by Elena Monroe
Caellum followed on my heels. “Didn't expect you to be involved…”
“I didn't expect Dorian to be a douchebag either.”
Caellum was flush against my back, with his arms reaching from behind me to the machine, moving like he knew what each knob did, while I stared at it puzzled. “Hades has one. Guy parties like a Rockstar. He needs strong coffee.”
I smirked at the name, Hades—an older man who knew how to touch me without coaching him through it.
Glancing over, I saw Nyx’s mouth open with Luna’s against his.
Well, that went from anger to lust pretty quickly.
I felt Caellum reach around me as the machine became loud and obnoxious, and his lips brushed the shell of my ear. “How are things with Austin? Still bound to him?”
Bound.
More like trapped.
I ruined his life; we ruined each other. The desire ran on empty, and now there was no way out of what I did.
I didn’t reply, staying silent and watching his hands work like I wasn't in the way at all. I liked being in his way.
Nyx must have been done being turned on by Luna's crime of passion. He shouted Caellum’s name and demanded his help with Cotton Candy’s body.
I don't do blood or guts.
Hard pass.
I stayed behind the counter and poured the coffees into four cups and left the two for the boys. Luna strutted over like she won a prize, not another tally on her fucked up bedpost.
The guilt was hard to see, but I had known Luna a long time. Just because I couldn’t see it, post-kissing Nyx, didn’t mean it wasn’t there.
She watched them closely struggle with the body and fitting Cotton Candy into the trash bag that didn’t seem big enough. She was dead, though, so that was the best kind of flexible.
There it was… The guilt showed up on her face when her post-Nyx glow faded into biting her lip and brows sunken in the center.
Rounding the counter, I leaned next to her and playfully bumped into her. “She had it coming. Don’t beat yourself up. She was texting Dorian non-stop.”
I saw her expression darken, and anger took over where the guilt was appearing.
“Not like that! She was like working with him or something.”
“To do what, though? I’m nobody.”
“From the looks of it, you’re gonna be the new Queen of the Underworld. Kind of a big deal. Gonna inherit Hades’s enemies.”
Letting the silence swell with new ideas and worries.
I could tell she was blinded by the romantic parts of being with Nyx and not the reality of it.
The reality of it was inheriting these parts—the less desirable ones—the ones she was living out, thinking it was in the name of love.
Was it all in the name of love?
She was shaken, but not stirred, about all of this. The blood seemed comfortable for Miss Innocent by my side.
She better be his fucking queen after this kind of display of allegiance.
“I'm gonna find the camera tape,” I announced, trotting towards the “employees only” entrance, in search of evidence of us near a body.
Caellum
I t was a bad idea toying with Kate.
She didn't ever back down, not for any reason. You could pull out your fucking dick and lay it on the counter, and she wouldn't hesitate to match your level of crazy.
She was a more refined Arianna, with less sarcasm and more gut-punching facts.
Cotton Candy hadn’t been dead long enough for rigor mortis, but she was still dead weight as we shoved her into the black garbage bag.
I didn't have a hard on for death like Nyx. Death just didn't bother me. Why would it? I was immortal.
Nyx was a different kind of immortal—the kind that resented endless time and toyed with death, wondering how far he could push the line before his immortality wasn’t a privilege anymore.
Luna might have healed his issues with time... for now.
The girls sat at an empty table, sipping their coffees and watching us struggle to lift her without a limb stretching the elasticity of the garbage bag.
I was waiting for parts of her body to spill out just as the city woke up as we carried her to the trunk of my SUV.
“What is her connection with Dorian? You might as well confess now, or I’m gonna keep riding you.”
Nyx shrugged, like none of it mattered now that they were dead, but I knew better.
Every player serves a purpose, and small players, like his casual fuck and Dorian, don’t call the shots.
“I read the journal Luna brought... The Cloth seems pretty serious about bringing us down. Too bad we’re immortal.”
“Immortal doesn’t mean untouchable,” he bit out, with his jaw so clenched it looked like it might dislodge.
So his issues with time were still going strong.
“The bruises from Dorian? You think they have a way… of killing immortals?” I shut the door to the trunk with more force than I meant.
No one knew about the God Killer, except the circle.
He nodded his head, walking back into the closed Starbucks. “Kate, go with Caellum. We’ll meet you at the waterfront.”
I never took directions well, but something about Nyx’s voice made you listen—probably because he avoided speaking altogether unless he had to.
Kate climbed into the passenger seat of my car before I could even pull on the handle.
This wasn’t a good idea. Close proximity, alone, with Kate.
We were combustible and oozed too much chemistry; it was bound to result in her legs falling open for me, whether she was with Austin or not.
Their relationship was a real mystery to all of us who knew them. To outsiders, I’m sure they seemed like a perfect match, soul mates, bound for eternity.
I knew better.
She was loyal to a fault, but I could tell every time I invaded her space she was begging for me to touch her. She was deprived.
I wanted to be the reason she felt satisfied, but at what cost? I couldn’t satisfy anything else.
