usually like this.

The shades outside drifted up to the ballroom windows. They peered in, dark eyes glinting. It was freaky, far less appealing than the thought of a bunch of raccoons watching them.

It wasn't bright in the ballroom. Sebastian had brought an oil lamp and set it on a table next to the piano, but that was the only illumination other than pale moonlight. It wasn't like the night in town when the shade had been peering into a bright room.

James wondered if they liked the music.

"Okay." Sebastian stopped playing abruptly and pointed at the window in front of him. "That one right there hasn't blinked at all. It's making my eyes dry just looking at it. I'm going to bed."

James followed him from the ballroom, and they headed upstairs.

Sebastian turned clockwise around the landing, past doors James hadn't yet been through. "Here's the spare room." He opened a green door. "Mine is there." He pointed to an identical door at the end of the landing, situated toward the front of the house.

"And if Eli comes out here later?" James was doubtful his brother would be coming tonight. He spent most Saturday nights at Parker's, but just in case, he didn't want to miss him.

"I'll hear any knocking below my room—that's where the front door is—but I've locked the gate already."

"Why?" James hadn't realized Sebastian had done that, not that they'd been inseparable all afternoon.

"I always lock it, especially at night." As Sebastian swung the lamp away from himself, gesturing toward the road and the gate, shadows enveloped him, darkening the color of his eyes. "I don't need people driving onto the property and having their cars die, leaving them with all the shades swooping around."

It was a fair point, but James was more focused on how well the moonlight filtering from the skylight suited Sebastian. He pushed ethereal imaginings out of his mind. "My brother's probably not coming anyway."

"He'll come eventually." Sebastian sounded surprisingly reassuring, like he didn't want James to worry.

James nodded, thinking that was the end of the conversation, but Sebastian continued to hover.

"Bathroom's here." He pointed to the door next to the spare room. "So this is goodnight, unless you need company or don't want to be left in my scary house all by yourself." He gave a look of mock concern.

James huffed. "Unless you're making me sleep in a room full of jarred teeth and bits of bone, I think I'll be fine on my own."

Sebastian choked on a laugh. "This was my room when I was in high school. The creepiest thing you'll find in there is all my emo art stacked under the bed."

"You lived here during high school?" James was thrown by the realization. "I thought your mom had a house in town."

Sebastian set the lamp on a candle-covered table beside the door and crossed his arms. "Why would you think that?"

"I don't know." It had seemed logical. "You, your mom, and your sister all lived with your uncle?"

Sebastian let out a mean laugh. "My mom hasn't lived in Moonlight Falls since she was in high school herself, and my sister never has. Mom would send me here over the summer to stay with Uncle Stephen when I was little, but she and Kira always stayed in Phoenix. I came to live with my uncle permanently at the start of ninth grade."

"I guess I thought your mom moved back with you." James knew Sebastian hadn't spent his whole childhood in Moonlight Falls and hadn't gone to the elementary school here. He remembered him turning up only during the summer. But the Storms were Moonlighters, and when, one year, Sebastian didn't leave at the end of summer as usual, James assumed the rest of his family had stayed too. He was sure other people in town would have thought the same. Moonlight Falls always called its people home.

Though now he was considering it more closely, he didn't think he'd ever seen Sebastian's sister around and might not have realized Sebastian had a sibling when they were kids. When Sebastian mentioned Kira yesterday, James had assumed he'd just forgotten her over the years, that she must not have been close enough to them in age for her presence to register in his kid brain.

"Funny thing to think." Sebastian narrowed his eyes at James. "Did you ever meet my mom?"

"I don't remember. Maybe not." James didn't think he'd ever met Stephen Storm either. The older owner of Storm House had seemed more like a legend than a real person to James when he was a kid, just another part of the creepy tales of the forbidden property. Sensational stories he'd assumed were all bullshit once he'd gotten older.

"Well." Sebastian picked up the lamp. "There are some candles and a lighter in the room. You can snoop on my art if you want. I'm going to bed."

James didn't look at Sebastian's art. It felt too intrusive, even with the invitation. He wouldn't want anyone to read his high school journal, and art could be just as exposing.

The room wasn't as dreary as the rest of the house, other than the darkness. The walls were white rather than green and there was a well-worn beanbag in the corner. The room didn't have any decoration, making it seem like it had been cleared out when Sebastian left. The desk was bare and closet empty, but the sheets on the bed seemed fresh.

Had Sebastian prepared the bed for him? He'd have to have done it before James got there that morning.

James knew Sebastian had let him get stuck here on purpose and didn't understand it any more now than he had before. Everything was just so fucking strange. Why had Sebastian come to live with his uncle during high school? James didn't know how long the energy-draining problem had been going on here, but he suspected the house was like that back then or the wiring would have been updated. What kind of mother left her kid in a place without power if she had any other option? Why had Stephen Storm lived here at all?

