I sucked in a sharp breath.
And why had Aiden blocked Apollo from the cabin? What happened to that love-fest?
Gods, there were so many questions, and I was too weary for this right now. I needed a moment to regroup. I needed a bed after this shower.
Water streamed over my body, over skin that was as bruised as my insides, and plastered my hair to my back. Closing my eyes, I lifted my chin and let the showerhead do its thing, erasing the tears that had clung to my lashes with a death grip, clearing my mind of everything.
There would be time to ask those questions, to plan Seth’s very painful death, and to find my father, but right now, I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t think about anything other than right now, right this moment, because everything was too raw and too fresh to delve into.
I heard the bathroom door close and I kept my eyes screwed shut, but my heart rate skyrocketed into uncharted territories. I folded my arms around me and held my breath.
There was the slightest movement behind me. Skin brushed against mine. A fine shiver rolled up my spine. An infinite spark transferred between us, something that couldn’t be replicated or forced. How could I’ve forgotten that when connected with Seth? My heart turned over heavily.
Aiden brushed the mass of thick hair over one shoulder and his lips met the space between my neck and shoulder. His hands slid down the slick skin of my arms, cupping over my elbows and then to my wrists. Gently, slowly, he eased my arms to my sides.
I bit down on my lip and my legs started trembling. But he was there. Like always, holding me up when I couldn’t stand and letting me go when he knew I needed him to. He was more than just a shelter. Aiden was my other half, my equal. And he needed no weird Apollyon connection.
Aiden waited, still as a statue, patient as ever, until my muscles unlocked, one by one. Then his hands dropped to my waist and he turned me toward him. A heartbeat passed and he placed his fingers on my chin, tipping my head back.
I opened my eyes, blinking the wetness off my lashes, and the air hitched in my throat. Faint, purplish bruises shadowed his jaw. There was a cut over the bridge of his nose. No doubt injuries I had given him.
“I’m so sorry, Aiden.” My voice cracked. “I can’t say it enough. I know, but I’m so—”
He dipped his head and his mouth brushed mine, silencing my words. My lips opened to his, as did my heart and everything else. The sweet and tender kiss, well, it lessened the heaviness, eased some of the guilt and shame. My skin—my insides—were scraped and aching, but his touch soothed the frayed edges. I imagined it was the same for Aiden. Gods, it was probably worse for him, considering everything I had done and said. What he’d had to do, to sacrifice, to keep me safe.
The kiss deepened, flipping and twisting my insides into a pleasant mess, and it was like the very first time we’d kissed. Sensations raced over my skin, my heart sang, and the feeling unfurling in the pit of my stomach was better than tapping into akasha, stronger and more addicting. He kissed me like he’d never expected to do so again, as if he could somehow kiss away the weeks.
I placed my hands on his upper arms. His muscles coiled under them as he lifted me up and I wrapped my legs around him. Desire wasn’t the only thing between us. There was so much more: forgiveness, acceptance, relief, and most importantly, love.
Not the kind of love that was fueled by need and that destroyed cities and entire civilizations, but the kind that rebuilt them, that much I knew.
Keeping an arm around my waist, his other hand tangled in my wet hair. And we didn’t stop kissing, because this was right and that was all that mattered. My heart was pounding way too fast, but it was perfect, it was like coming home after never believing I’d be able to.
I don’t know how we made it to the bed or if the water was ever turned off in the shower. But we were together, our bodies slippery, our wet hair soaking the sheets we were tangled in. And then we were tangled, our legs and arms. His hands were everywhere, paying reverence to the many scars on my body. His lips followed, and I grew reacquainted with the hard muscles of his stomach, the feel of him.
I glanced down at my body, surprised to see the marks of the Apollyon glowing faintly as they swirled across my skin, forming one rare symbol and then another.
“What?” Aiden cupped my cheek, drawing my eyes back to his. “Is this too fast? I should—”
“No. No, it’s… it’s the marks of the Apollyon. They’re kind of doing their thing right now.”
“Should I be worried?”
