Part 14 (1/2)
”Someone tried to shoot me,” I said.
”So I gathered.” The words sounded irritated, but the smile he flashed me was warm. ”You look frazzled. Are you all right? Did anyone get hurt?”
”Not unless you count a window and a plaster wall.” I crawled out from behind the couch.
”Did they scream?”
”No.”
”Then it's fine,” he smiled.
It was nice of him to try to make a joke, but I couldn't quite shake the feeling that danger lurked just outside. I s.h.i.+fted so I could rest my back against the seat of the couch, because, though I wanted to seem casual, I couldn't quite bring myself to stand up.
”Do you think it was the Order?” Sebastian asked more seriously, perhaps noticing his inability to shake my mood.
”Undoubtedly,” I said.
”You don't think there's any way it could have been random? A drive-by shooting or something?”
”From the alley?”
”Oh,” Sebastian said. ”Well, less likely then.”
Although the fact that no one had, so far, followed up to do me in, did make me wonder a bit. I mean, the ”real estate” agent had led me to believe she was after Sebastian, not me. If the shooter had been anywhere nearby, they must have seen Sebastian pull up. This would be the perfect opportunity to kill us both. Maybe they were biding their time, waiting for us to let down our guard, to leave together. ”You have to stay here,” I said. ”We can never leave.”
”So, the answer is no, I take it?”
”To what?”
”To the idea that this could all be a coincidence.” When my only reply was a hot, angry glare, Sebastian switched gears. ”You know more about these people than I do, but do you really think they'd just shoot you from a distance? That doesn't seem very moral high ground, does it?”
”What are you talking about?”
”I don't know, but isn't killing someone at such a great distance a bit of a cheat? You'd think the Church would expect its enforcers to get in close, try to save the souls of the sinners, or at the very least look into the eyes of the accused.”
”They don't give people a chance to repent, Sebastian. You're already tried and sentenced if the Orderis after you.”
”That's not very sporting,” he said with a frown.
”Well, no s.h.i.+t.”
I glared at him for a while, waiting for the seriousness of the situation to finally sink in. Instead, he took in the various blankets Parrish had tacked to the windows and said, ”Nice place.”
”Get used to it. I was serious when I said I'm never leaving.”
”Well,” he said. Standing up, he smoothed out his jeans. ”If the Order does have a sniper outside, they can't see us in here. We could at least sit together on the couch and watch a movie or something. Maybe order a pizza. My treat.”
”Why aren't you more afraid of them?”
”From what you've told me, they sound like cowards.”
My anger flared again. ”These cowards slaughtered my friends.”
Sebastian's face softened with compa.s.sion. ”Yes. And I a.s.sume your friends were mortals, not even soldiers. Did your friends even have any weapons of their own?”
”Ritual knives,” I said, but Sebastian was right, the coven had been defenseless, unaware.
”And the Order carries guns.”
I nodded. They did; I'd found guns, even rifles, on their bodies. They also had a whole a.r.s.enal of edged weapons from swords to stilettos.
”Cowards,” he repeated, as he plunked himself down on my couch. He took in the living room in all of its cinderblock-and-board-bookshelf glory. ”Where's your TV?”
”Don't have one,” I said, feeling oddly sheepish about it. It was less of a political decision on my part than an economic one, but I tended to let most people think no TV went part and parcel with my alternative lifestyle as a vegetarian Witch.
”Right. That cancels the movie option, then. Still up for a pizza?”
”I can't eat while someone could still be out there.”
Sebastian looked into my eyes for a long moment. Then, very slowly, very seriously, he said, ”Of course you can, Garnet. You're stronger than the entire Order, and you know it. Or if you don't, you should.
Lilith is a G.o.ddess.”
”She can't stop bullets.”
”I watched her stop Benjamin's knife. Are you sure?”
I gave a grim laugh. ”Well, not enough to bet my life on it, no. Anyway,” I added as an afterthought,”Lilith and I don't always share the same agenda.”
Sebastian leaned an elbow on the arm of the sofa in order to shoot me a long, appraising look. With his designer leather coat and perfectly combed hair, he made my couch look extraordinarily ugly. ”So whose idea was it to steal my grimoire?”
The question had the air of being casual, but I felt coldness behind his eyes that made me wish I hadn't been so quick to invite him into my apartment.
Using my elbows, I leveraged myself up onto the couch to sit beside him. I didn't want to have this fight while sitting at Sebastian's feet. I also got the sense that it didn't much matter what the answer to his question was. The result was the same. He'd been betrayed, and I'd taken part in it.
”Lilith,” I said, even though I wasn't sure it mattered.
A knock on the door startled both of us, as did the voice from the other side, which proclaimed in an authoritative male voice, ”This is the police. Is everyone all right in there? We got a call about a shot fired.”
Sebastian and I looked at each other. I could tell we shared the same concern: could it be the Vatican shooter trying to gain entrance? Neither of us moved toward the door. I wanted to play dumb, but, unfortunately, I'd been unable to contain a squeak of surprise, so whoever it was out there knew someone was home. Anyway, we'd both been talking just before the knock came.
”Sir? Ma'am?” came the voice again. ”It would be really helpful if we could talk to you for just a minute.
I'd really like to know that everyone is okay in there.”
At times like this I'd kill to be telepathic. What was Sebastian thinking? Did he also think the guy sounded fairly convincing as a cop? Or did he think that was part of what made this whole thing suspicious? I had no idea what to do. I was actually relieved when Sebastian got up and gestured for me to get out of the line of sight of the door. I scurried back behind the couch. Okay, it was not the most heroic of spots, but I still preferred to have steel between any ricocheting bullets and my fragile flesh and blood.