Debts - 27. Chapter 27

- XXVII -

It was Sunday night, and Desmond was trying to read. He was trying to do that for the last hour or so; he was failing miserably.

“Oh, for the love of God,” he finally sighed with frustration and shut the book. “Shackles, Rayhe,” he said with annoyance. “The word you looking for is shackles.”

Gabriel lowered his crossword puzzle and stared at him with a frown.

“Stay the hell out of my head,” he said, and Desmond grimaced.

“I can’t!” he said with frustration. “I’ve been trying to do that for the last hour! You are thinking too damn loud... Plus, come on...! ‘A metal band on the prisoner, eight letters’... Stop thinking about those damn handcuffs already!”

Gabriel grumbled something under his breath and shoved the crossword puzzle away.

“Why didn’t you talk to Tess yet?” he demanded.

“Because she is out of town,” Desmond sighed. “It’s April break, Rayhe... I will talk to her tomorrow. Right now, I am going to bed.”

“It’s not even ten in the evening,” Gabriel blinked.

“Yeah, well, beats sitting here listening to your mind struggles,” Desmond grumbled and walked away.

...“Holy... hell...” Gabriel breathed several hours later. “Oh my God... You know, this ability is not really that bad... God, that was unreal...”

“Yeah, well,” Desmond’s breathing was pretty much as fast as Gabriel’s right now. “Enjoy it while it lasts... I am getting rid of it first thing tomorrow...”

Gabriel didn’t say anything to that; he just wrapped his arm around Desmond’s waist and buried his face in his black hair.

“Just because Salamander doesn’t know how to undo it, doesn’t mean it’s impossible,” Desmond said through his clenched teeth, and Gabriel sighed.

They lay silently for half an hour or so, and then Desmond muttered:

“Get your own damn water, I am not moving a muscle...”

Gabriel sighed yet again and got out of bed, reaching for his pants.

“Rayhe, what are you doing?” Desmond blinked.

Gabriel looked at him with a frown, and then looked at his pants.

“Right...” he muttered when he realized that there was nobody in the house.

“Get me some water as well,” Desmond yawned. “You are up anyway,” he shrugged when he saw Gabriel’s expression. He grinned when the other man left the bedroom, and closed his eyes. “Yes, Rayhe...!” he yelled a minute later. “I can hear you from the kitchen...!”

“Good God,” Gabriel said when he came back. “Was it the same or muted?” he handed Desmond a bottle of water.

“Loud and clear,” Desmond said darkly. He drank some water and set the bottle on the floor next to the bed. “Well, I am going to... Are you kidding me?”

“Nope,” Gabriel said, and he sounded content. “You said it yourself; enjoy it while it lasts. That’s exactly what I am going to do, and I couldn't care less if we don’t get any sleep whatsoever, you’ll survive...!”

“Rayhe,” Desmond said dangerously. “I will...”

“Yeah, yeah,” Gabriel muttered and shut him up with his mouth.

“I am going to make you scream this time,” he thought and grinned into Desmond’s mouth when the other man said:

“Mmmm...”

****

“...therefore, yes,” Desmond nodded energetically. “Undo it!”

A surprisingly petite woman with strikingly red hair looked at him without saying a single word. Finally, she cleared her throat.

“Leave it to you to get hit by something like this...” she muttered, avoiding looking at him.

He frowned with a great deal of suspicion.

“Tess,” he said slowly. “I have no idea what you are thinking... Thank you, by the way... But undo it, okay?”

“Ugh,” the redhead sighed with frustration and looked at him. “Desmond, Julian was right, okay? Nobody can undo this particular spell, I am sorry...! By the way,” she added when Desmond just stared at her. “What else can you do?”

Desmond kept staring at her without saying anything. Tess sighed and rearranged several books on her desk.

“Look,” she said. “It’s not that bad, okay? It’s an advantage, actually! I know that it is mildly inconvenient right now, but...”

“Mildly inconvenient...?” Desmond repeated quietly. “Tess, seeing Salamander on my doorstep was mildly inconvenient... This is... Goddammit!” he exploded suddenly. “I am stuck with this for the rest of my life?! Goddammit!”