Her pussy would be warm, but her heart would still be chilled.
Turning the key in the ignition, she settled into the leather as I watched her without moving my head.
“I can tell you’re creeping…” Her voice was like whips and chains with a silky finish.
“I wasn’t…” Pulling off the curb, she shifted her body to face me more.
“It’s not like you haven’t seen me naked before.”
I quickly looked over to her, and her eyes were on me, while I drove the dead fucking body in my trunk to the waterfront. I saw her hands move to the zipper of her cut off hoodie and unzip it slowly, like I should be watching.
“Kate…” I wanted to groan, but I pushed out her name in a warning instead.
My groin was heating up, and I felt myself grow against my sweatpants. I tried to casually adjust myself when I heard her giggle to herself.
Shooting her a serious glare, she tried to defend the giggle, “Been that long? I haven’t had to do that little in a long time.”
She was the only person allowed to openly taunt me.
Only one.
I didn’t really know why she was the only one.
Maybe because it made her feel better or made me feel better that someone was paying this much attention—enough to know how to get under my skin without any lasting effects.
Kate leaned over the wide console between us, pushing her tits together, and the cut of her tank top fell just enough to make me want to make bad decisions.
Pulling my eyes from her, I look ahead of me to Nyx’s car leading the way. I couldn’t even remember if I was supposed to lead.
Hades, I couldn’t remember shit since Kate climbed into my car.
“Kate…” I gritted out, and my hands choked the steering wheel.
Her body wasn’t touching mine, but her lips were hovering at the crook of my neck. “What’s one more time in the thousands we’ve had, C
aellum? I see how you look at me...”
Her hand slid over my thigh, and I felt her palm push against how hard I was. I had to use every ounce of self-control just to keep my eyes on the road, the car straight, and my voice silent.
I wasn’t going to break for Kate.
It would just be a disservice. It would scratch the itch, but the cause wasn’t going to go away if we let our bodies rub together.
I grabbed her hand and held it still from teasing my dick and making it even more hard. “No. We aren’t going there, again.”
Her lips brushed against my t-shirt over my shoulder, before I felt her teeth clamp down on the muscle as she tugged my shirt out of the way. The sensation ran along my arms and down my spine.
If I was a weaker man, I could have come right then and there.
Her hands felt like they were everywhere, touching every part of my skin, distracting me. I couldn’t tell what was lingering and what was contact anymore.
Her fingertips clamped around my jaw pushing my face towards her, eyes glaring at and searching each other for reasons not to do this. In an instant, her lips pushed against mine.
I was falling headfirst into her, with my blood pumping in my ears.
“You hate the mortals, and clearly you’re deprived...” Her voice sounded melodic as her palm rubbed against my sweatpants, her lips still brushing against mine.
Her teasing was something only the daughter of Aphrodite could encapsulate in someone else.
It should be deemed a method of torture.
“Enough Oracle, and it doesn't matter who it is… Mortal, immortal, Bolton’s mom...” Pushing her hips down, I forced some space between us.
I saw her face fall from lust pretty quickly, and I studied her reaction, wondering if it was the rejection or fear I'd discover some kind of truths about her she didn't want me to know.
Pushing the shifter into park, I stopped only a few feet away from where we just dumped Dorian's body.
A knock, all knuckles, on my closed window sounded as I rolled it down. I knew it would be Nyx.
“Ready?”
Nyx
L una was more cut out for what was coming next than I was.
She was leaving a trail of bodies from who she was to who she was going to be now. I would be lying if her being so comfortable with death didn't turn me on.
I was ready to say fuck the body and take her back to my bed.
From the looks of it, Caellum was ready to do a similar thing when he rolled down the window only enough for me to see Kate draped on him. I could imagine the rest of that without the image.
Snickering to myself, I pressed the button on the trunk door, and it whirled open. The garbage bag weight limit and elastic were really being tried.
From the looks of Cotton Candy back at Starbucks, Luna already deflated one lung. I didn't want to take any chances, but honestly, who cared if someone found her. We had zero connection beyond her riding my dick at obscene hours and cat napping before I kicked her out.
There was no connection to anyone but Bolton, co-workers. He was good under pressure.
Pushing her body towards me, I threw the bag over my shoulder and brought her right up to the edge.
Disposing of the body wasn’t nearly as satisfying when you didn’t get to hear the last exhale fall out of their already lifeless mouth.
Opening the bag, I threw a heavy ass rock in there with her for good measure as I walked into the water in my clothes and shoes to make sure she was out as far as Dorian.
Maybe even in death, souls can recognize each other and find some peace.
Caellum shouted from where the water met the gravel, “So you don't need my help then?”
I didn't bother responding. Cotton Candy felt more personal; I was gonna handle it myself. Alone.
Fuck, maybe I had a heart, but it was just painted black and acted dead most of the time.
I stood in the water up to my waist, lighting a blunt, under the stars, and watched the water carefully for any imperfections.
A few drags later, I left Dorian and Cotton Candy behind and pushed through the dark water that made my clothes feel as heavy as armor.
