“Gigi, Tristan, is there a reason you’re out here harassing your brother’s bond?”
The girl, Gigi, glared so hard her entire face turned into a tomato. Her brother had a hand on her shoulder, to sympathize or keep her from pouncing like a feral alley cat, I wasn’t sure.
“Your human blood will win out!” Gigi shouted, all nasally and petulant. “When you bond, your weakness will drain whatever power my brother was somehow blessed with, and then our father will have no choice but to make one ofushis heir.”
That’s what this was about? I may have been the new kid on the block, but even I knew that wasn’t how it worked. If anything, Ezra and I were stronger together; our magicks two sides of the same coin. Nothing like teenage delusion. The hot summer sun and theatrics of the afternoon took a toll on my energy. My head felt like it was going to split in half, and even though I wanted to laugh at the childish outrage in front of me, I knew it would be a bad idea.
“Can you take them home?” I whispered to Eryn, pinching the bridge of my nose to stave off the strange feel of my pulse in my sinuses. “I want to lie down and get rid of this headache.”
“Sure,” she replied, her gaze instantly worried. “I’ll call Cova and have him deliver some saltwater. Maybe you can dunk your head in it or something.”
I needed to go swimming, but the bucket idea sounded better than spending another night with my body screaming out for the ocean. How I managed to go months without a dip, I’d never know. This was torture.
“Ezra should be back soon,” Eryn promised. “Kai texted earlier and said they were almost done.”
“God, he better be,” I mumbled, then headed inside. “I wasn’t kidding about finding a canal.”
The gruff sounds of Eryn threatening the twins to follow her back to the manor faded the further into the cottage I went. With the fans on and all the windows open, it was cool and dark enough that the jackhammer in my head eased to more of an overallouch. I crawled into bed, not bothering with the covers, and whimpered when even the feather pillow was too much pressure against my skull.
Cova better hurry the fuck up with that water. If I could get this migraine to go away, then I’d have a chance at enjoying my birthday tomorrow. Even if it was spent learning more facts about rival factions. Even if it was spent inside. Even if it wasn’t with Ezra.
Anything was better than this pain.
CHAPTER 25
Ezra
Coming home to Rani asleep in my bed was something I thought I’d only see in my dreams. The French doors were wide open, allowing the early morning sun full rights to shine across the sheets, its rays only inches away from her pale skin. Despite the early hour, sweat dotted her forehead, and her expression was pinched with discomfort.
Godsdammit, I was gone too long.
I thought Kai’s secret meeting with Ember, the vampire heir, would only take one night. But between both their hectic schedules, the tribunal meetings, and the djinn we still had to dodge in between, we had to reschedule one too many times. The good news was my aunt couldn’t claim I wasn’t doing my job, because I’d been attached to my cousin like a fucking barnacle for days. The bad news: that meant I hadn’t been able to get back here in time to show Rani where she could go to fuel her magick.
Cova left a large bucket of ocean water on the front porch, but I guess Rani slept through his knocking. I brought the bucket inside and set it on the floor next to the bed. Grabbing a smalltowel from the bathroom, I dipped it in the cool water, wrung it out, and then gently ran it along Rani’s arm. Starting at her elbow. I moved slowly and allowed the water to dampen her skin before continuing all the way down the back of her hand.
Long, continuous strokes. When the lower half of her arm was completely covered, I moved to her shoulder and did the upper half. She didn’t wake, but her forehead smoothed and her body melted into the mattress like I’d found the magic lever that released all her tension.
I dunked the towel again and then brought it to her cheek, her neck. This little bit of water wasn’t going to hold her over, but the pond in the backyard would. It was technically on siren land. Cova already gave us express permission to use it and promised me that it had enough salt content to keep her sustained until we could return to the beach.
“Come on, baby, wake up,” I whispered and set the cool towel across her head. Her eyelids fluttered, but she mumbled something vulgar and tried to roll away. With a chuckle, I threw an arm over her waist and kept her on her back. “Don’t you want your present, birthday girl?”
Her eyes finally opened, and then widened when they saw me hovering over her. “Where the hell have you been?”
I kissed the tip of her nose and dodged the resulting strike she aimed at my head. “I missed you too, my mean little cuttlefish.”
She pushed at my shoulders with a scowl, and I leaned back so she could sit up. Pain briefly spiked down the bond as Rani clenched her eyes shut, but it was brief and faded before I could focus more on it. Hopefully, the little water I rubbed into her skin would be enough to last her until we got to the pond. But we had to move.
Rani glanced at the bucket, up at me, and then back down. “That better not be my present.”
“Definitely not,” I snorted—did she think me a gift-giving amateur?—and then moved it out of the way so she had a clear path to the French doors. “But it will be if you don’t get that delicious ass out of bed and follow me.”
She groaned and took her time scooting out from under the covers, moving so slow I had to wonder if she had a stroke and forgot how to use her arms.
“Old ladies move faster than you,” I teased. “Old ladies with broken hips and osteoporosis.”
“Shut up.”
I waited until she finally got to her feet before wrapping an arm around her waist. “Do you think you can walk, or should I carry you?”
