I can hear total destruction and chaos take place outside and sit, holding my breath wondering what the hell am I supposed to do. How did Eros get in here? Minutes roll by as I continue to listen to what is taking place outside my door, and then there is silence. I jump off the bed and tiptoe near the door and gently turn the knob and ease the door open. The house is a mess. Holes littered various positions on the walls; the bathroom door has been completely obliterated; bits of glass and debris litter the hallway. Aiden emerges into the hall, his face swollen, and his expression-well, let's just say he is beyond pissed off. He stares at me.
“What happened?” He demands taking a step closer to me.
“I was in the shower…” I croak. This is so embarrassing.
“Uh-huh. Go on.”
“And a few minutes after stepping under the spray, the water took on a life of its own…”
“Go on.” He folds his arms and continues to stare at me. I know this bastard can’t possibly believe that this is my fault.
“I don’t see how any of this is my own doing.” I mumble.
“It isn’t. I just need to know what happened so I can fortify the wards. I thought I covered everything.”
“Clearly you didn’t.”
“So continue. What happened?”
I sigh. “Somehow the water began to…” I just can’t bring myself to say it. This is so unfair.
“It turned you on didn’t it?”
I nod.
“And you were powerless to stop it.”
I nod again.
“And then what happened?”
“The lights went out and that is when Eros manifested.”
“And?”
“I punched him in the mouth, but then in a flash he was on me, but this time he intensified his…powers and that is when you came in.”
Aiden sighed. “Did he say anything else to you?”
“He said I was magnificent, and then yanked off my towel.”
The silence that followed was so thick it was suffocating. Aiden’s expression changed from beyond pissed off to something beyond redemption.
“Did he do anything else?” His voice was barely a whisper.
“No.”
He swallows thickly. “Good. Go get dressed. You are sleeping in the room with me tonight.”
My expression reads an extremely loud protest but I keep my mouth shut. I am a bit unnerved by the experience, considering I did not have any choice in the manner. I stomp to what was supposed to be my room and dress in pair of loose pink sweats, sports bra and layer it with a tank. I don’t want to sleep with Aiden, even though I know he doesn’t sleep, I don’t want to share bed space with the man. It’s too awkward. I allow my braids to hang freely, being that a mounting headache was threatening all of my senses. I come out of the room to find the house exactly how it was when we first came in: spick and span and not a fiber out of place. I am greeted by the scent of spicy food, and track it to the kitchen where Aiden was busying himself seasoning a pile of chicken drummettes.
“What can’t you cook?” I ask light heartedly stepping onto the black and white panels of the linoleum floor.
He grins. “There isn’t really anything on the menu that I have not prepared before.” He motions at the four person wooden dining table just a few feet away from where I stood.
“Have a seat.”
I do as instructed, taking a seat at the table facing him. Watching him chop, dice and season what is obviously going to be our dinner, it dawns on me that this man has seen me naked. Nude. In the buff… nobody has ever seen me naked and now I am stuck with the only other man who has for an undetermined amount of time. I am not sure how I feel about having to literally eat, sleep, and breath Aiden-not that it would be an entirely bad thing. But still….
“What happened to Eros?” I ask interrupting my own thoughts.
My question did not seem to bother Aiden in the slightest. He just continued moving about in the kitchen as if I hadn’t said a word. He pulled out a glass pan from the bottom cabinet and laid across the marble counter of the island.
“The fucker poofed himself out of here before I could nail him,” he finally mumbled begrudgingly.
Eros is a member of a subspecies of the House of Darkness. He is known as the “god” of sexual desire and attraction in Greek mythology. He is also known as Cupid. I recall my father during one of his many lectures, he explained that Eros is the only member from the Darkness caste ever allowed into the Queen's quarters. He preys on young, beautiful women (and occasionally men), and his powers in the art of seduction are almost as bad as a Siren’s. One encounter can turn a perfectly normal woman into a nympho, and there are cases of women being placed into asylums as a result. Many an entity have attempted to assassinate him for seducing their mates or daughters, but Eros is as elusive as they come, so I know Aiden is pissed that even he couldn’t kill him. A part of me wished that Aiden had been successful in killing him because I know instinctively this will not be Eros’ final attempt with me. I saw it in his eyes. He will pursue me relentlessly until he has his way with me, and that part scares me. Suddenly I don’t mind sleeping in the same room with Aiden.
