Gideon Book 3

GIDEON

Layla doesn’t speak to me for the remainder of the plane ride. I try to find the words—I’m sorry, you’re right, I want to tell you, but I can’t—but the words die on my tongue.

Instead, as we get closer to Mykonos, and as the others begin to wake up and move about, Layla curls in on herself, and I find a spot on the wall to stare at.

We land and disembark. The pilot heads to the underbelly of the plane where our luggage is stored, but before any of us can move to help, a very familiar voice yells across the lot.

“You made it!” Louis de Vauquelin stands in the sunroof of a limo, a drink in one hand while the other shades his eyes. He’s got a bright blue shirt on that’s only half-buttoned and mirrored lens sunglasses.

Louis’s erasthai, Reginald, is much more subdued. He stands outside of the limo, impeccably dressed and his face slightly amused.

“Louis, darling, please get off of the seat,” Reginald says, quirking an eyebrow at his partner. Louis huffs but disappears back inside the limo.

By the time I manage to grab my luggage—Layla already has hers in hand, wheeling it toward the vehicle—Louis is standing beside Reginald, an arm draped around the man’s shoulders dramatically.

Layla hurries to them and drops her luggage on the ground before engulfing Louis in a hug. He returns it just as eagerly. I take my time getting to them, the others trailing behind me.

Constantine and Genesis go straight for the trunk, which is lifted and waiting, but I hold my hand out for Reginald to shake, which he does.

“Good to see you,” I say. “I see your countenance hasn’t rubbed off on Louis quite yet.”

Reginald is a good man—we’d both gotten past our initial rocky start from years ago—but he’s a serious one. Layla says that I’m more like Reginald than I would believe, but I don’t see it.

Reginald sighs. “He wanted to make a grand entrance.”

“Sounds like Louis,” I say.

“What sounds like me?” Louis has an arm around me now, though his other arm is still thrown around Layla. She’s radiant, eyes sparkling and smile bright.

Louis has the uncanny ability to make even the foulest of moods do a one-eighty, and it appears that he’s worked his magic on Layla.

“You being obnoxious,” I tell him, dragging my eyes away from Layla.

Louis snorts. “It’s actually called being fabulous, but I wouldn’t expect you to know that.”

“And that sounds like Gideon,” Penny says, joining us. She’s in the middle of braiding her hair.

She’d complained once that it was too thick and heavy for warm climates, which was why she was glad that Banehallow Palace was in Russia.

“How was the flight, everyone?” Reginald asks, steering the conversation away from subtle insults.

“Fine,” Layla answers shortly.

“Played Kemps,” Penny adds. “Girls against boys, minus Genesis and Gideon, but we kicked ass. Darius is terrible at card games.”

“I am not terrible,” Darius grumbles. He passes us, opening the door to the limo and sliding in. The air conditioning ~whooshes~ out, bringing goosebumps to my skin.

I hadn’t realized how hot Mykonos is, too wrapped up in Layla’s irritation with me, but the contrast of the cool air conditioning and the mugginess of the Greek air brings it to the forefront.

“We should get to the hotel,” I say. I reach for Layla’s luggage, intent on putting it in the trunk with everyone else’s. “Here, let—”

“I’ve got it.” Layla yanks her luggage out of my reach and maintains a wide circle as she moves to the trunk. I sigh.

“What did you do?” Louis hisses in my ear.

I just shake my head.

LAYLA

I suppose I should be used to the expensive limos and the lavish hotels after nearly a year with Gideon.

But after growing up in a little werewolf pack in the middle of nowhere, I wasn’t sure that I would ever get used to it.

The lobby for the hotel has mahogany desks and marble floors and giant chandeliers dangling from the ceiling every ten feet or so.

There is a large aquarium in the center, and I find myself moving toward it before I can stop myself.

The fish that swim in the aquarium are bright and colorful.

I have no hope of guessing what each one is, but I recognize a clownfish from Finding Nemo.

And what’s the one that Dory is—a Blue Tang? I search for one, the bright blue sure to catch my eye.

“Layla.” Gideon’s voice is soft by my ear. If it were any other man, I would flinch and probably punch him in the throat.

But it’s Gideon, and I know his body as well as I know my own, even if I still kind of want to punch him in the throat from the incident in the plane.

