Lucas sighed, rolling his eyes as he stared around the meeting room. Pink! She'd decorated the entire room in shades of pink, with fluffy cushions, chintz curtains, the whole works. He was glad the others were all out on assignment at the moment. Anton and Harlan may have seen the humorous side to finding their meeting room altered but he was sure Marcus and Kincaid would not. His lips twitched in a little smile and for a moment he considered leaving it as it was, then he sighed again and waved his hand, righting the room back to normal.
"I liked the new look," Summer growled aggressively behind him and he took a deep breath before turning around.
"I liked it too but I'm afraid the others wouldn't share our more eclectic tastes," he responded keeping his face totally straight. He knew she was desperate for a fight. She had been pushing him relentlessly for the last three days but he wouldn't give in to her. She was angry, upset about her meeting with Nathaniel and his subsequent rejection of her. He could understand it so he didn't rise to the bait. She needed to work her disappointment out of her system and until she did, he would just have to put up with the disagreeable behaviour.
It was easier dealing with her with the others away. He could relax more, be more understanding of her pain. He hoped she worked out her demons before they returned or things could turn ugly. Nathaniel was right, Summer was Chaos and she was quite literally ricocheting around The Síochán like a speeding bullet, sending them all crashing for cover. He wondered if they would ever be the same again.
"Are you ready to talk about it, Summer?" he asked gently, watching her brows draw down in a black scowl and holding down a weary sigh.
"You think I would trust you to ever open up to you again, Lucas?" she asked incredulously. "After all you've done, all the pain and misery, the lies, the manipulations. I'd rather go through the agony of having Nathaniel reject me a thousand times over than ever trust in you again." Her voice broke slightly, her pain shining through even as she tried to hide it.
"So you're just going to quit?" Lucas asked with an edge to his voice. "You're just going to tumble around here, throwing childish temper tantrums and let him slip away from you? Did I really train you so badly, Summer? Did I really train you to be a quitter?" He knew his words were harsh but he needed to reach her somehow, shake her out of her self pity.
She punched him in the face. It was so unexpected that he fell backwards landing with a thump on the floor, his hand going to his broken nose in reflex. He stroked it lightly feeling it set back in place. He looked up at Summer wondering if one punch would be enough to satisfy her and was surprised to see an expression of remorse on her face.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly casting her eyes down. "I don't know what came over me. I shouldn't have done that."
"No harm done," he sighed softly. "It's healed already."
"I can feel him, Luc," she suddenly whispered, her use of his shortened name surprising him more than her punch had. It wasn't a Síochán standing over him, but the confused, frightened girl who had come to him so very long ago. "He's so angry all of the time."
Lucas rose quietly, reaching out to take her hand and pull her down to one of the sofas. They must have shared blood. He had watched most of their encounter in the Scrying Fountain but had given them privacy when it had become obvious their meeting was taking a more amorous turn. The sharing of blood must have occurred after he stopped watching.
"Why does he hate you so much?" Summer asked. "He really didn't like the thought of us together." Her green eyes bored holes in him and he had to fight to keep his expression neutral.
Lucas stared off into the distance as he let his breath out slowly. "We have a history, Summer, one that doesn't involve you. It is personal and between the two of us. Nathaniel doesn't hate me, not completely anyway. He's angry with me, furiously so, but he could get over it if he really wanted to." He could have told her more, was surprised to find that he actually wanted to tell her more but he wasn't used to sharing his secrets with anyone.
"I wouldn't be holding your breath waiting for it," she remarked caustically. "If anything, I'd say you being my lover has just compounded whatever problem he has with you."
He laughed softly at her tone, rolling his eyes and taking a deep breath. "Not one of my smartest moves," he admitted with a rueful smile. His blue eyes took in her delicate features and he had to concede that despite everything she had been worth it. If Nathaniel never forgave him to his dying day he would live with all that entailed to retain the memory of his brief moment with the beautiful little woman sitting beside him.
He sighed deeply and released her hand. "So, what are you going to do to resolve this impasse with Nathaniel?"
It was Summer's turn to sigh. Punching Lucas seemed to have drained all the anger from her, leaving her feeling ashamed of behaving so childishly. Inflicting pain just because you could was wrong on every level. She knew it and yet she had still hit him because she was frustrated that Nathaniel was being so stubborn. She could either continue to blame the Síochán for everything or she could work out a way to fix things.
"I don't know what to do," she finally answered. "He said he wouldn't welcome me the next time if I came looking for him. And yet, he's so angry inside my head. Sometimes the anger wanes and I feel such longing coming from him and then he masks it again with the anger. He's almost as blinkered toward the Síochán as I am."
She wasn't telling him anything he didn't already know. "He's done a lot of things he's struggling to deal with," Lucas said quietly. "He's been one of us for so long now, been active in most of the more challenging assignments. It's a lot to take in when suddenly you don't have the faith in what you are doing anymore. Nathaniel thinks he's atoning for his past deeds, that travelling aimlessly from one spot to another, living the life almost of a vagabond will somehow redeem him. He couldn't be more wrong but he hates us too much to see that. He needs you, Summer."
She stood up pacing around the room, wringing her hands together because she suddenly felt a need to hit something again. She knew Nathaniel needed her but he was being too stubborn, too obstinate to admit it. Her frustration levels were starting to rise again.
"There's an assignment coming up," Lucas finally said when it became apparent she wasn't going to speak. "A particularly nasty demon who's been making life hell for a coven of witches. He's got it into his head if he takes enough of them he'll be able to breed a hybrid. The thing is he is right. If he does achieve his goal he's going to bring into creation a new species which could have devastating consequences on humanity."
