Fractured Souls(31)

Aislin sets the jar back down on the shelf and fidgets with the straps on her floral, pink dress. “He’ll end up having to go to the City of Crystal to do—”
“Aislin,” Alex warns, spinning a steel ball balanced on a podium. “Don’t.”
I scowl at him. “Are you seriously trying to keep things from me?”
He stands up straight and steps in front of me. His nearness forces me to crane my neck back to look at him as he backs me against the shelf. “This is for your own good.”
“Why?” I ask as the edges of the shelf press against me.
“Because you won’t do it if I tell you.” He puts a hand on each side of me, pinning me between his arms.
“How do you know that?” I cross my arms. “Maybe I won’t mind whatever’s going to happen to you.”
He rolls his eyes again. “Yes, you will because, whether you’ll admit it or not, you care about me.”
I open my mouth to protest, but I can’t get any words to come out. A faint stab reveals at the back of my neck and unexpectedly I realize that I do care about Alex, despite the bad that’s happened between us.
“Please just tell me,” I practically beg, gripping onto the bottom of his shirt. My knuckles brush against his muscles and the contact singes my skin. “I want to know what we’re getting into.”
The side of his mouth crooks up into a lopsided smile. “All you need to do is use your power to get Nicholas here, then you can leave the rest to everyone else.”
“I could go to The Underworld, you know,” I tell him firmly. “I’m not completely incompetent. Besides, it is my mom we’re going after. It should be me who goes and gets her.”
He sighs and places his hand on my cheek, his thumb grazing a line across my cheekbone. “Regardless of everything you’ve done over the last few days… walking into a Vampire Lair… you still have the star’s energy inside you, and until we know for sure what the hell it’s being used for…. Why my….” He swallows hard. “Why my father wants it, then we need to keep you safe. Furthermore, the last thing we need is for the Queen of The Underworld to get her hands on you. She’s almost as bad as Demetrius and his Death Walkers.”
“Are you sure there’s not another way to bring him here?” I ask. “I mean, don’t you guys use phones or something?"
The corners of his lips quirk. “I’m pretty sure there’s no service in the City of Crystal.”
I want to roll my eyes at him, but I don’t. What I want to do is hug him because I have this feeling something really bad is about to happen. “Just promise me you’re not going to die,” I whisper.
He seems pleased by what I say. “Never.”
“What about the Kingdom of Fey,” Laylen suggests, abruptly appearing in the doorway. He leans against the door fame and his arms flex as he crosses them. “You could always just go there and get him.”
The second my eyes land on him, I know that the sensations of the bite has changed me somehow. He’s wearing all black again, his standard uniform, and his lips look a little swollen as if he’s been kissing someone or feeding. The thought makes me insanely jealous and, for a brief moment, I feel compelled to run to him, beg him to fold his arms around me, and sink his teeth into my veins. It actually physically hurts not to do it, yet I manage to keep my feet firmly planted to the ground.
I clear my throat, attempting to also wipe the tension building within me. “Kingdom of Fey?” I ask.
“It’s where the Fey live,” Aislin explains, staring at the spot of concrete on the floor as she shuffles her sandals against it. “Since Nicholas is part Fey, he goes there sometimes, but I don’t think he’s very fond of it because…well, because the Fey can be…”
“Everything’s a joke to them,” Alex interrupts, his fingers possessively touching my hip as he moves around behind me. “There’s a lot of running around in circles.” He gently guides me closer to him, his eyes fixed on Laylen as he situates my back against his chest. “Besides, you know they aren’t very welcoming to anyone who isn’t full Fey. They even give Nicholas shit, which means he doesn’t usually hang out there.”
“So you what?” Laylen crooks his brow and steps inside the storage room. “Just summon him here, using her.” He nods his head at me. “Then you go pay your debt for breaking the promise and Aislin and I go with the crazy Faerie into The Underworld.”
Alex’s chest presses against my back and his other hand touches my waist. “Unless you have a better plan.”