Arawn tried to force Matilda to love him. If she came to him the night before her wedding, she'd lose Gwynn and have no choice but to be Arawn's. Ricky fervently hoped that if Matilda had lived, she'd have told the asshole where to stick his so-called love and walked out of his life forever. Liv certainly would.
Ricky would not make the same mistake. He knew he couldn't have Liv to himself, and railing against that would be like blaming a tree for blocking his path. It was there first. He saw it there. He chose to take that particular route. Deal with it.
Ricky loved Liv, and she loved him back, and whatever happened, that's what he didn't want to lose. Her love. Their bond. He just happened to be enjoying the rest while he could get it. Because he knew that one day, hopefully not too soon, he wouldn't be getting it, and he hoped to hell he handled that the same way he'd handled ceding his hospital bedside spot to Gabriel: with understanding and dignity.
"Breakfast," he said as he walked in, bag raised in one hand, coffee tray in the other.
If Gabriel had slept in the last thirty hours, there was no sign of it. Yesterday Ricky had brought clean clothes from Gabriel's apartment, but he still wore the borrowed jeans and T-shirt.
Ricky reached over and cleared away the late-night snack he'd left--chips, a candy bar, a coffee, and a can of Coke. There was a bite taken from the bar and a few sips from the coffee. Ricky tossed them and set out a fresh coffee, juice box, muffin, apple, yogurt, and foil-wrapped breakfast burrito. The variety, as with the snack, wasn't because Gabriel had eclectic food tastes but because he seemed to have no tastes at all. In the four years Ricky had known Gabriel, he'd seen him served coffee with every variation of fixings and watched him drink it without reaction. If asked, he'd say, "Black," but Ricky hadn't decided if that was because he preferred it black or if it was just the most efficient way to make it.
Ricky set out the breakfast and then stood there, watching, as Gabriel sat with his gaze fixed on Liv's sleeping form. Ricky picked up the coffee and put it in Gabriel's hand. He got a head shake for that, but Gabriel did take a sip. Then Ricky replaced it with the juice. Now came that cool glance that said, You are beginning to annoy me.
"Drink," Ricky said. "At the risk of nagging, you don't want the first thing she sees to be you...passed out from low blood sugar."
The look chilled. "I'm not trying to be the first thing--"
"I know."
"I'm here so I may explain what happened."
"Confess, you mean. And you can stop giving me that look, unless you're trying to cool down your coffee, because it doesn't work on me."
Gabriel's eyes narrowed.
"Nope," Ricky said. "Keep trying, though. You might be able to scare off the rest of the nurses."
A snort that, from Gabriel, was a laugh, and he settled back into his chair.
"You're allowed to use the shower in here," Ricky said. "Apropos of nothing."
Gabriel looked at him.
"Since it's a private room, you can use it," Ricky said. "In fact, the staff were very eager for me to tell you that."
Gabriel returned to watching Liv. Ricky sighed and held out a bag from the pharmacy downstairs. Gabriel glanced in and grunted.
"Yes, deodorant. Again, apropos of nothing."
Gabriel took the bag, rose, and headed into the bathroom. Two minutes later he returned, having washed up, run his hands through his hair, and presumably used the deodorant, which he tossed aside. He then took the apple, chomped half of it in one bite, and arched a brow at Ricky.
"Yes, I'm happy. I'll stop nagging. Sit. Scowl. Just try to be in a slightly better mood when she wakes up."
Gabriel grunted. Ricky didn't add and she will wake up. The doctors all said this was only temporary, as her body healed itself. Gabriel seemed to accept that. He was here for the same reason Liv had spent the night in a police station when Gabriel had been arrested for James's murder. Because that's where they wanted to be. Where they needed to be.
As Ricky looked at Gabriel watching Liv, he knew that as much as he himself loved her, it wasn't like this, couldn't be like this. Hell, he wasn't even sure what this was. He only knew he couldn't touch it, and sure as hell couldn't duplicate it.
Gabriel finished the apple. Then he reached for the juice, and when he didn't find it, hand stretching out blindly, he turned. That's when Liv moved. Just her fingers uncurling, as if stretching.
Ricky started forward. Then he stopped.
