Wild Tiger Chase | Book #2 (Complete)

46: oh, tango; slowly slumber into rest (Part I)

— Léon —

"Maybe he's just as out of it as Phillip," Toni whispered with a small laugh.

"He's not," Rafa and Rob said in unison.

"I, for one, would like to know where that comes from, Léon. What makes you think I'm playing with your head?" Jackal crossed her arms and waited. She was calm.

Why the hell was she calm? Léon had just exposed her!

The group still sat at the table as if nothing had happened, moving and speaking in a way that felt almost like music. All around them, the other patrons didn't seem bothered by the man holding a scythe in the middle of the room. Instead, flanking the many windows around the restaurant, crowded tables kept their conversations going while waiters rushed around the room.

Toni and Léon were the only ones standing; the first kept his scythe ready, while the latter started to relax. Toni placed an elbow on the backrest of Jackal's chair and propped his chin on his hand. He raised his eyebrows as if waiting for Léon's explanation...

But there was none.

In fact, there wasn't any other explanation for the whirring noise in the back of his mind, for the way sunlight reflected in every little thing around him, for the brightness and blurriness, and for the way some details seemed to fade in and out of existence, like in a dream. Being here right now was as surreal as being on the top of a mountain with nothing but a blue sky and a bluer ocean surrounding him. The more he paid attention to that image, the clearer it got...

But in his world—and he was sure of it—the sky was radiation-orange, and the ocean still spat giant three-headed squids on its beaches from time to time... nothing about his world was blue.

"You'll have to trust me in this," Léon said. His words wavered when he glanced at Toni. "I just know I'm right."

Rafa and Rob tensed and shared a glance.

"Oh, so you just... know it," Toni said. He chuckled, his voice assuming a cheerful and teasing tone. "That's a hell of a reason to attack someone, Léon. I'm glad I'm still quick on my feet, otherwise, you'd have cut Jackal's head in half. It'd be bloody, believe you me." Toni lowered his arm, and the light caught on his pearlescent armor to show a deep dent where Léon's scythe had hit.

Léon's eyes widened. "I-I wouldn't," he stammered. I wouldn't, right? "I can feel her power from here. I wouldn't have hurt her!" Léon steeled his trembling hands. He blamed his actions on the uncomfortable, primal fear in his core. Every time he looked at the mark around Jackal's wrist, the feeling stirred again and stronger than last time, sending cold shivers and beads of sweat across his entire body.

Jackal scoffed. "Wouldn't you? I might be strong, but you are way faster. And... maybe cold-blooded murder is what really makes you tick, who knows?" She winked.

"I-it's not!" Léon shouted.

She nodded like a condescending parent. "All right, all right. Just joking. Still, I'm disappointed things came to this." Jackal pointed at Léon's scythe.

Trying to control his nerves, Léon stepped away from the table and angled around it to face Jackal. "If you wanted to work together, you shouldn't have brought us to this place against our will." Léon's eyebrows furrowed even more. "You must know how unlikely it is that we'll accept your offer now."

With a sigh, Jackal placed a gentle hand on Toni's shoulder and nudged him away. "Rio warned me you'd say that." She looked from Rafa to Rob. "What about you? Do you also refuse to work for me?"