I laughed self-consciously, feeling like one of those venomous snakes that warned of its poison in its vibrant colors. “I think they like you.”
Aiden’s hand slid off my cheek, down my throat, to right below my chest. The marks slid toward his hand, as if drawn to him. Maybe they were. I wasn’t sure how the marks worked. The answer probably lay in the thousands of years of memories, but that was like digging for a needle in a pile of needles.
“I saw them,” he said, his voice raw and deep and his eyes like pools of liquid silver. “When you Awakened, and when you went on the Elixir.” His brows drew tight as he smoothed his hand over my hip. “They were beautiful.”
“Really?” I felt beautiful when he looked at me, even all tattooed up.
“Yes. It was the most beautiful thing I’d ever seen.”
A long, agonizing moment passed as he hovered above me, his eyes locked onto mine, his body coiled tight like a rope ready to snap. And when he did, his lips found mine and there was a sound that came from the back of his throat that seared me. Our bodies met and for a few moments, neither of us moved, and then we did, our voices soft whispers in the dark room.
Sometime later, we lay facing each other, his hand wrapped around my smaller one. Our bodies were pressed close. Exhaustion dogged me now, and Aiden, too—had been for weeks. The fighting and everything else had tipped us over the edge. Sleep claimed me first. I only knew this because I could feel Aiden’s gaze on my face, and seconds before I slipped away I felt his lips on my forehead.
I heard him whisper, “Eíste pánta mou…”
You are my everything.
CHAPTER 9
No matter how convoluted my life got, one thing remained consistent—my hair looked like a baby opossum had taken refuge in it, invited some friends over, and thrown a party. That’s what I got for sleeping on it wet.
I wrangled it into a thick braid and took a deep breath.
Admittedly, I’d seen better days. Well, my face at least. Most of the damage I’d done to myself. Aiden hadn’t raised a hand against me the entire time we’d fought. He’d only defended himself. But we were both lucky to be standing after facing Thanatos and the furies.
My reflection winced.
Aiden was gone by the time I had crawled out of bed. I’d wanted to stay among the covers, inhaling his unique scent of sea and burning leaves, holding the pillow he’d used close to my chest. I’d wanted to wait there until he returned, so I could wrap myself around him, doing a replay of last night.
But reality wasn’t going to pause or wait for us. There was way too much to be done and I needed to face everyone. I took a long breath and pushed away from the mirror. Staring at my face for hours wasn’t going to fix anything.
I found the bag of clothes I’d brought with me when I’d stayed at Aiden’s parents’ house and Aiden had the sense to take when we left Deity Island. There was some items in there I hadn’t packed or noticed before—one of them being a Sentinel uniform. That brought a smile to my face. I tugged on a pair of jeans, surprised to find how loose they were. Slipping on a pair of boots that were nothing like Olivia’s, I went to the doorway and flinched. Olivia. Oh, dear gods, I’d used a compulsion on her. I seriously hoped she wasn’t still in the basement.
I crept down the silent hall, scrubbing at the itchy bruise on my cheek. I didn’t even know what month we were in. It had been cool, but not freezing when I’d been outside yesterday. Hell. I didn’t even know wh
ere I was.
Grabbing the middle of my braid, I went down the steps, fiddling with the ropey sections. At the bottom of the stairs, I caught sight of a tall Sentinel with brown hair pulled into a low ponytail. Solos. As far as I recalled, I hadn’t threatened him with bodily harm—at least, not to his face.
He turned at the waist. “Well, look who’s back.”
My cheeks flushed and I stopped on the landing, wholly unsure of what to say.
Solos smiled, and it distorted the scar that cut deep into his cheek. “I’m not going to bite, little one.”
Heat now swept over my body and I raised my chin. Gods, what was wrong with me? “Good. Because I bite back.”
“That’s what I hear.” His blue eyes glimmered. Now I flushed for a whole new reason. “I’m sure you’re hungry. You’ve slept for almost a whole day. Everyone’s in the kitchen now.”
My stomach growled at the thought of food, but then soured. “There’s not sharp silverware or anything?”