“Calm down,” she rolled her eyes. “Look, stop by my office after your classes, I’ll give you a couple of tips on how to control it better, okay? Yes, it will take some time, but not as much as you think. And I know you,” she nodded. “You are one of the most stubborn pains in the ass I have ever met; therefore, you will get it rather sooner than later because you won’t give up until you get it... Once you figure out how to tune everything out, I’ll teach you how to concentrate on a particular mind. After that, we’ll try playing around with it and see if you can advance it somehow...”

“Why the hell would I want to advance it?” Desmond asked tiredly.

“Oh, Rae,” she sighed. “Believe me, you will...! I know that right now, it’s beyond annoying because you hear everyone; could drive anyone crazy. However, as I said, it won’t be a problem anymore soon. Desmond, this is a very nifty ability, okay? Stop bitching about it and go teach,” she glanced at the clock. “You don’t want to be late.”

“Fine,” he grumbled and got up. “I will see you tonight then.”

“Hmm,” she said thoughtfully right before he left.

“What?” he asked, his fingers on the doorknob.

“I am just wondering what else you can do,” she grinned. “This is intriguing! I guess I’ll find out sooner or later.”

“I don’t think I can do anything else,” he said darkly. “Thank God for that!”

“Sometimes, powers stay dormant for a while,” Tess shrugged, and Desmond gritted his teeth.

“I will see you tonight,” he said evenly and left her office.

****

Raven dropped his head on the back of the car seat.

“Did you find a new butler yet?” he asked, and Julian sighed.

“No,” he said. “Not yet.”

“Just get your old butler back,” Raven shrugged, and the blond shot him a quick look. “I mean, you know for sure that the guy won’t do anything but be a watchdog... He’s been with you for ten years, and apparently, you were satisfied with his services, weren’t you?”

“I was,” Julian said evenly.

“Just get him back,” Raven shrugged again. “I mean, I know it’s been what... five months or so since you kicked him out, and he probably found a different employer, but something tells me it won’t be a problem for you,” he nodded slightly.

The blond was silent for several minutes.

“We’ll see,” he said finally, and Raven grinned.

“So how many powers did Desmond get, do you know?” Raven was genuinely curious.

“I don’t know,” Julian answered honestly. “From what I was able to find about that particular spell, it is definite that it grants more than one. However, the amount varies; sometimes, it’s just a couple, and sometimes, up to five.”

“Five?” Raven repeated, and then he started to laugh. “Oh my God...” he said in a shaky voice. “He looked like he was about to tear the entire hospital apart just because of one ability... Imagine if he gets five...!”

“I would love to see his face when one of those days he gets pissed off and throws a lightning bolt,” Julian said in a low voice, and Raven laughed even harder.

“No,” the brunet said finally. “He was very pissed off back there, and he didn’t produce any lightning.”

“Some powers stay dormant for a while,” Julian shrugged. “I am just glad this entire ordeal is finally over... If anyone contacts you about a job ever again, I am running a very thorough research on the client and on the object first,” he threw a quick glance at Raven. “Believe me,” he nodded. “I am not taking any chances.”

“Nah,” Raven said lazily. “I am not accepting job offers anymore... If I want to feel that particular rush again, I’ll just do a random pull...”

“That would be even worse,” Julian rolled his eyes. “You could get into something nasty without any clue...! Just...”

“I’ll figure something out,” Raven shrugged. “If I am in a dire need to feed that rush, I’ll let you know, how’s that?”

“That works,” the blond relaxed somewhat. “Are you up for the upcoming Friday?”

“Do you even have to ask?” Raven gave him a small smile. “I missed that...”

“I did too,” Julian nodded. “Didn’t have time for anything ever since you were gone...” he glanced at Raven again when he felt brunet’s hand on top of his.

Raven entwined their fingers together on top of the gear stick.

“Drive faster,” he sighed. “I want to get home already...”

Julian smiled and did just that.