“Yes?” I ask, my voice just as quiet. We’re surrounded by lycans who are all more than capable of hearing us if they really wanted to, but by now, everyone has picked up on the tension between us.

They’re more than happy to focus on other things.

“Please talk to me,” Gideon says. His hand wraps around my elbow, the heat of his palm seeping into my cooled skin.

I fight the urge to melt into his touch. “I am talking to you.”

“Layla,” Gideon begins, and I hate the way he sounds.

I hate the long-suffering in his voice, as if I’m a child who needs to be talked to and he’s a parent who’s too tired from a long day at work to deal with me.

I’m his erasthai, and it’s about damn time that he acted like it.

“I will talk to you,” I seethe, “when you talk to me!” I rip my arm out of his grasp and turn my attention, once more, to the aquarium.

Where the hell is Dory?

Gideon is silent for a few minutes, but he doesn’t move away. He stands beside me, our bodies separated by less than an inch of air. Finally, he sighs.

“I can’t,” he says finally, “at least not right now. It… hurts too much.”

At that admission, I turn to him. I’ve never heard of anything hurting the almighty Gideon Archer, not until I came along and my hurts became his.

When our eyes meet, his are burning and searching, aching for me to understand.

“When I’m ready, I’ll tell you,” he swears. His hand fits around my elbow once more.

This time, I do lean into him. “Alright.”

***

When we get up to the suite, we break up to go to our rooms and put our things up. Gideon encourages me to take a nap, and the bed looks so inviting, so I do.

By the time I wake up, it’s several hours later. Jetlag is a bitch.

I get up and stretch, then hop into the shower to rinse off the icky feeling of plane rides and too-long naps.

It doesn’t take me long, and soon I’m walking out into the main area of the suite, my hair a little wet.

Genesis sits on the floor right next to the coffee table, a bunch of papers spread out in front of her. Gideon stands behind her, hand on his mouth as if in deep thought.

Penny and Serena sit on the couch opposite Genesis and Gideon, while Constantine and Lazarus sit on the couch behind them. Darius and Reginald are both in armchairs.

“Where’s Louis?” I ask. Everyone looks up at me, and I pause. Am I imagining the slight panic in their eyes, or…

“Right here!” Louis says, coming from the kitchen. He’s got several bottles of alcohol in his arms, and I eye them warily.

“What is that for?” I ask.

“Pregaming,” Louis says simply.

I’m even more confused. “For what?”

“Louis and Reginald have been in Mykonos for the past couple of days,” Gideon says, “and they’ve found a specific club that they think might be helpful to us.”

“We’re going,” Genesis says. “Tonight. But we’re not pregaming.” She levels this statement at Louis, who deflates.

“We need to be alert,” Gideon agrees. “This isn’t a vacation. Balthazar is plotting something.”

“I know that,” Louis argues, “but if you want people to spill information, you’ve got to make them want to talk. You’ve got to make them think that you’re like them.”

“He’s got a point,” Serena says.

“But we can get drinks at the club,” Darius points out.

“And we can loosen up a little here,” Serena says. “No one’s saying we’re going to get drunk, but Louis’s right. No one is going to talk to us if we look like we’re the only sober ones there.”

“How about this?” Reginald pipes up. “Some of us can be tasked with drinking and getting the information, while others will be tasked with the job of lookout.”

I fold my arms. It’s a good plan.

Reginald grins. “For instance, I can stay sober. I usually try to when Louis gets wasted anyway.”

“Hey.” Louis pouts but quickly shakes it off. “Okay. Gideon and Genesis, you two should be lookouts, too, especially since you’re so against this.”

Genesis nods, and Gideon pinches his nose between his forefinger and thumb.

“Alright,” he says wearily. “You win. But I still expect everyone to keep their senses. Remember, we’re doing this to get information.”

“You got it, boss!” Penny salutes Gideon cheekily and motions for Louis to toss her a bottle, which he does.

“We should plan to leave at nine,” Reginald says. “The club is across the city, so it’ll take a little while to get there.”

“Then we should get ready,” I say.