Caellum’s hand was extended, ready to help me out of the water, and to my own surprise, I grabbed his hand. “You okay?”
I could feel how tight the skin on my face was. Dehydrated and bloated with unshed tears under the skin.
I wasn't going to cry, but my body wanted to. It might even act without permission.
“Let's just go home.” I took my hand back and beelined it for my car with every motivation to get out of here.
A shower, a glass of scotch, cold pizza, and Luna’s scent filling my room was all I wanted right now.
As soon as I settled into the worn-in leather, Luna’s face twisted, trying to read my exhausted expression, and I knew she'd succeed. She healed people with her touch; she was empathic; she listened like she was mute; and she spoke with such delicacy that her advice felt holy.
Let her heal me. She'd been doing that since I laid eyes on her—healing me by being made for me.
“Do you wanna talk about it?” Her timid voice made it obvious she could be whatever side of the coin she needed.
Shaking my head, I turned the key and pushed my boot down on the accelerator.
“Nyx, maybe it'll help.”
Loving her, Luna admitting it to herself, killing people for each other… none of that was going to magically heal my inability to not want to hash shit out with words.
Hashing anything out meant fists.
It was a Friday now; there'd be fists tonight. A slight smile spread across my lips at the idea.
“Fine… Don't talk, but one day it's gonna eat you up inside.” Always caring too much.
I had been kicking for centuries, and with her by my side, I felt even stronger.
Squeezing her thigh, I didn't take my eyes off the road. “All I need is you. Here. With me. That helps until I can figure the rest out, babe.” She needed my words, not my silence.
Once we were back at my place, home, we all split up when I realized Kate was never dropped off. Caellum's headlights behind me never veered off once.
Another fit of a snicker made my shoulders shake. He was playing with fire. He knew Kate was off limits, and not because of Austin, but because Caellum was blessed with no ability to love.
Seriously.
It wasn't a choice.
He couldn't feel or give love. He was facts, logic, puzzles, and anything else wasn't a part of his endgame.
Closing the door behind me, I breezed past Luna sinking into my bed, and I headed for the bathroom. Tile wouldn't soak up all the water my damp clothes were holding between each thread.
Pulling off my half dry shirt was easy, while my skinny jeans became even more like glue against my skin. They took significantly more effort before I could step into the shower and wash off the exhaustion of disposing of dead bodies.
Standing under the blazing hot water, I felt the water run down my eyebrows, nose, lips… when I realized some of the liquid wasn't coming from the shower head. No, some of the moisture on my face was those unruly fucking tears leaking from me without permission in their gold glory.
Giving into their demands, I let the tears wreck my body. My chest was tight, shoulders shaking uncontrollably, and knuckles driving into the tiling, as my head hung from my neck in some kind of shame.
Was it shame? It felt similar.
Letting the water pressure wash away the liquid gold, I let the tears keep coming. There was no going back once you gave in.
Out of nowhere, my body stiffened, as my head twisted to look over my shoulder at a very clothed Luna standing behind me, arms holding onto me and landing on my chest.
Her lips kissed my back where she could reach, and I tried to pull it together, but it was no use. I didn’t have enough time to pack up all my emotions and tuck them neatly into the box I kept them trapped in.
“I can make it go aw
ay…” Her soft voice was almost not heard over the sound of water.
Standing up straighter, I grabbed her hand, keeping her in place. “No, I want to feel this.”
Her.
The vulnerability.
The emotional wall I had put up for so long finally broke.
Luna wanted to fix me, even though I wasn’t truly broken. She kept dragging her lips against my back to new patches of skin to kiss as the water soaked us both.
We both stood there quietly until the water turned cold, and I twisted the handle, turning it off. Turning around, Luna wasn’t letting me go, not until I had convinced her I was okay. I put my arms around her and held her until she pulled away, shivering in her wet clothes.
She fixes me even when I’m not broken.
She fixes things I don't know are broken.
Reaching for a towel, I wrapped it around her shoulders. “I’ll get you some dry clothes.”
As soon as I walked through the open bathroom door, I stopped. My whole body jumped, at the sight of my dad sitting there with his ankle over his knee.
“Seems we need to talk, Son.”
“Not the best time…” I walked to my closet, hoping if I ignored him enough he would get bored and leave.
“Where’s your ring?”
I looked down at my hand and clamped my eyes shut knowing the weight wasn’t really there. What I was experiencing was phantom ring syndrome.
“Did you offer your ring to our Little Lamb?”
Grabbing fresh, dry clothes, I walked back to the bathroom, still trying to ignore him as best I could.
I wasn’t going to argue the why’s and how’s of how Hades knew the shit he did.
He knew everything without much effort.
Hades stood up, following my steps, and he leaned against the doorway seeing a pile of wet clothes and a towel around her body, waiting for something dry and warm.
“Are you taking the throne, Nyx?” There wasn’t any hint of an ulterior meaning in his voice like normal, and it put my nerves on edge.
Pushing past him with my shoulder, I closed the door behind me, and he twisted, still hugging the wall, waiting for my response.