"Hmm?" Gabriel said as he turned back to Liv, juice in hand.
"I..." Ricky swallowed. Grace and understanding, remember? "Shit, you know what I forgot? I was going to grab something for Liv. I'll be back. You need anything?"
Gabriel shook his head. Ricky started for the door. At a noise from Gabriel, he turned. Gabriel gestured at the juice.
"Thank you."
Ricky's gaze went to Liv, her fingers twitching again, and he forced a smile. "No problem," he said, and hurried from the room.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
I fell from the bridge, landed in the river, and heard laughter ringing out above me. I pushed through the surface into a sun-dappled day, trees casting shadows on the crystal water. I looked around to see more trees and a distant meadow.
"If you stay there, don't expect to stay afloat, Mati," a voice called from far above, and I craned my neck to see a dark-haired boy crouched on a tree branch. A blond boy sat beside him, legs dangling, both of them grinning down at me.
"You have been warned," the blond boy--Gwynn--called, just as Arawn jumped. He hit the water beside me, the force of his cannonball dragging me back under, sputtering, as they laughed. Another splash, before I could surface, and hands grabbed my arm, pulling me up.
"Not going to let me drown?" I said.
Gwynn smiled. "Never."
"Olivia!" The voice seemed to come from far away, and as I turned, the sky darkened, the trees on the shore morphing into fog-shrouded buildings. I saw a face in front of mine, blurred through the murky water. A woman's face, her long blond hair fanning around her, blue eyes wide with horror. She reached for me and I saw, not a hand, but a hoof, the feathered hair like seaweed.
I yanked back with a scream, water filling my mouth. Hands grabbed me again and pulled me up to the surface, and I saw sunlight and smelled trees and heard birds chirping. I looked to see Arawn and Gwynn, each holding me by one arm, their faces drawn with worry.
"I--I saw--" I began.
Then the kelpie surfaced, but this one had long, flowing red hair, like a mane. She rose, frowning, and the boys laughed.
"Did you scare Mati?" Arawn said.
"I did not mean to," the kelpie said. She put out her hands, fingers now. "Come and swim, Matilda. I will show you wonders below."
I froze, remembering the kelpies from my vision at Villa Tuscana, dragging a young woman to her death. When the kelpie tried to take my hand, I jerked back.
Arawn laughed. "Someone's been listening to stories again."
"They aren't stories if they're true," Gwynn said.
"All stories have truth," Arawn said. "If you look hard enough."
"I'd not hurt you, Matilda," the kelpie said. "You are one of us. Come. I'll show you magic."
She closed her eyes and transformed into a roan horse with a dark red mane. Arawn climbed on her back and held out a hand for me. I looked at Gwynn. He sighed, put his leg over the horse's back, and patted the spot between them. I got on and the kelpie dove through the clear water, impossibly deep, then through a dark hole, and we came up again in a cave glistening with crystals.
The scene faded and I felt a blast of cold only to wake again in the cave, lying on a ledge at the side, curled up with Gwynn, both of us almost a decade older. It was the same cavern, though. Our secret place, and he was pulling me against him, his lips going to mine, and then--
"Olivia!"
I blinked, and I was cold, so cold. I was out of the pond, lying on stone, hearing the echo of water sloshing against rock. There was warmth her
e, too, like a blazing fire on a winter's day, and I squirmed to get closer to it, and then the warmth became hands, hot against my icy skin, and that felt so amazingly good. My eyes opened and I looked up into pale blue eyes, and I smiled as I said, "Gabriel."
That fae cavern had turned dark and cold, but we were out of the water and safe, and snuggled up together. A small part of me snorted and said, "Seriously? Um, no. Not happening." But that's what dreams are for--to weave reality and fantasy and memory and stitch together something you can't hope for in waking life. To fulfill that little part of you that wants something so bad.
As long as I was stitching together a perfect fantasy scene with Gabriel, I figured I might as well make it worthwhile. So I kissed him.