Solos’ laugh was deep and rich. “No. It’s a take-out night, so you’re in luck.”
Finding my courage, I followed him down the hallway. He went into the kitchen first and I peeked around the corner. Deacon and Luke sat on one side, several cartons of Chinese spread out in front of them. Laadan was beside them. Marcus, Lea, and Olivia were across the table. I had no idea where Aiden was.
“We have company,” Solos announced, grabbing one of those yummy dumplings and popping it into his mouth.
Everyone turned. And everyone stopped eating and stared.
I let go of my braid and gave the group the most awkward wave ever. “Hi.”
Luke dropped his chopsticks into his noodles. There was a nasty bruise on the side of his face, disappearing into his hairline.
“Did I do that?” I stepped into the kitchen. “The bruise?”
“Yeah,” he said slowly. “When you slammed me into the wall… without touching me.”
I winced. “I’m really sorry about that.”
“Aw, don’t worry about it.” Deacon smiled as he leaned back in his chair, rocking it up on two legs. “He’s okay.”
“My ego’s not.” He shot Aiden’s brother a dirty look. “She didn’t even touch me.”
Deacon shrugged. “Well, she is the Apollyon. Duh.”
A chair scraped over tile and my head jerked toward the sound. Marcus walked around the table and stopped in front of me. Now, I had threatened him quite a bit to his face, but he’d still come to fight yesterday, as had Solos.
I felt horrid.
Marcus placed his hands on my shoulders. There was a fine tremble to them. “Alexandria…”
My uncle had always refused to call me by my nickname, and I’d always called him Dean, due to his position at the Covenant, but things… things were different now. “Marcus?”
There was a long, terse moment, and then he gathered me in a fierce hug. For once, it wasn’t an awkward, weak one with my arms stuck out at my sides. I hugged him back, just as tightly, and tears burned the back of my throat.
Marcus and I… well, we’d come a long, long way.
When he pulled back, I bit back a gasp. Those emerald-colored eyes were normally cool, but they weren’t now. They were like staring into my mother’s eyes.
He inhaled sharply. “I’m glad to have you back.”
I nodded, swallowing thickly. “I’m glad to be back.”
“Hell, we all can agree on that.” Luke picked up a donut. “There’s nothing creepier than having a psychotic Apollyon caged in the basement.”
“Ha,” I said.
Luke winked and then tossed the donut to me. I caught it. Sugar flew everywhere.
“Or waiting for her to break loose and run amuck,” Deacon added as I took a bite. He glanced across the table. “Or waiting for someone, no names mentioned, to not listen to us and go say hi.”
Olivia’s cheeks reddened as she stood. She approached slowly, waited for me to finish chewing. I started to apologize. “I’m really sorry—”
She socked me in the stomach. Hard. I doubled over, gasping for air. “Gods.”
Solos and Marcus both stepped forward, but I waved my hand at them. “That’s okay. I deserved that.”
Then I realized they weren’t moving in to protect me, but to guard Olivia. I guessed no one was a hundred percent relaxed around me. Guess I couldn’t blame them when I wielded the most powerful weapon on earth, and only a day ago I’d been willing to use it against them.
“You totally deserved that.” Olivia’s voice shook. “Do you know how terrible I felt when Marcus came down and found me sitting there like a turd? I helped you escape!”
I thought she might hit me again, so I took a step back.
Olivia smoothed her hands over her tight curls. “But I’m better now, especially since I got to hit you.” Then she sprang forward and hugged me.
Standing there, I patted her back, hoping she didn’t change her mind and snap my spinal cord. “I’m really sorry.”
“I know.” She pulled back, smiling. Her eyes were misty.
Laadan was next. The raven-haired beauty was as elegant as ever. Dressed in a form-fitting red turtleneck and white slacks, she enveloped me in a warm hug. She smelled of spring roses and when she pulled back, I didn’t want to let go.
“We’ll talk later. Promise,” she said, and I knew she was talking about my father. Taking my hand, she pulled me to the empty spot next to Olivia. “Sit. Eat.”
