I imparted what I believe to be sound advice. Given our world’s fragile nature, there couldn’t be a better time than now because we might not have tomorrow.
I’ve asked Myles about it a few times but he’s blown me off stating he’s been busy at work and hasn’t had time to think about it.
Once again, he shakes his head, and I can tell the subject makes him uncomfortable.
“Myles,” I exclaim, leaning over and giving him a tiny punch on the shoulder. “What the hell, dude? You want to marry my bestie, and now you’re getting cold feet?”
The scowl he gives me is so fierce that I pull back. “Of course I’m not getting cold feet.”
“Then what is it?” I demand.
“It’s not the right time,” he mutters.
Oh, hell no. Not that again. “Haven’t we been through this? It’s the right time. Never a better time.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” he replies snarkily. “I remember you saying that before. But that was different then.”
My eyebrows draw in tight. “How?”
“Because…” His voice trails off, and he doesn’t seem to want to finish.
“Spit it out,” I demand. Because I know Rainey will say yes, so he sure as hell better not be having second thoughts.
“Because I don’t want to hurt your feelings,” he exclaims in a rush of breath.
I rear back. “My feelings?”
His expression says he can’t believe I’d be that obtuse, but then he explains. “Your feelings because of finding out you and Carrick have loved each other for centuries upon centuries, and he’s been snatched away from you now. I know you’re in pain. Rainey knows it, too. It would be too insensitive to shove an engagement in your face right now.”
I’m so stunned by this admission that my jaw drops open. My friend’s thoughtfulness utterly warms part of me, but the other part wants to smack him.
“I’m fine,” I assure him.
“You’re not,” he snaps. “You won’t talk about it to us, you’re moping around, and you look like the world has already ended for you.”
I blink.
Blink again.
Do I really act that way?
Yeah, I don’t talk about it. I mean, I told both Rainey and Myles the full story the day after Carrick was taken. Told them every detail I didn’t tell Zaid, because Zaid knew most of it from first-hand experience.
But since then, I haven’t wanted to talk about it. I don’t want to keep slicing wounds open and letting them bleed for my friends.
We have an earth to save.
“Myles,” I say quietly, but with a tinge of firmness. “Yes, I’ve been through a lot, and, yes, I’m a bit of a mess when it comes to Carrick. But that does not mean I wouldn’t take complete joy in you proposing to Rainey. In fact, I’d say it’s exactly what I need. Some type of refreshing reminder that love is beautiful and still very much alive. Please, please… I’m begging you… do not hold off putting a ring on that woman’s finger because you think my feelings will be hurt. I assure you that will never happen.”
His expression is dubious. “You’re not just saying that because you’re trying to be all brave and shit, are you?”
“Of course I’m trying to be brave and shit,” I say in exasperation. “But I could also use something good and happy right now. So I suggest you get to thinking of something, okay?”
Myles gives me the biggest grin I’ve ever seen on his face, and it truly lifts my spirits. “Feel like brainstorming with me now?”
I snag one of the yellow legal pads and pens. “Let’s do it. I’ll take notes. You tell me your thoughts.”
CHAPTER 4
Carrick
The plume of fire shot through a crack in the stone walkway, catching Carrick in the calf and blistering his skin raw. He ignored it as he continued his journey up the sloping path that reached a flat plateau. On one shoulder, he balanced a small boulder that weighed close to five hundred pounds. It was effortless weight, and, in ordinary circumstances, he could easily balance it, but with the flames shooting out at intermittent intervals, it required intense concentration, too.
For every boulder he dropped, he’d receive twenty lashes at the end of the day.
In all, nothing he couldn’t handle. The burns healed, as did the split skin from the whip.
As did all the other torture devices Rune had been inventing to keep Carrick under his thumb and punished.
Since Rune had snatched him off his patio in Seattle, Carrick had been living in what looked to be a replica of the Underworld, or, at least, the way Finley and Boral had described it. Carrick himself hadn’t been, never having had a reason to go in all his millennia of living.
But he was fairly sure this wasn’t the actual Underworld, rather something that resembled it. It was cavernous and dim, light coming only from pits of fire pocketed in rocky crevices. It was hot and smelled like sulfur. Carrick suspected Rune created this place just to make Carrick uncomfortable, but really… it didn’t matter where he was.