Page 2 of Mage Massacres

“I still need a little rest,” Stone corrected. “And I’m not a bar-hopping kind of guy. That shit gets boring.”

“We’re going out,” I told him. “You’re coming with us.”

He glared at the ceiling, dryly asking, “Why?”

That was as close to pouting as the demon got. In almost nine months of being his roommate, I’d yet to get him to go out with me. I wasn’t going to hold my breath for him to change his mind.

“Sam called this morning,” I confessed. “We’re going to meet the sixth guy that’s supposed to be staying here. He’s made his way into town but didn’t know if he’d be stayin’ for long.”

“Yep,” Novak called over his shoulder as he went to the kitchen. “I’ll bet you a hundred bucks that he’s a mer. He had an accent when I heard him talking in the background.”

I squinted at him. “I didn’t hear him talking.”

He leaned his head around the corner so I could see his grin. “Of course, you didn’t.”

“Why does having an accent automatically make him a mer?” Stone questioned curiously. “Palmer and Vaughn have accents.”

“They aren’t mermaids.” Briggs twisted his head to inspect me. “At least, I don’t think they are. Do you have gills? Maybe a tail when you shower? Bring a pitcher of water, Novak.”

“Fuck off. I’m not a mer,” I argued. “And if I were a mer, I’d be a merman, not a maid. Also, collectively, the species is just mer.”

Briggs shrugged. “I don’t care.”

“Okay. Serious question.” Novak held his hand up, dishcloth and all. “How hard do you think it is to wriggle into that wetsuit that Aquaman wears?”

“What?” Stone questioned in confusion. “Where did that come from?”

“I was wondering.” The vampire grimaced. “Do you think it’s difficult to get into?”

The demon squeezed his temples. “I need a fucking drink.”

“Question two.” The vampire leaned against the wall as he bounced his eyes around the room. “Does it not piss anyone else off that he’s so underrated as a superhero?”

“How much have you had to drink?” Stone stressed. “Are you drunk this early in the afternoon?”

The vampire shook his head. “Nope. None. I’ve had nothing, but day drinking doesn’t seem like a bad idea right now.”

“So, the new guy?” Vaughn questioned, redirecting the subject as he stood in the living room with an armful of dirty clothes.

“I didn’t get much information from Sam, other than the guy has met his mate and probably won’t be around much beyond getting settled in,” I admitted.

“That sounds like he’ll just be here temporarily,” the fae commented, breezing past us to the laundry room.

“Sure,” Novak agreed dismissively. “Back to our original conversation. You know, the one the demon interrupted with his brooding?”

I sat forward, propping my elbows on my knees. “I see your points,” I acquiesced. “But I think you’re graspin’ at straws.”

“If the Kings’ daughter was our mate…” Briggs trailed off before tipping his beer in Novak’s direction. “Then why haven’t we met her by now?”

“Maybe they’re waiting for us to cross paths?” Stone suggested.

I pointed at him. “Are you playing the devil’s advocate today?”

Novak huffed. “All I’m saying is… It’s weird. Why put all of us here together if there wasn’t a bigger reason?”

Briggs nodded. “I wondered that when I first got here. There’s a lot of power in this house, and they aren’t here to watch us.”

“You think there’s someone strong enough to subdue us in Nashville? All of us?” the demon questioned, an amused smirk lifting his lips.