Guild Boss (Ghost Hunters #14)(4)
“No, I was really out of it because of the drug. It distorted everything, including faces. But aside from the khaki and leather, I’m almost certain that at least some of them wore pendants set with stones that glowed a deep, dark blue.”
There was a long silence while Gabriel finished his pizza.
“You don’t believe me, do you?” she said.
“I believe you think you were kidnapped. What I know for sure is that the atmosphere down here can generate a lot of weird visions and hallucinations, especially if it’s combined with drugs.”
She nodded, resigned. “I knew it. You don’t believe me.”
“What do you say we get back to the surface before we try to figure out exactly what happened to you?”
She eyed the arched doorway. Just thinking about getting through the Alien nightmares was enough to make everything inside her go ice-cold. Her pulse kicked up, and not in a good way. But, damn it, if a ghost hunter could get through the doorway, she could, too.
“Can’t wait to get out of here,” she said. “I’ve spent enough time in hell. Good to know there’s pizza delivery here, though.”
She went back to the throne and picked up her black stilettos. She hesitated before she put them on.
“How far to the nearest exit?” she asked.
“It will take us about an hour,” Gabriel said.
She elected not to put on the very high heels. The quartz floors of the tunnels were smooth and pleasantly warm. It would be easier walking out of hell barefoot.
Gabriel did not head toward the entrance, however. Instead, he went toward the back of the chamber and studied the sparkling, crystal clear water flowing from an ethereal green quartz fountain. The water splashed into a quartz trough and disappeared into a concealed opening.
“You had water,” he said.
Lucy watched him for a moment. “Yep, running water and pizza. All the amenities.”
Gabriel pulled out a small gadget and dipped it into the bowl of the fountain. After a moment he raised the instrument and examined the reading.
“This is the water you’ve been drinking?” he said.
“I didn’t have any other option. Turns out you get really thirsty when you eat a lot of pizza. Otis drank out of that fountain, so I figured it was safe.” Lucy got a queasy feeling. “Why?”
“There’s a moderate level of paranormal radiation in it. Otis is probably immune because he’s a dust bunny. They are native to Harmony and evolved to handle the energy down here. But there’s enough of a vibe in this water to cause serious problems for humans.”
Lucy sighed. “In other words, I’ve been poisoning myself? That’s why I’m still dealing with the hallucinations?”
“Probably. But I’m sure the effects will wear off once we get you back to the surface. In the meantime, you’d better have some of the water I brought with me.”
Gabriel took a canteen out of his pack and handed it to her. She un-capped it and took a long, healthy swallow. A weird jolt of awareness flashed through her. Drinking out of his canteen was a disconcertingly intimate experience. It wasn’t the first time she had shared a canteen with a colleague in the Underworld, but this time was … different. Very different.
Startled by her reaction, she hastily capped the canteen and handed it back to him.
“Thanks,” she said. She steeled herself to face the doorway. “Let’s go. I can’t wait to get out of here. My dad and my friends must be worried sick.”
“I’m sure they are.” Gabriel looked at Otis. “You lucked out when Otis found you.”
“And then he found you. Not everyone would have paid attention to a dust bunny.”
“I’m not so sure about that. A dust bunny carrying a pizza box and wearing a necklace is not a common sight.”
“How did you know the necklace Otis was wearing belonged to me?”
“I studied the photos that were taken the night of the wedding reception. You were a bridesmaid, so there were a lot of pictures of you. I recognized the necklace.”
Otis chortled and scampered through the doorway.
“I charted the route when I followed Otis down here,” Gabriel said. “We’ll take the same way out.”
He switched on an amber-powered locator. The screen glowed, indicating the path.
Lucy made herself walk toward the entrance, bracing for the nightmares. If a ghost hunter can get through it, I can get through it.
The nightmares seared her senses between one step and the next.
She froze, shivering with raw dread. “I can’t.”
“Here, hold the locator,” Gabriel ordered.
She took the locator and looked at it, dazed and disoriented and really, really pissed off.
“Okay,” she said, “but I don’t think it’s going to help. You’ll have to go back to the surface and get medication that will knock me out.”
“I carry some emergency meds that would do the job, but it would be a bad idea to use them on top of whatever hallucinogenic substances you’ve been ingesting. No telling what the side effects might be. I don’t think such drastic steps will be necessary. Let’s try it one more time.”
Before she understood what he planned to do, she was in his arms and his mouth was on hers in a fierce kiss that shocked and overwhelmed her senses. The sensation of sensual intimacy was a million times stronger than what she had experienced when she had sipped water from his canteen. Lightning.