A Werewolf, A Vampire, and A Fae Walk Into A Bar (Book 1 of The Last Witch Series) novel Chapter 8

“What in the flying f-”

“Move an inch and I’ll rip your heart out through your back.”

I’m sure Zev’s not talking to me, but I still glance his way to see where his eyes are trained. He’s clearly locked in on Darius, and he’s got one of his enormous hands hovering centimeters from Rain’s head. It scares the breath from my lungs, but that’s as much as I dare to move.

“I’m standing between the fae and the baby, fool,” Darius spits back. “He moved to come back in here the second he stepped into the living room.”

“The wolf flinched first, not I,” Rune hisses defensively.

“I smelled aggression on one of you, and clearly, I was right,” Zev says, a low growl in his throat.

Wolf? Fae? The little corner of my brain that’s been warning me we’re no longer in Kansas finally has the microphone. This shit is different.

“Move your paw away from the baby, Zev.” Rune speaks in a tone that seems less about commanding Zev and more about protecting Rain, which is finally something I can appreciate in this excruciating standoff.

The three men say nothing, each tense from teeth to toes as they wait to see if the other might move. I finally decide to speak, though I’m half expecting I’ll startle Zev and get swallowed whole.

“Each of you,” I start, talking as quietly and slowly as possible, “step to the center of the room and sit in front of me. Do it now, or I’ll find a way to murder all of you, so help me God.”

I feel their eyes on me as they consider my pitch. While I know they don’t fear for their physical safety, it does seem they either respect me or need me for something, so my words carry a little weight. After a few more seconds of stillness, they do as directed, and the feeling of getting these three to follow instructions is borderline orgasmic.

As he moves to sit, I notice a small smirk on Rune’s face. It might be the first emotion I’ve seen other than indifference and white-hot anger.

“Something funny, Runey Toons?” When in doubt, go schoolyard nicknames.

“Funny? I suppose, in its way. You say God. Singular. I always forget the simplicity of the earthly deities.” His answer elicits a slight nod from Zev.

“Simplicity?” I respond, a little incredulous. “If religion here is simple, I’d hate to see the complex version. How do things work where you’re from, pal?”

Rune stays silent. So do the others. It seems like my prying questions are going to get a little resistance, so I opt to go all in. It helps my confidence that they are sitting criss cross applesauce like children in front of me, all lined up in a row. I smirk at that and straighten my spine as I speak.

“You clearly need something from me, and none of you are happy with the others being here. So, if you want to get on my good side, one of you assholes better tell me what the bloody hell is going on.”

I notice a feeling of safety creeping in, like my body trusts the people nearby and has released some tension. It’s probably just the oxytocin from nursing flooding me with a happy hormone cocktail, but it’s giving me the self-assurance to make demands, and hopefully that will help me keep a little control in a life that otherwise has gone way the hell off the rails in the last few hours.

Darius clears his throat, the first to man up and answer my damn question. Rune and Zev both look at him, apparently as eager to hear what he’s got to say as I am.

“There’s a prophecy, one you know not of, though it exists in your world.”

“Great stopping point,” I barge right in, needing clear answers in a hurry. “If this is my world, where are you from?”

“A different realm, I’m not sure you can understand it.” His dark eyes flick away, like he’s already bored with this conversation.