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Chapter no 6

House of Sky and Breath (Crescent City, #2)

Bryce tore through the cabinet beneath her sink. Bottles of hair products, old makeup palettes, dead blow-dryers flew out and scattered behind her. Where theย fuckย had she put itโ€”

There. Bryce yanked out the white first aid kit, Syrinx doing a little dance next to her. As if the golden-furred chimera had found it himself. Cheeky pup.

Leaping to her feet as she opened the lid, she rifled through the antiseptic ointment, bandages, and vial of pain-relieving potion. She frowned down at Syrinx. โ€œThis stuff never goes bad, right?โ€

Syrinx scrunched his snout, huffing as if to say,ย Beats me!

Bryce scratched under his chin and returned to the great room to find Hunt crouching beside Ithan, whom theyโ€™d laid out on the coffee table. Ithanโ€™s face โ€ฆ Burning Solas.

Well, he was awake. And talking. She hoped he hadnโ€™t heard her and Hunt bickering over where to put his barely conscious form a moment ago. Hunt had wanted to set Ithan on the couch, and Bryce hadnโ€™t been able to stop herself from shrieking about ruining the white cushions. So the coffee table it was.

Hunt and Ithan were murmuring too low for Bryce to understand, and they halted as she approached. Though she could detect no outward sign of it, Huntโ€™s lightning seemed to crackle in the air around him. Or maybe that was Huntโ€™s presence, once again doing funny things to her senses. Bryce lifted the first aid kit. โ€œFound it.โ€

Ithan grunted. โ€œItโ€™s โ€ฆ itโ€™s not as bad as it looks.โ€

โ€œYour mouth literally started bleeding again saying that,โ€ Bryce said, dropping the kit on the table next to Ithan before fishing inside for sterile wipes. She hadnโ€™t seen him since the attack last spring. Hadnโ€™t spoken to him.

Bryce waved a hand over the bruised and swollen face that held no resemblance to the handsome, charming features sheโ€™d once known so well. โ€œI donโ€™t even know where to start with this โ€ฆ mess.โ€ She didnโ€™t just mean his face.

โ€œYou and me both,โ€ Ithan mumbled, and hissed as Bryce dabbed at a slice across his brow. He pulled his head from her reach. โ€œItโ€™ll heal. That oneโ€™s already smaller.โ€

โ€œIโ€™d guess claws made that,โ€ Hunt said, arms crossed. Syrinx hopped onto the sectional, turned in a circle three times, then curled up in a ball.

Ithan said nothing. Bryce reached for the wound again, but he pulled his head farther back, wincing in pain.

โ€œWhy the fuck are you here, Ithan?โ€ Huntโ€™s voice was like gravel. Ithanโ€™s brown eyes, one half-swollen, met Bryceโ€™s. Ire glowed in them.

โ€œI didnโ€™t tell them to bring me here. Perry โ€ฆ my packโ€™s Omega โ€ฆ She arranged it.โ€

A fuzzy memory of a brown-haired female emerged. Perry โ€ฆ Ravenscroft. Amelieโ€™s younger sister. โ€œSheย did this to you?โ€

Ithan huffed a raw laugh, then winced. His ribs must beโ€”

Bryce lifted Ithanโ€™s bloody gray T-shirt, revealing disgustingly carved abs andโ€”โ€œHoly shit, Ithan.โ€

He yanked the shirt back over the extensive bruising. โ€œItโ€™s fine.โ€ โ€œThose look like broken ribs,โ€ Hunt said wryly.

โ€œDefinitely broken ribs, Athalar,โ€ Bryce replied, sitting back on her heels. โ€œAnd a broken arm, from the way heโ€™s cradling it.โ€

โ€œSkull fractureโ€™s healed,โ€ Hunt observed with equal distance, as if they were on one of his favorite Vanir crime procedurals. Ithanโ€™s eyes flashed again.

โ€œIโ€™m sensing hostility and a good dose of male pride,โ€ Bryce said.

โ€œThrow in some stubbornness and Iโ€™d say weโ€™ve got ourselves a classic case of stupidity,โ€ Hunt answered.

โ€œWhatย the fuckย is wrong with you two?โ€ Ithan demanded.

