Gray's Shadow (Kings of Hell MC 4)

“You’re only confusing him,” Gray said.

Shadow raised his chin. “So I am a ‘he’.”

Gray didn’t have the time to answer when a slurping sound erupted behind his back. He spun around, just in time to see Jake’s face disappearing behind the same black goo Shadow seemed to be made of. His form bulged until it reached the size of a large sofa. Huge, bat-like wings tore out of the shiny surface on his back, and when he stood, every single one of them held their breaths.

It was in this form that Jake had saved his life, yet seeing the gargoyle’s scaly body and long claws again made Gray’s heart beat faster.

Vars stroked the gargoyle’s forearm with a smile. “Good boy!”

The tension dispersed when Jake turned and licked the side of Vars’s face with his huge tongue, as if he were a dog, happy to please its master.

Elliot stepped closer once more, adjusting a long scarf over his shoulders. “Enough with the zoophilic PDA. Can we now move on to retrieving the chest of bones?”

It was pointless to confront him over this, but wasn’t Elliot the one who liked having sex in public? Gray just kept his mouth shut and let the situation unfold.

Jake growled at Elliot, which ended up with Knight instantly taking his place in front of his boyfriend. “Seriously, Jake?”

“Maybe he’s still rabid,” Elliot complained, and this time even Vars turned toward him with a sour expression.

“Are you done?” Vars asked.

“He is done,” Knight said before Elliot could shoot something back. Thank fuck that even when so lovesick, Knight had some sense left in him.

The shadow watched Jake with its head cocked. Did it recognize Azog as a creature from the other side, or was it simply curious? Either way, Gray didn’t need to know. He didn’t care what the shadow thought, because this whole situation was purely utilitarian in nature.

“Jake, we’re looking for an old chest.”

“Exciting,” Knight said, rubbing his hands together as if he were a kid about to watch a magic show.

“I will lead you,” Shadow said and started walking straight into the water, without even making a ripple. Once he was in chest-deep, he turned and Gray knew he was being watched when his body hair bristled yet again. “Don’t go anywhere.”

Gray sat in the grass and shook his head. This was not what he expected from a devil pact. Not at all.

Unlike Shadow, Jake brought a storm into the lake, but he too soon disappeared beneath the surface, after taking a single, noisy breath.

To his right, Knight whistled with a wide grin. “Is there love in the air? Will our Gray finally get some action?”

Gray scowled at him. “Will you cut it out? Or do you want to fight me and use my blood to feed the stones tonight?”

Knight waved his hand dismissively. “That’s already handled for the month. I wanted to get it out of the way before drinking. But then this came up, and you know, we couldn’t pass on the possibility that this chest could contain something of historical significance.”

Elliot stepped closer. “Yes! So many remains of William Fane’s victims have never been found. This could totally be something connected to him.”

Gray listened to Knight and Elliot further discuss their treasure hunt fantasies to pass the time, and was glad that everyone—even Elliot—knew not to mention his lost arm. It was better this way. His disability needed to be dealt with like any other inconvenience, not treated like a problem everyone had to concern themselves with. The injury that ended up with the amputation had been his own goddamn fault anyway. He should have stayed with Rev at the worktable instead of pacing around the room like an idiot, just because the jeweler work bored the shit out of him. Maybe that was a lesson for him.

At least he didn’t end up dead like Mike.

Because he had people save him.

The sight of bubbles erupting on the surface broke through his gloomy thoughts.

Jake bursting out of the lake was quite the spectacle. Wings flapping, water showering everyone, his large silhouette obscured the clouds when he spiraled out of the water like a monstrous ballerino. His landing, on the other hand, left much to be desired in terms of grace. With both arms filled by a chest so large a normal man couldn’t possibly have carried it on his own, he descended onto the beach in a crouch, grunting loudly and then falling to his ass.

Gray ignored the barking laughter of the two jokesters in their party and rushed to Jake’s side. Vars was there first, pulling the huge, inhuman head to his chest.

“That was a good job. We just need to work on balance.”

But Gray was way more interested in the bounty Jake had brought from the bottom of the lake than in his landing skills. He switched on a flashlight, illuminating the large rectangular shape Jake had placed on the sand. The hinges were rusty, and the whole thing was covered by mud and some kind of algae, but the initials at the front were clear enough.