That subtle hint of a smirk. He licked his lips, and I died a little.
“It would be impolite to quote him.”
It was my turn to laugh, and I did nothing to stifle it. “When have you ever concerned yourself with being polite?”
Cade turned his attention on me, and the intensity in his dark eyes caused my laughter to hitch in my throat. “You really want to know what he said?”
“Kind of.”
“He said, That bitch tried to fry me like a mosquito in a bug trap.”
I gave the statement a nod of satisfaction and didn’t disagree with it, though I decided I should add, “If I’d meant to kill him, I wouldn’t have missed.”
Cade grinned openly then, a broad, masculine smile that showed me a flash of his perfect white teeth. A swarm of butterflies took flight inside my belly. I was going to need to blow something up pretty soon, or there was a very real risk I might be turning into a softy.
“I doubt anyone would miss him.” He dropped one hand from the steering wheel and stretched his arm like he was going to place it on the seat behind me. He seemed to remember my presence and thought better of the move, letting his palm rest flat on his thigh. His fingers twitched nervously. Having me here was throwing him off his rhythm. We were such particular, peculiar people, who spent so much time alone, we sometimes forgot how to behave around others. I could relate to his unease on a visceral level, because I was feeling it myself.
“Manea might,” I said.
This brought Cade back to his normal, stone-faced self. I wasn’t sure which of the two visages I preferred.
“Manea has always been more interested in things than in people. She’d regret losing Prescott’s loyalty, but I don’t think she’d notice the loss of him as a person, do you know what I mean?”
Of course I knew what he meant. The way he’d described Prescott’s relationship to his god could have just as easily been applied to mine with Seth, or Cade’s with Ardra. We were tools to them, things they relied on but did not love. Gods didn’t know how to love. They only knew how to feed on the love of others.
Loving and being loved are very different animals.
I didn’t reply, but in the absence of an answer he had to know what I was thinking.
“Did he say anything else?” I asked, after the silence drew out long enough to become uncomfortable.
“I’m not going to take the idol from you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”
The thought had crossed my mind when he mentioned Prescott’s name. His sudden appearance would make more sense, then. And his being in the room right next to mine. More importantly it would explain why he was being so nice to me.
Except, he’d been at the motel first.
And he was asking for my help.
I didn’t think he would align himself with Prescott for something as silly as a missing trinket belonging to a goddess Cade didn’t work for.
“What idol?” I gave him my best innocent face.
I wasn’t very convincing, judging from his expression.
“Be careful.” That was it. I suspected there was a great deal more he wanted to say, but he stopped at be careful. It was all the more chilling of a warning because of its brevity.
If it were up to me, I’d have explained why I’d taken the thing and how none of this was my idea. I was just doing my job.
But weren’t we all?
We rounded a bend on the road, and a glittering vista unfolded below us. Lights shimmered brightly against the choppy water of a small lake. Even in the darkness the place had a warm, welcoming glow. I could imagine the type of people who would spend a night in such a retreat. Rich people. Settled people. Families who were warm and loving and actually liked to spend time together in beautiful woodland resorts at the foot of mountains.
And I was coming to crush their joy.
I was the Godzilla to their Tokyo.
“It doesn’t look abandoned to me.”