Bryce smiled at Hunt, all thoughts of the betrothal and her father and the Asteri vanishing at the amusement glittering in the angelโ€™s eyes. But she stopped smiling as she faced Ithan again.

โ€œI promise to clean you up as quickly as possible, and youโ€™ll be on your way,โ€ she said.

โ€œTake your time. Itโ€™s not like I have anywhere to go.โ€ Hunt stilled. โ€œAmelie kicked you out?โ€

โ€œSabine kicked me out,โ€ Ithan growled. โ€œShe, Amelie, and the others did โ€ฆ this.โ€

โ€œWhy?โ€ Bryce managed to say.

Ithan met her stare. โ€œWhy do you think?โ€ Bryce shook her head, disgust creeping through her. Ithan said, โ€œYou know how Sabine operates. Some reporter cornered me at a bar a few weeks ago about the attack last spring, and I talked about โ€ฆ what happened. How I helped you. The article came out this morning. Sabine apparently wasnโ€™t a fan.โ€

โ€œOh?โ€ Hunt lifted a brow.

Ithanโ€™s bruised throat bobbed. โ€œI might have also defended you,โ€ he said to Bryce. โ€œAgainst a nasty quote from Sabine.โ€

Bryce resisted the urge to pull out her phone to search for the article. Nothing in there would make her feel better about this. So she said, โ€œSabineโ€™s a City Head. This is really what she wants to waste her time on?โ€

โ€œWolves donโ€™t talk shit about other wolves.โ€ โ€œBut you did,โ€ Hunt countered.

โ€œSo did Sabine.โ€ He said sadly, wearily to Bryce, โ€œThe Prime called you a wolf. Thatโ€™s good enough for me. I, ah โ€ฆ It didnโ€™t sit well, what Sabine said. But I guess the article didnโ€™t sit well with her, either. So Iโ€™m out.โ€

Bryce exhaled a long, long breath. โ€œWhy bring you here?โ€ Hunt asked.

Ithan grimaced with pain. โ€œPerry remembered that we were friends, once upon a time.โ€ He tried and failed to rise. โ€œBut give me a few minutes, then Iโ€™ll be gone.โ€

โ€œYouโ€™re staying here,โ€ Bryce said. Honestly, after the night sheโ€™d had, it was the last thing she wanted. Especially when she still had to call her mom and convince her to get out of town. Gods, if Ember found out Ithan was

here, sheโ€™d never leave. Sheโ€™d loved him like a son. Bryce shook off the thought. โ€œYouโ€™re lucky Sabine didnโ€™t kill you.โ€

โ€œTrust me, she wanted to,โ€ Ithan said bitterly. โ€œBut I wasnโ€™t worth the legal headache that would cause.โ€

Bryce swallowed. Connorโ€™s little brother had once been her best friend, after Danika. Fury and June had come after that. Gods, how many messages had she and Ithan swapped over the years? How many juvenile jokes had they shared? How many times had she bounced in the stands at one of his sunball games, screaming her lungs out for him?

The male before her was a stranger.

โ€œI should go,โ€ Ithan said thickly. Like he remembered their history, too.

Read it on her face.

โ€œSit the fuck down,โ€ Hunt said. โ€œYou canโ€™t even walk.โ€ โ€œFine,โ€ Ithan conceded. โ€œOne night.โ€

He had to be desperate, then.

Fighting the tightness in her chest, Bryce pulled out her phone. โ€œGood.โ€ She noted the time. Almost midnight. Her parents were likely about to go to bed. โ€œI have to make a call.โ€

Hunt fixed a cup of decaf just to give himself something to do as Ithan lay bleeding on the coffee table behind him. Bryceโ€™s voice as she spoke to her parents filtered down the hall in bits and pieces.

Weโ€™ll plan a long weekend next time. Maybe Hunt and I can come up to you guys. I think heโ€™d love to finally see Nidaros.

Huntโ€™s lips quirked upward. Bringing him home to her parents, huh? No matter that she was lying through her teeth.

