Page 47 of Chasing the Night
Between us and the jail, Dagma stood before a crowd. His back was to them, and he was politely trying to wave to us in welcome. Messiah stepped in front of me and used his hand to bid me stay close behind.
“Sorry to cause ya trouble, Sir. We…” He motioned to the massive crowd of peasants. “We saw the two gents who had the misunderstandin’. He took his hat off and tipped his head respectfully before Messiah. “The one fella, he stopped ‘cause the lady needed a spot of water. She was ill, ye see. The other’n, he went to assumin’ as any concerned brother naturally would.” He nodded a few times, and then peeked up at Messiah to see if the crowds agreed upon statement were acceptable.
Messiah surveyed the many nods and calls of agreements before slowly awarding Dagma a smile and patting him on the shoulder.
“I thank you and all of your constituents for your honest clarification in this unfortunate misunderstanding then.”
He took my hand so gently, the scene at the Sip Room might not have even happened, then guided me up the steps to the jail. Once we were inside, he gave me a half-hearted shove and grunted toward the two who already had their wrists tied.
He closed the door tightly and turned the wooden piece that prevented anyone from opening it.
“What the fuck?” he asked Ender once he seen the damage to Keif’s face. They were both fucked up, so I didn’t understand why he was raging at Ender. Unless he knew… about the secret root dealings.
“Klarissa said we were done doing business earlier. She doesn’t need my Nirvana Root. Maybe she’ll see the need for it if her son’s face gets tore up too bad. Hm?”
“Enough!” Messiah loudly demanded before turning on me. “Well, you brought us together, which is it? Hm, come now. Ender or Keifer?”
“That’s not what this is about,” Ender scoffed with a chuckle of exaggerated disbelief.
“Kantor doesn’t involve himself in the politics of his House.” Messiah groaned, flashing Keifer and apologetic smile. “This is about Chalice. So, I ask again, Love, which is it?”
My face flamed so warmly I thought I’d pass out. He couldn’t be serious…. Maybe he was. Three pair of eyes lay upon me. I felt them crawling over me, drinking in my every breath and twitch. I was being flayed, but I wasn’t sure if it was to examine me or to make a point.
I stepped between Ender and Keif, unsure if I would confront Messiah or simply search for some sign of jest.
I was tired of being fucked with. Exhausted and inebriated past the point of riddles and secrets. Two could play that game. Messiah was fucking with me, and I wasn’t above fucking back.
I closed the two steps between us and leaned forward like I might hug him. Instead, I skimmed my hand against his throat and curled it around the back of his neck. Allowing my breath to fan against his opposite ear, I whispered the most scandalous thing I could think of. “Why do I have to choose?”
His hand, long since frozen at my elbow, abruptly flew away from my body. He stepped back as if he had been burned and his eyes darted about.
“Out. Both. Now. Go!” He frantically demanded while pointing at the other two. I laughed without care. Had I really shaken him so far past his reserved demeanor that he was reduced to one-word responses? Oh, the joy I basked in for that split second. It almost made up for his performance.
They waved their still bound arms but moved along as he had bid. With a victorious smile, I started after them.
“No! Not you.” Messiah’s tongue discreetly painted his lips, and he shook his head as if I had put him on the spot. “Stay. Sit… just. Relax…”
I covered my mouth, but I couldn’t help it. I laughed in the most unladylike manner while he scrambled to collect his Cognac from the drawer. He followed the guys outside and slammed the office door behind him. I could see his shadow lingering on the other side, which only made it all the harder to collect myself.