Forty five minutes later we are seated and feasting on another one of his spreads: Jerk Chicken and Jamaican rice, and homemade sweet tea. I take a bite and I swear this man hung out with my Granny a time or two in the kitchen because it tastes like something she would cook. I miss her. We eat in silence which is something we have grown accustomed to and when I am stuffed beyond all reason, I help with the dishes being that is the least I can do. Suddenly, I feel tired, as if I haven’t slept in days, and Aiden leads me to his room, which I forgot to mention is a master suite. I climb into his bed, and bundle myself in. The silky sheets are cool against my skin. I sense him standing nearby in the doorway, perhaps debating if it would be appropriate for him to join me or waiting for me to call him over. Why should I? It’s his house. But then again, I know what awaits me the moment I succumb to the pull of sleep, and I don’t want to face these nightmares alone. With sleep filled eyes, I glance over at him and say the one thing I am sure he was waiting for me to say: “Stay.”
Chapter 10
Aiden
I never thought she would ask, but considering what she’s been through today, I am well prepared to oblige. I told myself that she would be safer if she slept in the room with me, despite the fact that I put down some major wards to keep all beings from both Houses away, but to be honest, a part of me just wants her as close as possible. She trusts me, which is good. But I still need more than her trust: I need her bond. She turns on her back with her head still turned away from me, but her palm is open, as if even in her sleep she needs reassurance that I am with her. I place my hand in hers and hold it gently.
We remain that way until the first rays of the dawn crest over the horizon. She talks in her sleep. A lot. Her expressions change from pained to grief stricken and I wish I could see what haunts her in her dreams. It has been three days since the attack on her compound, and I don’t have any answers for her. No details. I have a weak lead on the whereabouts, which reminds me…
I ease out of the bed, careful not to wake her, and head to the shower. She turns over on her side, with her feet dangling from the edge of the bed. Her mouth is wide open, while her head full of waist long braids sprawl out in a ropey mass against the pillows. I should take a picture of her and savor this moment, but knowing her, she would be humiliated beyond repair and would probably never forgive me. I chuckle to myself before disappearing down the hall into the bathroom. Biscuit barks at me in greeting, and after turning the water on I go into the kitchen where his food and water bowls are; fill both bowls, give his head a quick scratch and while he digs in, I allow the warm spray of the shower to clear my head.
I have lived in the earth realm for almost a century, but is has been 18 years since I entertained the presence of the High Courts of Light. I can sense my mother’s rage: it is ever present a
nd ever reaching. I know that I am not the only being from her court that is on the run from her tyrannical ways. I close my eyes and allow the water to beat down on the crown of my head, I brace the tickle of random drops of water run down my back and calve muscles. I grab the soap and begin to lather, my thoughts focused on what may be coming not only for me but for Dawn. The Queen of Light, my mother, was not always an evil bitch. At one point she was virtuous, even tempered, and kind to those who were loyal to her. Somehow all of that changed.
I was born the year, Han began his couplings with human women. I was a fledgling when the first Grey was born. The House of Light has always been about maintaining the purity of both lines, despite our differences. My mother was a firm believer that we were created for superior purposes, one of those purposes to rule over the violent, decadent, and depraved race known as humans. To lay down with one, she said, was to desecrate one’s self, which ultimately desecrates the entire House. She declared war on the subspecies of humans my race named as the Greys the moment she witnessed the depth of their power.
Each Grey is born with varying levels of gifts from the powers of darkness that I assume to be almost unlimited. Human in appearance, with heightened senses, super speed, and strength of ten strong men, Greys would be much more difficult to hunt if they can resist demonstrating their abilities. How Dawn’s family fell under my mother’s radar may have to do with Dawn’s parents heavy involvement in the raids that happened twenty years ago. Someone told me, even during her pregnancy, Dawn’s mother was out in the front lines fighting Light and Dark warriors. And then there is a prophecy spoken of by one of the few oracles that are housed in the highest court of Light that may have given my mother a clue about Dawn.
She sent me on my first mission when I’d completed my training: my first mission was to kill a family of Greys. I slaughtered each and every one of them without a second thought believing they were a threat to my kind. Seven in total and I killed them all. After that, she sent me on hundreds of missions involving the hunting down and the slaughtering of Greys, other species of nonhuman entities who were more a nuisance than anything, and of course the scattered remaining warriors of Darkness. I didn’t realize that the real threat to my kind had been staring at me and sending me on special quests the entire time until that early morning when I witnessed her kill my father.
She doesn’t know that I know she is the guilty party.
