Sweet Reckoning (The Sweet Trilogy, #3)(76)

Marek didn’t seem to notice any of this. He didn’t act surprised or satisfied or . . . anything. He matter-of-factly opened the leather flap to reveal the shimmery heavenly metal underneath.

“Dude,” Blake said. “What is that? What are you gonna do with it?”

The whisperer had plastered itself to the ceiling as far from the hilt as possible.

Marek closed the leather flap over the hilt and slid it into his pocket before answering Blake. “Don’t worry about it.”

I watched the wheels turning in Kaidan’s mind. He looked prepared to attack. I gave him a tiny shake of my head, and Kope stepped slightly in front of him, as if signaling him not to make a move. As much as I wanted to jump on Marek and take the hilt back, I knew this was a pivotal moment. We could not yet let on that we were all allies. I needed to be the only threatening one until we had all the Dukes gathered. Then the Neph boys could take the hilt by force. If we tried to take it now, the whisperer would fly off and rat us out. Then we were trapped at a disadvantage.

We could still get it back. We had to.

Marek looked at Kaidan and nodded his head toward me. “She had it all along. Don’t you know never to trust a pretty face? Don’t let her out of your sight.”

“I won’t,” Kaidan said, his eyes hitting mine. “Especially now.”

Marek turned and headed to the door, seeming to speak to the air as he said, “I’ve got it.” And he left the room with the whisperer trailing behind him.

We all stood there, stunned. This changed everything. For one, my guilt was now proven. I’d lost my biggest advantage. What was I going to do without the hilt? All at once I felt small, fragile, and useless. My breathing hitched, a panic attack approaching.

I grasped for something positive, trying to slow my heart rate. We still had the surprise of our Neph alliance, as small as it might be. And maybe other Neph would join us when they saw we were willing to fight. I couldn’t pretend that a huge fraction of my confidence hadn’t disappeared with the hilt, along with the hope that Marek might end up as an ally, but I didn’t want the others to feel as desolate as I did.

We’ll get it back, I signed.

I could tell from the fierceness in everyone’s eyes that they agreed. Then both of the Ks widened their eyes at the same time.

Kope signed, Shax just told Marek to dispose of the hilt.

He said, “Bury it in the desert if you must,” Kaidan added, his hands moving fast.

No! We had to get it back!

Kaidan’s phone chimed with a text. He read it and slid the cell back into his pocket.

“Summit’s in one hour. One of us needs to guard the door at all times so she can’t escape.”

“I’m on it,” Blake said. He went to the door and leaned against it, crossing his arms.

“We’ll stay with her while she gets ready,” Marna said, guiding me to the bathroom.

I wanted the positive feeling of peace to return. If I was going to lead us into this battle, I had to have that hope. As I pulled on my new snug black leather pants, black tank top, and short leather jacket, I ran through the passage in my mind, reminding myself of the arsenal I had at hand. I told myself the Sword of Righteousness was just a crutch—I didn’t really need it, but crap! I wanted it! It had been my one tangible weapon.

By the time I zipped on the black leather ankle boots and stood up, my confidence was wavering back and forth. The twins watched me, sort of agape at my outfit choice. Ginger had an impressed half smile as she looked me over.

I pulled my hair into a high ponytail and went to the mirror to do my makeup. The demons might have labeled me as a mercenary of heaven, but I wouldn’t be wearing any white wings tonight. I darkened around my eyes with gray eyeliner and silvery shadow, blushed my cheekbones, and smoothed red lipstick over my mouth. The overall effect was even more powerful than I could’ve hoped. Over the tank top I placed Kai’s gift, the turquoise necklace, the one splash of color I’d be wearing.

Blake came into the bathroom in a black suit with an iridescent green tie. He wet his hair and helped himself to some spray gel, flicking pieces here and there. Ginger grabbed the spray gel from him and spritzed the back of his head, doing the same thing that he’d done to the front. I saw him visibly relax under her touch.

A speck of blue caught my eye in the mirror, and I looked up to see Kaidan leaning against the doorframe with his hands in his pockets. He also wore a black suit, but with a royal blue shirt underneath that made the sapphire of his eyes pop. I had to swallow. He ran a hand through his hair as he looked at me.

I will drink tonight, just enough to hide the bond, he signed to me, and I nodded.

I wanted to kiss him again. One last kiss. He must have been thinking the same thing because he was ready for me when I turned and went to him, running my hands over his strong shoulders.

His mouth was tender, and he tasted of sweet bourbon. Maybe it was wrong, but I didn’t care if any of our Neph friends were watching or how they felt about it. The only thing that made me pull away was fear of whisperers flying in. Behind me I heard the twins and Blake walk out, flicking on the bathroom’s television and turning up the volume before leaving us alone.

Kaidan pressed me against the sink, kissing me deeply.

I wanted to tell him that I loved him, but he held me close and wouldn’t let me budge an inch away from him. I let my mind open wide, revealing the pinks in my emotional aura just long enough for him to see. He took me up into his arms.