Glancing around the table, I watched as a plastic plate was passed around, each person slopping a helping of food on it. Even Lea, who hadn’t said a word to me yet, placed some shrimp on the plate. When it came back to me, my mouth watered, but I had to say something first.
“Guys, I’m really sorry for everything.” I glanced down at my plate, but forced my eyes back up. “I know I was a terror and I wish… I wish none of you’d had to go through that.”
Marcus returned to his seat. “We know you weren’t yourself, Alexandria. We understand.”
Beside him, Lea cleared her throat. “I actually preferred the crazy Apollyon version to the Elixired up one, to be honest.” She glanced at me, thick lashes hiding amethyst eyes. “That was kind of freaky watching you hide behind Aiden.”
“You were pretty different,” Luke agreed, and then shuddered. “Man, the Elixir is no joke.”
“You hid in a closet,” Deacon felt the need to inform me.
Poking at my noodles, I frowned as fragments of my time on the Elixir slid into place. “I bet that was amusing to watch.”
“I don’t know if I would say it was amusing,” a new voice added.
My head jerked up and my heart toppled over itself. Aiden stood just inside the kitchen door, dressed as always—as a Sentinel. He stalked toward the table and picked up the carton of brown rice. He leaned against the counter, the curve of his jaw hard, eyes like flint.
They met mine. He gestured at my plate with his carton. “Eat. You need to eat.”
Everyone stared at their plates as I picked up the fork I hadn’t even realized I’d dropped. I dared a peek at Aiden as I twirled my fork around the noodles. He was watching, always watching.
Deacon offered me a pair of chopsticks. “You shouldn’t be using a fork.”
I shot him a bland look. “Do I look like I know how to use chopsticks?”
He grinned. “Poser.”
“Punk,” I retorted.
His eyes rolled. “It’s not that hard. Here, let me show you.”
Deacon’s impromptu chopsticks lesson and my absolute failure at mastering them eased the sudden awkward tension around the table. Laughing, I gave up when Aiden finally ordered his brother to let me eat in peace.
Digging in, I listened to the conversation around me. There was talk of nothing important and I figured they were waiting for me to finish eating before the real, necessary conversations took place.
I finished off everything I’d been given, ate the remaining rice that Aiden had
dumped on my plate as he prowled around the table, and then finished off the sugary goodness of the donuts.
Stomach full, I leaned back in my chair and sighed. “That hit the spot and then some.”
Olivia patted my stomach. “You need it… and probably a couple of Big Macs, too.”
My eyes widened. “Mmm, Big Macs… please tell me there’s a McDonald’s around here? Actually, where am I?”
Everyone grew silent, and no one looked at me.
“What? What?” I sat up, looking around the table. And then it hit me. “You guys don’t trust me, do you?”
Lea was the first to meet my eyes. “Okay. I’ll rain on this happy parade. How do we know you’re still not connected to Seth?”
“She’s not.” Aiden said, picking up the empty cartons and tossing them in a black trash bag he carried. “Trust me, she’s not connected to him anymore.”
Deacon snorted.
I glared at him.
Lea settled back in her chair, folding her arms. “Is there any other concrete proof, other than you telling us to trust you?”
Aiden glanced at me and I quickly looked away. I doubted Lea wanted to hear about that kind of proof. “I’m not connected to Seth. I promise you.”
“Promises are weak; you could be faking it,” she shot back.
“Lea, dear, she has no reason to fake it.” Laadan smiled gently. “If she was connected to the First, she wouldn’t be sitting here.”
“And my brother wouldn’t be cleaning up after us, right?” Deacon slumped back, as if it had just occurred to him that Aiden had been seconds away from death. I wanted to hide under the table as Deacon shook his head, dumbfounded. “Gods, we’d have to get a maid then or something.”
Aiden smacked the back of Deacon’s head as he passed by. “I feel the love.”
His brother tipped his head back, grinning.
Taking a breath, I stood and clenched the back of my chair. “I’m not connected to him and I’m pretty sure he can’t get through the shields. But I know he’s there. I can feel him.”
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