Total pages in book: 41
Estimated words: 38444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 192(@200wpm)___ 154(@250wpm)___ 128(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 38444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 192(@200wpm)___ 154(@250wpm)___ 128(@300wpm)
Plus, he’d seen enough to know Brian was just…evil. Ezra knew that had nothing to do with his mental condition. Not all sociopaths were bad people. But Brian was. All he cared about was amassing wealth.
Which could be the reason he might be the one after Ezra. With what he stood to inherit, Brian could want it all.
Chapter Six
Ezra
Ezra placed his hand on the door handle, then turned toward Alaric. “Maybe you should wait in the car. He probably won’t talk to me with you there.”
“No.”
“But I know him, and he wouldn’t hurt me. Was always nice because we bonded over the game Fallout. When he’s not looking out for my ex, he’s always playing video games. But he’s cautious, won’t talk in front of a stranger.”
“I go where you go. Always.”
Something about those words struck Ezra on a deep level. For one moment, he allowed himself to feel what those words would be like from someone who loved him. Actually loved him. It wasn’t something he’d ever experienced, and the deep desire for something like that still shocked him. He’d long ago decided there was something wrong with him. Some undefined trait that made him not deserve that kind of devotion. That kind of adoration. What would it be like to have that one person who saw you that way?
He’d never know.
The knowledge sent actual, physical pain into his chest. He could only hold his breath. He hadn’t realized how deeply that need went until it reared its ugly head.
“What just happened?” Alaric asked as he touched Ezra’s arm. “Ezra? You have this expression…that’s bothering me.”
Ezra made himself meet Alaric’s eyes. “It’s nothing.”
Alaric just stared for a long time, then nodded.
“Come on.” Ezra got out of the car. He had taken two steps when he was hit by a blast of wind so strong, it slammed him into the brick wall of the building. Dazed, he tried to turn but the wind kept pushing him. Screams sounded, debris went flying, and thunder rumbled so loudly, he felt its vibration in his bones.
Alaric’s big body was suddenly there, coiling around him. The elf blocked enough of the wind so Ezra could open his eyes.
The world had turned to utter chaos. One man held onto a pole that ripped from the ground, sending him flying. Others were trying to fight the force of the wind as they tried to get inside the nearest building. The apartment they were outside of was the closest, and as he watched, a woman got one of the doors open only for it to fly off its hinges.
“It’s a sylph,” Alaric yelled, still shielding him. “Hold onto me!”
Something big hit the side of Ezra’s head. He collapsed, dizzy with spots in his vision, but Alaric scooped him up and held him close. He was so damn strong.
Everything was swirling around him now. Nausea sent acid hurling up his esophagus, but he managed not to puke somehow.
Alaric started taking steps against the wind. It abruptly changed direction, causing him to stagger back a few steps. He cradled Ezra close as the change in direction propelled them inside the building. Glass shattered as the windows blew in.
The lobby, now covered in glass, wasn’t as big as the one in his own building, with room for only the counter for the doorman—if it even had one—and a couple of chairs. Alaric set him on the floor behind the counter. “Stay here while I try to pinpoint its location. Sylphs are invisible.”
Ezra started to nod, then winced at the knife-like pain in his skull. Holding his head perfectly still, he watched as Alaric stepped back out into the gale still coming in through the broken windows and door, turning his head this way and that. His strength in the force of the wind was admirable, especially when a trash can came flying at his head and he quickly ducked. Then there seemed to be a blur in the doorway, a break in the wind. Alaric flung out his hands. An inhuman screech roared over the wind before everything abruptly stopped. That change was so sudden, Ezra grew disoriented and slumped over, cradling his head.
Alaric knelt in front of him and gently lifted his face. Ezra worked to focus on those purple and gold eyes, but the pain was near blinding him. Through slitted eyes, he watched as Alaric slowly placed his hands on Ezra’s head.
“Should have done this sooner,” the elf murmured softly. “Forgive me.”
Warmth seeped through his scalp, chasing the pain and disorientation away. His thoughts became clearer, as did his vision, and he could only gape at Alaric as one by one, all the other aches from the beating left his body until he actually felt good. He twisted to see if the deep pain in his ribs from the beating was gone, and it was.