The coffee machine finished a heartbeat before Bryce said, โ€œAll right. Iโ€™ll meet you at your hotel at six. Yep. Bright and early. Okay. Love you. Bye.โ€

Hunt blew on the steaming-hot coffee as Bryce padded back down the hall. โ€œEverything good?โ€ he asked her.

โ€œAside from the fact that I have to be up in a few hours, sure.โ€ Bryce slid her phone onto the kitchen counter. โ€œTickets are switched.โ€ She peered at Ithan, whose eyes were closed. But Hunt had no doubt the wolf was listening.

โ€œRight,โ€ Bryce said. โ€œBeds.โ€

โ€œIโ€™m good on the couch,โ€ Ithan croaked.

Hunt was inclined to agree, but Bryce said, โ€œOh no. Youโ€™re in my room.

I wonโ€™t have you bleeding all over my white couch.โ€

Hunt said roughly, โ€œIโ€™ll sleep on the couch. Holstrom, you can have my room.โ€

โ€œNope,โ€ Bryce countered. โ€œItโ€™s fine. My bed is big.โ€

Hunt shot back, โ€œThenย youย sleep on the couch and give Holstrom the bed.โ€

โ€œWith my back problems?โ€ Before Hunt could ask what the Hel she was talking about, she said, โ€œIโ€™m tired, and I donโ€™t want to argue. Conversation over.โ€

Ithan cracked open an eye. Hunt reined in his growl of frustration.

Fifteen minutes later, Hunt lay in his own bed, teeth gritted as he stared at the ceiling, with only a snoring Syrinx for company.

It was fine. Totally fucking fine that Ithan Holstrom was sharing Bryceโ€™s bed.

Totally. Fucking. Fine.

His bed, his blood roared. Even if he hadnโ€™t been near it in months. His bed,ย hisย Bryce, whoโ€™d emerged from the bathroom in her sleep shorts and a faded, threadbare T-shirt that did nothing to hide the shadow of her nipples behind the purple fabric. Thankfully, Holstromโ€™s eyes were too swollen for Hunt to notice if the male looked. Not that it really mattered. He trusted Bryce. Knew precisely whatโ€”and whoโ€”she wanted.

But โ€ฆ it didnโ€™t matter that Holstrom had come to Bryceโ€™s defense during the attack, or in some stupid article. Heโ€™d been a nasty fuck to her in the two years before that. And had let Amelie run rampant, tormenting Bryce over the death of his brother.

And fineโ€”trust aside, maybe he was slightly on edge. Holstrom was good-looking, when he wasnโ€™t beaten to Hel and back. Heโ€™d been a star sunball player at CCU. Hunt remembered watching a few of the games in the 33rdโ€™s lounge in the Comitium, marveling at Holstromโ€™s speed and agility. The male hadnโ€™t played the sport for two years now, but he was still built.

Stupid, jealous idiot. For fuckโ€™s sake, having Holstrom here bothered him more than that asshole Cormac claiming heโ€™d marry Quinlan.

He hated himself just a little bit as he pulled his phone from the nightstand and typed inย Ithan Holstrom Sabine Fendyr Bryce Quinlan.

The article popped up immediately.

Hunt skimmed it. Read what Sabine had said and focused on his breathing. On not leaping into the skies and shredding the Prime Apparent into pieces.

โ€œBryce Quinlan is nothing but a spoiled party girl who was conveniently in the right place during the attack. My wolves saved innocents. Sheโ€™s a pathetic fame-chaser.โ€

Hunt ground his teeth so hard his jaw hurt. Toward the bottom, he found Holstromโ€™s sound bite.

โ€œThe wolves only went to Asphodel Meadows because of Bryce. She got the call for help out, and held the line until we could provide backup. She saved this city. Sheโ€™s a hero, as far as Iโ€™m concerned. Donโ€™t let anyone convince you otherwise. Especially people who werenโ€™t even in this city during the attack.โ€

Well, Hunt didnโ€™t blame Sabine for being pissed. The truth hurt.

Hunt sighed and was about to set his phone back onto the nightstand when it buzzed with a message from Isaiah.ย Thoughts???

He knew Isaiah was asking about Celestinaโ€™s appointment.ย Too early to tell, he wrote back.ย Too early for hope, too.

Isaiah answered immediately.ย Sheโ€™ll be here tomorrow evening at five.

