Magical Midlife Meeting (Leveling Up #5)(71)

“Elliot Graves has a lot to explain.”

“Yes. But so does Sebastian. Two halves of the same coin. I meant what I said last month. I will never hurt you, Jessie. I want to be your instructor. You need one. I would be a great one. We worked insanely well together.”

“You’d never hurt me? You just tried to kill me!”

“I challenged you, and that was ordained. I knew I wouldn’t hurt you. I just didn’t know if our…contest, if you will…would result in my death, or a nice, long chat. I still don’t know.”

“Where did you set up your lab as Sebastian?”

“My table and camping stove, you mean? Do you still have those? I’d like them back if you do. That stove had a really good control of the flame. I’ve gotten the same brand, but it doesn’t work as well. Or maybe it’s that crystal room.” He hesitated. “I’d like to work in there again. Within Ivy House. I have so many ideas for some of those spells.”

“I don’t…” I took another step back. I didn’t know what to say. What to do. I freaking believed him! It wasn’t his words so much, either. It was the way he was talking. The down-to-earth, chill vibe. The unassuming look in his eyes—when they were open.

But all of that was so different from the Elliot Graves I’d met in this place. The smug, arrogant guy who’d been dogging my steps.

“Please, Jessie, let me explain,” he said. “Let me tell you my history. You can lock me in that cage if you want. For God’s sake, let your mate out. I approve, by the way. I thought he would be perfect for you even before you mated. He’s perfect for an heir. The only reason I brought him here like this was so I could get the chance to talk to you without ending up like Chambers. You can let him out and put me in. Whatever will give me some time.”

He sat up, his hands clasped in his lap. Eyes wary, he stood, moving just as slowly. “I’ll just go let him out, okay? Will that work?”

“Why don’t you just wake him up? You can sit in the chair, and he can sit beside you…”

“I’d rather not. I think I’d be safer in a cage.”

I let out my breath. It was the kind of thing Sebastian would have said.

“Open it, wake him up, and sit in the chair.” I pointed at one in the back corner.

“You drive a hard bargain.”

With a snap of his fingers, the cage sprang open. Another wave of his hands and Austin jolted to consciousness, his eyes blinking open, rage immediately surging through him. Elliot practically sprinted to the corner and quickly sat.

“Please don’t let him kill me,” he said. There was no disgust or condemnation in his tone—just the fear of someone who deeply respected what shifters could do.

Austin practically jumped out of the cage and stalked toward me, his fingers wrapping around my upper arm. Assured I was okay, he turned and stared Elliot down.

“I heard everything that was said just now,” Austin said. “He spoke to me on the way here, too. I couldn’t answer, but I heard.”

“Yes. It’s quite a simple spell, really,” Elliot replied. “You just need the power to pull it off. Listen, Jessie, I built in some assurances. I let Edgar have some of my blood—I assume vampires can identify people by blood? It never even occurred to me to ask.” He shook his head. “Now I feel dumb. Hopefully that’s an assurance. I made a certain type of magical flowers for the basajaun using the potion I made for Edgar. I have them growing just…” He pointed to a bookshelf at the far side of the room. It was probably one of those secret doors. “I also told Ivy House everything. You can ask her when you get back. She knew who I was the whole time. She tends to think like I do—we don’t always take the nicest approach, but we try to do what’s right. You can also ask your shifter there. I should smell the same. I knew he’d identify me right away if I was ever in his vicinity, so I made sure I wasn’t until now. Also…I knew you’d try to kill me, so it was best for me to appear to you as that really uncomfortable hologram.”

I turned and looked at Austin while sending a message to Ivy House. “Did you— ”

“Yep, ” she answered before I could finish. She could definitely hear my conversations outside of Ivy House somehow. When I wasn’t busy being blindsided, I’d get to the bottom of that.

“You knew who he was, and you didn’t say anything? ” I asked, outraged.

“Different cologne, but…” Austin wrapped his arm around my hip, his touch grounding. “I think he’s telling the truth, Jess.”

“You need to be pushed, ” Ivy House told me. “You need to be prodded. I swear, you are the most timid wild child I’ve ever met. It’s like you lock all your good qualities up inside, and it takes a battle or taunting to bring them roaring out. He helped me even before I knew who he was. He helped you. Listen to him. If, when he’s done, you don’t like what you’ve heard, kill him. It’s pretty simple. You really shouldn’t hold grudges in the magical world. Things change too fast for that. ”

I walked slowly to the little chair opposite Elliot and pulled it back a little farther. Austin pulled up another and we sat.

“So.” Elliot ran his hand down his face. “How about I start at the beginning?”