I remembered my first vision of Gwynn and Matilda. And that kiss...Damn, that kiss. Magical and perfect, in a way one would only ever imagine a kiss from a fairy prince to be, even someone who had never, in her entire life, entertained such a frivolous fantasy. But it had been a kiss to remember, a kiss I couldn't pry out of my mind, as hard as I tried. Now, this kiss, with Gabriel? It knocked that one--and every other one I'd ever had--clear out of my memory, as if this was the only one that counted. And it was.
I began falling through endless memories, not of Gwynn or Gabriel, but of kelpies and lamiae and other fae, unrecognizable, the visions starting pleasant and turning dark, until I had no idea what I was seeing. Something was chasing me, and I ran as fast as I could, as if from Death itself. Then in the distance I heard a soft laugh, followed by a grunt, both as familiar as actual voices: Ricky and Gabriel. I stopped running and turned toward the sounds. Ricky's voice floated over.
"Sit. Scowl. Just try to be in a slightly better mood when she wakes up."
There! I changed direction, and it was like running downhill through a tunnel, the end blazing a lighted welcome, voices still flitting out, guiding me until...
My eyelids fluttered open. I was staring at...white.
A clatter sounded beside me. A hand gripped mine, the touch as familiar as that grunt, and I turned as he leaned over, and I smiled and said, "Gabriel."
--
Gabriel took me through the events of the night before. No, two nights before. It was now Wednesday morning. I'd lost Tuesday entirely. I also lost about half of his narrative, as I kept mentally fading and needing to ask him to repeat himself, which he did, with astonishing patience.
"A flood tunnel?" I said.
"Yes, and I don't know why it was open. Clearly such things should be sealed, because if you'd continued down it, who knows where you'd have ended up."
"But I didn't." I smiled at him. "You saved me."
He ducked the smile. "The platform saved you. Or whatever it was."
"So, we were in something like a cave? Lying on rock?"
"Concrete."
"Right, but it would have felt like..." The dream rippled back. Gabriel and I in the cavern, lying on the ledge and...My cheeks heated.
"Olivia?"
I shook it off. Obviously I'd been aware enough of my surroundings that the memories of Gwynn and the cavern had merged with Gabriel and the tunnel, and since Gwynn and Matilda used that as their secret make-out spot, I'd done some mental editing myself.
Another shake, and I looked at Gabriel and..."What are you wearing?" I said with a sudden laugh.
"You've been unconscious for a while," said a voice from the doorway. "Gabriel joined the Saints. He's even got the jacket right there."
Ricky pointed to his jacket, on the back of the bedside chair.
"Put it on," I said to Gabriel. "This I have to see."
"I'm afraid that would violate club rules," Gabriel said. "Ricky only lent it to me under extreme circumstances, to alleviate my hypothermia."
"Oh, I won't tell anyone," Ricky said. "Go on. Humor her. She's had a near-death experience. She deserves a treat."
When Gabriel ignored us both, Ricky leaned in and whispered, "Don't worry. I may have photographic evidence."
"What?" Gabriel said.
I pulled Ricky into a quick kiss. He added a second to my forehead before setting a mocha on my tray.
"Wow," I said, taking it. "Now that's timing."
He shrugged. "I had a hunch you'd wake up soon."
As I lifted the cup to my lips, he took it and replaced it with a glass of water.
"Better start with this," he said.
"Tease."
"Drink all the water. Slowly. Then you can have the mocha. But if the nurses come by?" He jerked his thumb at Gabriel. "He brought you coffee."
I propped up the pillows on the bed, shifted over, and patted a spot for him to take.
He perched on the edge, giving me plenty of room. "So where in the story are we?"
"The rescue," Gabriel said.
"Ah, good. Keep going, then. This is your part."
"I mean the part where you rescued us."
"Found you. The rescue was the bring-Liv-back-from-the-dead part. Which is totally yours."
"Back from the dead?" I said, rising.
"He's being dramatic," Gabriel said. "It was CPR."
"I stopped breathing?"
"Oh, he skipped that part, did he?" Ricky said. "The doc will tell her everything, Gabriel, so you might as well fess up. The whole story. Leave nothing out."
Gabriel went still. An odd look crossed his face, and he shifted, his gaze escaping to my pillows, which he fussed with, grumbling that I needed to keep my head supported.