James struggled to fall sleep. It was cold, so he didn't even get undressed. He just took his shoes off and got under the blankets. Leather jackets weren't ideal sleepwear. A hoodie would have been better.

As the night got later, James was no closer to sleep. A creaking sound out on the landing caught his attention. He listened, catching more faint creaking. Could it be footsteps, maybe Sebastian walking around? It probably wasn't anything worth worrying about. The house just freaked him out, even though he knew the wards were strong.

Eventually, James drifted off.

A loud banging woke him with a start. His heart pounded, and he was momentarily disoriented.

There it was again, a loud thud, thud, thud. It didn't sound close, but he couldn't be sure. James sat up in bed. He threw the covers off and pulled his shoes on. Out in the hall, he glanced toward Sebastian's room. The door was open.

"Did you hear that?" he called as he approached.

There was no answer.

Another thud cut through the silence. It sounded like it was coming from downstairs. James ducked his head into the bedroom. "Sebastian?" He scanned the place, not really taking it in other than for the fact that it was empty.

"Sebastian?" James called louder and then grumbled, "Dammit."

James left the bedroom and headed to the stairs. As soon as he turned to go down, he spotted the source of the noise. The front door was open and banging in the wind.

He hurried down to the entryway. "Sebastian?"

The man was nowhere to be seen. Had he gone outside? Surely not. He'd said he didn't go out at night.

James caught the door and held it open. Four shades hovered over the porch, looking at him. The only thing keeping them from floating inside were the wards. They clicked their teeth. James called for Sebastian again and got no response.

He peered out into the yard. Sebastian better not be out there. It was dark, the moon only half-full and the sky partially cloudy. There was no sign of Sebastian, so maybe James should search the rest of the house. But then why was the door open?

James called up a light and pushed it though the doorway. It wasn't a blindingly bright one, just enough to usher the shades back, but that wasn't what James was concerned with right now. He sent his light forth, ignoring the shades, and illuminated the surroundings beyond the porch.

The shades didn't immediately swarm back to the doorway. It seemed like they were watching what he was doing, maybe waiting to see if he would come out.

James sent the light across the yard to the gate. Nothing was down there, and it still looked shut. He moved the light along the edge of the property to his left, running parallel to the wall. Still nothing.

He sent the light toward the cow paddock. A path led along the fence into the redwoods that lay beyond the groomed part of the property. The forest within the grounds was a section of Storm House James hadn't ventured close to. There was some movement over that way, shadows swooping around closer to the trees.

James sent the light toward the disturbance. It was hard to see from where he stood in the doorway, so he half-stepped onto the porch.

Shades swarmed the path to the forest. James crossed the porch to the steps, trying to get a better look. Unease bubbled inside him as he was hit with the haunting effects of the property. He sent his light directly at the swarm of shades, pushing a few out of the way. The ones hanging around the porch moved in closer to him, but James didn't have a thought to spare for them.

Something pale was on the ground in the distance, something the horde of shades seemed to be attacking.

James moved across the yard at a run, fear coursing through him. He cast a spell to increase his light's brightness, and it flared, scattering the swarming shades.

Sebastian was on the ground, in the dirt, face down. He was nearly naked, pale skin covered in what looked like streaks of mud. One of his arms was outstretched, reaching toward the house. He wasn't moving.

"Fuck." James skidded to a stop and knelt. "Sebastian!" He grabbed his shoulder.

Sebastian groaned. James rolled him over, and Sebastian blinked at the light.

"What happened? Are you hurt?" James scanned Sebastian's body. There were scratches amongst the mud but nothing that looked serious.

Sebastian made a small, pained sound.

James scooped him up in his arms, doing his best to manage Sebastian's long limbs. "Let's go inside."

Sebastian didn't respond, didn't even grab a hold of James as he was being carried. James tried not to panic.

He had his light lead the way but dimmed it by half, not wanting to tire himself out. The shades followed, hissing and swooping in front of them. James didn't have time for their antics. As long as they didn't try to grab him, they didn't matter right now.

He made it to the house with Sebastian still limp in his arms. The shades on the porch were blocking the door as if they'd been waiting for him. He sent the light to clear his path, and they scattered. As soon as he crossed the threshold, he let the light go out.

James turned. All the shades seemed to have followed him and were waiting just beyond the doorway, their faces and blinking eyes pressed against the invisible barrier of the house's wards.

James kicked the door shut and headed for the stairs. "Sebastian, can you hear me?"

"Mm," Sebastian groaned, no longer completely still as small tremors wracked his body.

The anxiety gripping James's chest hadn't lessened after coming inside. He took Sebastian to his room and set him in front of a free-standing metal fireplace situated in the center of the room. James didn't let him go completely, lightly holding Sebastian in his lap, pulled close to his chest. The fire was low but much warmer than outside.

Sebastian continued to shiver in small bursts. His eyes were closed, and he still hadn't moved much.

