“Oh, no.” Juniper presses a hand to her forehead when I gasp from the noise. Maeve rolls her eyes, remaining seated, while Rowan groans, pushing out of his chair.
“Why do I always have to split these two up?” he shouts, charging out of the kitchen. Juniper follows him but Maeve remains seated, sitting farther back in her chair, and sipping her tea.
I follow Juniper and Rowan out the kitchen and down the hallway that leads to a back door. They step outside, onto a tall black deck that overlooks a black sea. Glass from a window is on the ground, and standing not too far away from that glass is Caz and Killian. Caz has Killian in a chokehold, and Killian is clawing at Caz’s arm, his face turning purple as he struggles to breathe.
“Fucking stop it, Caz! He can’t breathe!” Juniper yells.
“He shouldn’t have shoved me into the window then,” Caz growls.
“Knock it off!” Rowan snaps, stepping forward, but he doesn’t touch Caz. I get the sense that if anyone tried touching him right now, they’d be a fool. Caz looks from Rowan, to Juniper, and then at me. It’s when his eyes lock with mine that he releases Killian, who tumbles onto his knees on the deck. The ocean roars as Killian works hard to catch his breath, and Caz steps back, breathing raggedly.
“Why are you two always fighting?” Juniper demands, bending down to try to help Killian off the ground.
“Get off me.” Killian swats Juniper’s hand away, slumping onto his bottom, his back hitting the guardrails.
“He started it,” Caz pants.
“Vakeeli’s sake, Caz! What are you, twelve?”
“He’s the one who has a problem with Willow! I was setting him straight!”
Killian frowns and immediately stands, getting in Caz’s face again. “I never said I have a problem with her!”
“You don’t have to say it for me to know it,” Caz snaps back.
“You keep going at me at this rate and I’ll rip your fucking head from your shoulders, Caz. Don’t fuck with me.”
“Go on, then,” Caz says, spreading his arms out wide. “Try it.”
Killian, being an inch or so taller than Caz, glowers down at him, but Caz doesn’t back away. However, Killian does reel his arm back and punches him in the face.
I gasp as Caz stumbles backward, his lower back hitting the railing. He doesn’t allow himself much time to settle into the blow because he’s rushing Killian again, tackling him to the ground.
“Caz! Stop it!” Juniper screams.
Rowan grips Caz by the shoulders, ripping Caz away from his brother and pushing him into the farthest corner. “Stay there!” Rowan barks, pointing a finger at Caz as he swipes the back of his hand over his bloody nose.
Killian lies flat on his back on the deck, panting, and Juniper sighs, planting her hands at her waist.
“Are you two done acting like hooligans?” Maeve’s voice is near, and she’s walking toward the door, another bloom between her fingers. When she steps out, she looks down at Killian, then at Caz, who’s jaw is ticking furiously.
“He takes cheap shots,” Caz grumbles. “Doesn’t fight fair.”
I roll my eyes at the same time Juniper does. “Is this a common occurrence?” I ask, not to anyone in particular.
“Oh yes, it is, and it’s maddening!” Juniper groans.
“Killian, whether you like it or not, Willow is family now. She’s a part of Caz, which makes her a part of us, so suck it up.” Maeve walks to the center of the deck, offering a hand to Killian. He mutters something beneath his breath but takes his mother’s hand and allows her to help him up.
“Is the air clear?” Maeve demands, looking from him to Caz.
Caz doesn’t answer, just turns his back to face the black waters.
“Killian.” She glares at him.
“Fine. Whatever,” her son grumbles.
“Good. Now while you two were having your fight over who’s balls are bigger, I contacted Alora. Willow can ride to Vanora; however, Caz, I’m afraid you can’t go with her.”
“What?” he snaps. “Why the hell not?”
“The Council has been in touch with Alora. She apologizes, but she can’t let you into Vanora until you’ve gone to Luxor to speak to them.”
“There’s no way I’m sending Willow to Beatrix’s place without me. Not after what happened with the Rippies.”
“Yes, well it is because of what happened with the Rippies and Rami that The Council needs to see you. Look, the sooner you get to them and deal with this and the Rami mess, the better. I’m assuming they don’t want you dead, otherwise they’d have come to do it already. Juniper, Rowan, and I will take Willow to Vanora to get to Beatrix. And we will go prepared this time.”
“And what about me?” Killian asks, frowning.
“You’ll be going to Luxor with Caz and making amends with him.” Maeve pulls from her bloom with a satisfied smirk as both men glare at each other.
“Why should I stay here watching after his ass when all he cares about is himself?” Killian counters.
“Oh, just shut the hell up already, Killian!” Rowan snaps. “You’re not making any of our lives easier by complaining about everything, so for once in your life, just shut up, brother.”
Killian squares his shoulders and points a stern finger at Rowan. “Fuck you.” He storms back into the house, but not without purposely bumping into Rowan’s shoulder along the way.
“Great. Now he’s off to throw a tantrum. I need a bloody bloom.” Rowan leaves the deck as well, and Juniper follows, shaking her head. Maeve walks toward Caz and says something I can’t make out, then she’s in the house too.
Only Caz and I are left on the deck, the roaring of the ocean filling the void. His nose is still bloody, and his bottom lip now has a cut on it and is starting to swell. Walking up to him, I wipe some of the blood from his lip and then sigh.
“You know violence doesn’t settle violence,” I tell him.
“No, it doesn’t, but I lost my temper.”
“What did he say to you?”
Caz’s nostrils flare at the edges. “He doesn’t want any part of the Tether. He thinks it’s going to get us all killed.”
“So you were about to choke him to death because of that?”
“No. I was about to choke him to death because he referred to you as a bitch. I had to let him know you’re not just some random Vakeeli whore he can talk shit about.”
I blink, stunned to hear that. “Oh. I see.”
“He won’t call you that ever again. I’m sure of it.”
“I guess I should say thanks?”
He side-eyes me before facing the water again, and I step next to him. “I don’t want you going to Vanora without me,” he mutters. “But if they’re telling Alora to keep me away from Vanora, it means they’re close to putting a bounty on my head. If I don’t go willingly, they’ll make a scene. I’m surprised they haven’t already.”
“All of this—a bounty on your head—just for killing that piece of shit, Rami?” I ask incredulously. Because seriously, fuck Rami.
He says nothing to that. Instead, he wipes his nose again, then steps back. “We can’t let too much time pass us by. We don’t know when Mournwrath will return and we need answers, so…though I don’t want you going without me, you’ll have to.” He takes my hand, wrapping his gloved fingers around it. “I can meet you there, after seeing The Council. I’ll take the quickest train back.”
“What if The Council doesn’t let you go so quickly?”
“I’m the Blackwater Monarch. They can’t keep me long without chaos erupting here.” He clasps my hand in his. “You’ll be fine going to Vanora with Maeve, Rowan, and Juniper, but you’ll need weapons once you get to Beatrix—lots of them—so come with me.”