"He saved your life," Ricky continued. "He just doesn't want to admit that, because it totally blows his tough-guy rep. Fine, then. He brought you back to life. Meanwhile, I..."
Ricky finished telling the story. Then he detailed my injuries. When he got to the stab wound, Gabriel said, "That is my fault."
"Uh, no," I said. "Pretty sure you didn't stab me."
"He means he's taking responsibility for the fact he didn't realize you'd been stabbed and therefore didn't tend to it right away. Which, as the doctors have pointed out, wouldn't have made a difference." Ricky mock-lowered his voice. "He's not quite himself yet. I'd take full advantage and ask for a raise."
When Gabriel gave him a look, Ricky said to me, "It's the hypothermia. The paramedics said it causes mental confusion and poor decision making. Luckily for both of you, he only had the confusion."
Gabriel shifted back and sipped his coffee. I opened my mouth and then paused. A thought had slipped through the periphery of my mind. Something important.
Speaking of mental confusion...
"Aunika!" I said. "The last we saw..."
"I'd love to tell you she's all right," Ricky said. "But honestly, I don't know. I went by the center yesterday, and I managed to get a girl who works there to talk to me."
"Was she about twenty? Dark hair? Sleeve tattoos?"
"That's her. She finally admitted she hasn't seen Aunika since Monday. Aunika did text her, though, saying she was fine and needed a couple of days off."
"That text could have been sent by her captors."
"Yeah. I'm still working on getting her home address. That girl sure as hell wasn't giving it to me."
I fell silent, chasing another thought, and then said, "Over the drop-in center. She said her apartment is on the second floor."
"Good," he said. "We'll check that as soon as you're up to it. In the meantime, just tell me what legwork you need done. I can do the online stuff, too, but I did bring your laptop. It's over there with a bag of clothing."
"Laptop. I left that in...Shit! My car!"
"It's at Gabriel's office, along with his."
Gabriel looked taken aback. "Thank you. I didn't even consider that."
"I know. Mental confusion, right? It's handled. As is..." He took two cell phones from his pocket. "Your boss bought you a new phone, Liv."
Gabriel frowned at him.
Ricky held up two credit cards. "I fetched these from the front desk. There's a charge on the Amex for both phones. I set it up with your provider
by impersonating you."
"And me?" I asked.
"Yep, impersonated you, too."
I smiled and took the phone.
"You just need to download your backups," he said. "Please tell me you have backups."
"We do," I said. Then I pulled him into a hug. "Thank you."
"I knew you'd want to be up and running as soon as you could. Gabriel handled nurse duty; I did this. I also updated Rose on the situation and she went over to feed TC. Oh, and I know you lost your wallet in the river, so just make a list of what you need replaced and I'll make the calls before you get out."
"Before tonight?"
"You're not getting released today, Liv."
I made a noise that meant, We'll see about that, but just thanked and hugged him again for all he'd done.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Gabriel went home around ten to shower and shave. At noon he was back with lunch. One of the nurses smelled the food, and came in, as if to give us shit for it. Seeing Gabriel, she turned and walked out. Evidently, he'd made an impression.
After lunch, Ricky had a class. Gabriel and I were on our laptops, catching up on two lost days as we talked about Aunika and our next steps.
"Working?" said a voice from the doorway. "Didn't you just fall in a river?"
"No rest for the wicked," I said. "As you can see, we're very busy. Thanks for coming by, leave the flowers at the door...Oh, no. Wait. You didn't bring me flowers. You brought...a book? If it's from your library, I'm not really in any shape for literary visions."
Patrick walked over. "I know, which is why I brought you one that is pure entertainment."
"And while normally I'd say that's very sweet and actually quite considerate, I have the feeling..." I took the book from him and read the cover. "It's one of yours."
"How else can I guarantee it's any good?"
I snorted and set it aside. "The door is behind you."
"I came all the way to Chicago--and brought you a book--and you're kicking me out?"
"You came because you're wondering what happened and want to find out before the other elders. If you came bearing a useful gift, we could negotiate. But a copy of your own book earns you this much: Gabriel and I were pushed off a bridge. We survived. We don't know who did it, but we intend to find out."
"I think a copy of my book is at least worth the true version. You were pushed; Gabriel jumped."