James had to collect himself, think and figure out what to do. Sebastian's shivers could be one of two things: strictly from the cold or due to magic overuse. If Sebastian had drained himself—much more severely than James had under the house—that would explain his semiconsciousness too.

James inspected the cuts on Sebastian's arms more thoroughly, wiping away some of the mud. At least he found no injuries worth serious concern. "What were you doing out there?"

Sebastian opened his eyes. That had to be a good sign. If he'd gone completely unresponsive, that could mean he'd drained himself past the point of recovery. James's throat burned at the thought, but that wasn't happening. Sebastian was responding. Slowly.

James held Sebastian's stare. "Did you use too much magic?"

Sebastian nodded, the motion tiny but unmistakable, then shivered.

Okay, James could deal with this. Everything was going to be fine. He'd believe nothing else. He needed to get Sebastian warm, fed if possible, and into bed. He wasn't worried about hypothermia, but Sebastian's body didn't need to expend extra energy trying to regulate his temperature when he'd drained himself like this. The cold mud on his skin wasn't helping, and while James considered wrapping him up in front of the fire as he was, he thought he could take better care of Sebastian than that.

"Are you up for getting this mud cleaned off?" James asked.

Sebastian grabbed his arm and pulled himself closer to James. He seemed to be becoming more alert as time passed. "Yes."

"Where are your clothes?"

"As if you mind the view," Sebastian muttered just above a whisper.

Relief flooded James. Full, sassy sentences had to be good news, even if Sebastian closed his eyes and leaned harder into James afterward, shivering and breathing deeply, like the comment had cost him.

"Come on, let's see if we can get some of this mud off you. Then bed." James stood, pulling Sebastian with him. This time, Sebastian was able to move and stood with James's help.

They walked to the ensuite at the end of the room. The bathroom was spacious and much nicer than James expected after seeing the others in the house. With a skylight and large window, there was enough moonlight to see the relatively modern state of things, including the large tiled shower and clawfoot tub. The house had gas hot water, thankfully, but installing these fixtures without power tools would have been a lot of work.

James shook himself. Now wasn't the time to think about the house. "Can you stand in the shower?"

Sebastian shook his head before shivering again.

Maybe cleaning off the mud wasn't such a bright idea. Having Sebastian sit, exposed to the cool air while James washed him with a cloth, would only make him colder.

"Do you want a bath? Or just to get warm and forget about the mud."

"James," Sebastian whined. He sounded frustrated. "Fill the bath— I'm fine."

"You don't seem fine." James reached with his free hand and turned on the hot water to fill the tub.

"No, I'm fucked," Sebastian slurred. "Magic's useless."

At least he was talking more. James told himself again that Sebastian would be okay. He hadn't used so much magic that it would kill him, not if he was more alert now than he'd been when James had first found him. He seemed to have stopped shivering too, meaning his body had enough energy to begin recovering, even without food.

James didn't have to worry, but he still did.

He tested the water temperature. Satisfied, he plugged the tub. "Magic has its moments."

Sebastian snorted in what sounded like indignation. He tucked his face into the side of James's neck, his arms wrapping around James's waist, and held on as the water slowly rose in the bath.

The embrace had James wanting to rub Sebastian's back, to soothe him with touch and hold him close. He resisted. It wouldn't be right to take advantage of the situation when comfort wasn't the only reason James wanted to touch.

He helped Sebastian into the tub, leaving him dressed in his boxer briefs. Sebastian curled against the side, holding on to the edge like he was worried he wouldn't be able to stay upright if he wasn't clinging to something. James took off his muddy jacket and tossed it on the floor, then dipped his cupped hands in the water and poured it over Sebastian, rinsing the mud from his body.

Sebastian didn't move from his position gripping the edge of the tub, but he seemed to relax, his body looking less tense. He closed his eyes and made satisfied sounds as the warm water cascaded over him.

After asking if it would be okay, James ran a soapy washcloth over Sebastian, gently cleaning the cuts on his skin. Sebastian made a small humming noise as James washed his face, eyes still closed, and James's heart skipped. He was still anxious, worried about the man he was taking care of, but he also felt something more tender growing inside him.

He cared about Sebastian a hell of a lot, and there might be no saving him from getting hurt at this point. If anything bad happened to Sebastian, James would be devastated. He almost couldn't bear the thought. And if he lost Sebastian and never admitted he had feelings for him? Yes, he'd been resisting those feelings, but suddenly, it all felt too close to being lost, and James regretted his hesitation.

He brushed a damp ginger curl back from Sebastian's brow. He opened his eyes and gave James a soft smile.

Once Sebastian was free of mud, James undid the stopper and let the dirty water out. He refilled the bath with clean water, adding a bit of lavender oil he'd spotted on a shelf. He couldn't help himself. He wanted to comfort Sebastian, spoil him, wrap him up and keep him safe. Give him whatever he needed.

James was doomed.