Try to play nice, Hunt. Sheโ€™s not Micah.

Hunt sent back a thumbs-up. But sleep was a long time coming.

Bryce gazed at her bedroom ceiling, listening to the wet, labored breathing of the male beside her.

Her mom and dad had bought her liesโ€”hook, line, and sinker. Of course, it meant sheโ€™d be getting up in four hours, but it was a price worth paying. No news about her engagement had been leaked yet. She could only pray it wouldnโ€™t until their train was out of the city.

Ithan shifted slightly, the sound of the blankets loud in the silence. It was strange to have him here, his scent filling her nose. So similar to Connorโ€™s scentโ€”

โ€œI could have slept on the couch,โ€ Ithan said into the darkness.

โ€œI donโ€™t trust Athalar not to smother you with a pillow.โ€ Ithan huffed a laugh. โ€œHe holds a grudge, huh?โ€

โ€œYou have no idea.โ€

Silence fell again, thick and heavy. Sheโ€™d wanted Ithan right where she could see him. It was as simple as that. Wards on this place or not, she wasnโ€™t about to leave him unguarded when Sabine and Amelie might change their minds about the paperwork being too much trouble. Sheโ€™d lost one Holstrom already.

โ€œDanika had me keyed to the locks,โ€ Ithan said. โ€œRight before โ€ฆ everything. She showed me this placeโ€”wanted me in on the surprise. Thatโ€™s how I got in.โ€

Bryceโ€™s throat clogged. โ€œOh.โ€

โ€œIs it true that Danika helped you make the Drop?โ€

Since her voice had been broadcast through the Gates into every part of the city, it was common knowledge that Danika Fendyr had something to do with Bryceโ€™s Drop, but rumors about exactly what ranged widely.

โ€œYeah,โ€ Bryce said. โ€œShe, ah โ€ฆ She was my Anchor.โ€ โ€œI didnโ€™t know that was possible.โ€

โ€œMe neither.โ€

His breathing thinned. Bryce said, โ€œI โ€ฆ Ithan, when I saw Danika during the Search, she told me that the othersโ€”Connor and Nathalie and the whole Pack of Devilsโ€”held off the Reapers to buy her time to be there with me. They saved me, too. Connor saved me.โ€

Ithan said nothing for a long moment. When was the last time theyโ€™d spoken like this? Calm, quiet. Without hate spewing like acid, burning everything it touched? Then Ithan said, โ€œHe loved you more than anyone.โ€

Her heart strained. โ€œHe lovedย youย more than anyone.โ€ โ€œHe thought you were his mate.โ€

Bryce shut her eyes against the punch that slammed into her gut. โ€œIn the wolf sense of the word?โ€

โ€œWhat other sense is there? Yeah, the wolf sense.โ€

There were several definitions of the termย mateโ€”though Bryce supposed that to Ithan, to a shifter, only one mattered: oneโ€™s true lover, predestined by Urd.

The Fae had a similar conceptโ€”a mate was a bond deeper than marriage, and beyond an individualโ€™s control. The angels, she knew, used

the term far more lightly: for the malakim, it was akin to a marriage, and matings could be arranged. Like breeding animals in a zoo.

But for Connor, if heโ€™d thought Bryce was his mate โ€ฆ Her stomach twisted again.

โ€œDid you love him?โ€ Ithan whispered.

โ€œYou know I did,โ€ Bryce said, voice thick.

โ€œWe waste so much time. Maybe itโ€™s our curse as immortals. To see time as a luxury, a never-ending ocean.โ€ He loosed a long breath. โ€œI wasted a lot of it.โ€

Bryce couldnโ€™t tell what he was referring to. โ€œReal poetic of you.โ€ Ithan let out a soft laugh. In the air-conditioned dark, Bryce asked, โ€œWhy did you quit sunball?โ€

She felt Ithan tense, the mattress shifting. โ€œBecause itโ€™s a stupid game,โ€ he said, voice empty, and turned onto his side with a groan.

Bryce had no idea how to respond. So she closed her eyes, rubbing idly at the scar on her chest, and prayed for Luna to send her into a dreamless, heavy sleep.

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