Penny snaps her fingers and points at me. “Absolutely. Let’s go make ourselves look hot—well, hotter than usual.” She grabs Serena by the arm and gets off the couch, hooking me in with her as she passes. “Come on, Genesis!”

“Penny will be the death of me,” Genesis grumbles.

***

The club is loud and bright, with a constant beat pumping underneath my feet and pulsing lights overhead. It’s packed on the dance floor, but I’m off to the side by the bar with Penny and Louis on either side of me.

I can see Gideon standing at the end of the bar, watching me intently.

The bartender sets our drinks down in front of us, saying something in Greek that I don’t understand. Probably something along the lines of here you go, if I had to guess.

Penny smiles brightly and picks up two of them, handing me one.

“What’s in this again?” I have to shout to be heard over the music.

Penny laughs. “Just try it! Live a little!”

I think I’m living plenty, but I take a sip of the drink anyway. It’s sweet with the faint tang of alcohol underneath—vodka, maybe? I don’t know for sure, but it tastes good, so I keep drinking it.

“Have either of you seen my darling Reginald lately?” Louis leans close to our ears to ask this, but he still yells the words. I wince a little, then shake my head.

“No!” I say.

Louis pouts. “Where did he go?” His eyes scan the club, catching on the opposite side where booths are lined along the walls with dim lighting overhead. He grins wickedly. “I think I’ve found some targets. Shall we?”

“I have to use the restroom,” I say. It hits me like a sledgehammer to the bladder. I knew I shouldn’t have drunk so much back at the hotel, but Penny and Serena and Louis were persistent.

“I’ll come with,” Penny says. I nod, and we begin to make our way back to the front of the club, where the signs for the restrooms are.

When we reach them, I hand Penny my drink to hold and then slip into the restroom.

It’s small and a little run-down, the opposite of what I expected it would look like. Reginald had mentioned something about it being remodeled—maybe they haven’t gotten to the toilets yet?

I shrug and go into one of the three stalls. The door won’t latch, so I have to hold my foot against it while I pee, which is no fun.

I flush the toilet and walk out of the stall and over to the sink. I turn on the faucet, the water running tinged with a slight red.

There’s a tap on my shoulder. I whirl around, my hands wet. I never even heard the door open.

It’s a girl with some of the palest skin I’ve ever seen, as white as paper. Her blonde hair is a pile of curls on top of her head, and she wears a sparkly silver dress.

Her lips are the color of blood. When our eyes meet, I see that hers are black like coal.

“Um, hi,” I say.

“You’re Lord Archer’s erasthai, aren’t you?” the girl asks.

I’m now even more freaked out. “Um…” I look to the door, hoping that Penny is still out there. Surely she’ll come in here when she thinks it’s been too long, right?

“I’m not here to hurt you,” the girl says.

“No offense, but that’s what everyone says right before they hurt you,” I say.

Gideon, I think, but then I remember that he’s been shutting off the mind-link, and this place is so loud and crowded—would he even be able to focus to hear me?

“I’m really not,” the girl says. “Everyone says that Miss Helen’s death was unjust, but I heard about you and Lord Archer. No one wants to listen to me, though.”

“What are you talking about?” I ask. Miss Helen?

The girl smiles, and the dim lights catch on the edges of her sharp teeth. Vampire—vampire siren?

“Lord Balthazar knows the truth, too, even if he pretends that he doesn’t,” the girl tells me.

“Knows what? That I’m Gideon’s erasthai?” I ask.

The girl nods. “He spreads lies to keep us angry. He’s dangerous.”

“I—I know that.” I hate that I stumble over my words, but this girl is giving me major creep vibes.

The girl tilts her head. “Do you? Do you truly know our world?”

There’s a muted knock on the door. “Layla? Are you alright in there? I can’t open the door with my hands full.”

“Be careful,” the girl says before I can answer Penny. “The Aristophanes family has plans for you, and they are not kind.”

The door fumbles open. I rush over to it to push it open better for Penny, who looks frazzled. Behind me, the water is still running, and I realize that I never finished washing my hands.

“Layla, what’s taking you so long?” Penny asks.

“Her.” I spin around to point at the girl, but she’s gone. “Holy shit.”

When I face Penny again, her eyes are wide. “There was someone in here?”

I nod.

Penny curses. “Gideon is going to kill me.”