"And Lucien wasn't interested either?"
I shook my head. "He'd never have gone back on it.especially without telling me."
"I guess you're right," he said after a few moments. "So what do we do now?"
"I have no idea, Nikolas."
A cool breeze rustled the trees nearby, disturbing the still of the night. Out of the darkness a shadow emerged from the line of trees, and I immediately rose to my feet. Nikolas pushed me behind him, growling out a warning.
"Show yourself, stranger."
"I'm no stranger to Peter, I promise."
I knew that voice. "Zephyr?"
"In the flesh." He came a little closer, and I slid an arm around Nikolas' waist to let him know it was okay to back off. Zephyr's attention went right to Nikolas, his gaze taking in every last inch of Nikolas' body. There was so much approval in the smile that followed that it made me a little jealous. "So this is your wolf, huh?"
"All mine." Nikolas looked down at me and I shrugged. "Okay, so mostly mine."
Zephyr did a little bow of his shoulders and extended a hand to Nikolas. "I'm honored to meet you. I am Zephyr."
"Nikolas," he answered slowly. "What are you doing here?"
"Oh, I was in the neighborhood&" He was being sarcastic and that was never a good sign. I had too many men around me who thought sarcasm was cute. It wasn't. Not anymore. I stared at him until he sighed. "Oh, all right. I came here because I have some news."
"Good news?"
Zephyr rolled his eyes. "Yes."
I barely managed to maintain my composure and not start squealing like a little girl. "About Simon?"
He had the nerve to look exasperated, but turned to Nikolas instead of me. "How do you stand him?"
Nikolas actually had the nerve to laugh. "Lots of practice."
I threw my hands up in the air. "Fuck you both."
Zephyr walked to the truck Nikolas and I had driven to the woods and perched himself on the hood. "As tempting as that sounds, I do have other places to be. So&business, yes?"
Nikolas came to stand behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and resting his chin on my shoulder. "What's the news of Simon?"
"I should have you know that what you request is, at best, ludicrous."
"Yes, I know. You said as much when we met at the club the other night."
"And oddly enough, as preposterous as this whole thing is, you have been granted a hearing." He made a gesture with his hands that I wasn't familiar with. "Well, Simon, actually. You have no part in this now."
"Really?" I swallowed hard. "When? I mean."
"He still doesn't know you've petitioned on his behalf, does he?"
I shook my head.
"Hmm." Zephyr studied me for a few moments. "Why not?"
"Because he doesn't think he's worthy enough to have them back." I leaned back into Nikolas and he kissed my neck. It helped ease the nervousness. "He told me that he didn't want them back, but I heard the lie."
"Well, you did what you could."
"What happens now? I mean, does he have to go somewhere for the hearing?"
"Oh, no!" Zephyr laughed and the sound sent chills down my spine. "Uri will come here. He will judge whether Symael is worthy."
"Who's Symael?" Nikolas whispered.
"Simon," I answered and looked to Zephyr for more answers. "Just like that? What happens if he's judged unworthy? I mean, not like I think he would be or anything, but still."
"Then he will be stripped of his remaining powers and will live as a mortal man."
"You couldn't tell me this beforehand?"
"It is something I wish you would have asked. To gain knowledge, you must ask for it."
"Christ, they're worse than vampires with their riddles," Nikolas hissed.
Dread pooled in the pit of my stomach. What in hell had I done? Simon had asked me to leave this alone, to stay out of it, and I might have just taken away anything and everything he had left. Oh, God, I was such an ignorant fool.
When would I learn that I couldn't fix everything?
"Oh, look at the time." Zephyr glanced at his watch-less wrist. "I really must be going now. Peter? You know where to find me."
And just like that, he was gone.
Vanished into thin air, the same way he had before. Nikolas made an odd sound and sighed. "I don't like him."
"I did." I turned into Nikolas, almost clinging to him. "God, what have I done?"