I turn the water off and step out, wrapping a towel around me. I extend my senses searching for danger or any other immediate threat and when I find there is none, I relax. I hate to leave Dawn for any length of time, but there are answers to questions that I need. She will be safe as long as she stays inside. I go into my bedroom to retrieve my clothes, which isn’t anything fancy: just a pair of faded denim, a black crew neck and a pair of hard toe boots that always come in handy. She is still knocked out, and thanks to Siren, I know whatever was pulling her from the dark realms will not be able to find her, at least for a while. I dress quickly in the bathroom, and take one last look in the mirror before heading out. A pair of battle weary eyes greets me, and I make mental note to not return without a haircut. As much as the women I deal with fawn over my lengthy locks, it is time for a drastic cut.
I load up on a few essentials my trusty mini Uzis, my custom sword my father handed to me a few weeks before his murder, and a couple of daggers for throwing-just in case. I should be back in a day or two. I hate to leave her alone for even five minutes but, I can’t continue to help her without answers. Day to day survival is not enough if I cannot prepare her for what is due to come.
Dawn
I awake to the sound of the ceiling fan, buzzing above my head. I sit up quickly. I don’t sense Aiden’s presence anywhere in the house and for some reason, that scares me. Maybe I have become entirely too dependent on this man because emotionally I am a wreck; and mentally…well, I’m surprised I still have my sanity. I get up and head to the kitchen where I find a note taped to the fridge that reads: Stay put. I will be back.-Aiden. Where did he go? And why didn’t he at least wake me up? Tossing the note on the table I open the fridge and grab some milk for the bowl of cereal I intend on pouring. I look into the cabinet above the black marbled counters, grab a bowl and discovery an opened box of Cap'n Crunch. Excited about my newfound treasure, I take a seat at the table and mull over everything that has transpired so far: started my first night of college, followed by an early morning compound breach that left members of my family dead or missing; Aiden finds me and takes me in; he has his…er…rendezvous with a Siren; I fight a Berserker, the Siren does her magic on me; we come here, and then I have an encounter with Eros, and now I am by myself, still without any answers or any idea of what the future may hold.
With each spoonful, I think harder about my situation. Since Siren’s hoodoo magic, there hasn’t been any calls to leadership in my dreams, just plain old nightmares of what happened a couple of days ago. All Greys are capable of telepathy, and when reaching out mentally to various members of my compound, all I receive is something similar to dead air. My parents have to be alive. There is no way that they could not have escaped, especially after all of the battles they’ve led and survived unscathed. The sound of the spoon hitting the bowl is my only companion. Biscuit is somewhere in the house, probably resting his still injured leg.
Minutes pass while I finish the last of the Cap N Crunch, and a thought hits me: Aiden must believe that I am just going to sit around and wait for answers. The longer I wait the more Greys are put at risk, and the less likely I will be able to find out what happened to my family. I know my parents are out there somewhere, rallying up what leftover troops they have. There is a safe house heading towards the northern California area. I vaguely remember taking a recon trip out there when Leah, the daughter of my father’s right hand man, Lou, went missing. We found her three days later, after being kidnapped by a group of Imps, barely conscious but alive.
I can’t sit back and continue to allow my kind to be victimized by the Queen's minions; nor will I sit back and allow myself to be bullied under the rule of the King of Darkness. Neither side owns me, nor will they ever own me. My father told me that we are the balance between both sides; but my mother told me that I am the bridge. I put my bowl in the sink and wash it before placing it in the dish rack. I don’t know how I am going to make it to the safe house, but as my Granny used to say, “come hell or high water,” I’m getting there. I dash into the second bedroom and do as my father would say: I suit up.
Chapter 11 The Queen
Situated high above the realms, in the highest of highest palaces, Lucena raked her fingers anxiously across the ten foot glass table where the 3 Dimensional hologram of the multiple realms that she governed and protected with pride. She sighed in frustration. It has been eighteen years since she last seen or heard from her son Orion. Several of her top soldiers mysteriously died upon searching for him, and now she is down to her last finest general who is out in the earth realm searching for the one girl capable of destroying everything that she fought hard to build. Han will not be free. His freedom meant another war that she did not have the manpower to fight. Frustrated, she paced around the table and clutched a goblet that was once filled to the rim of sweet wine that her people loved to indulge themselves in, and flung it into the wall, and watched with a brief satisfaction as it shattered. For eons, she and her armies waged war across the realms with the goal of enforcing order, and unraveling the chaos that Han constructed only for it all to come to this.
She straightened her shoulders, and once her flawlessly porcelain face normalized to her usual serene appearance, she realized a new strategy is in order.
“The Greys are breeding like rabbits,” she seethed underneath her breath. “And this girl is nowhere to be found…”
She gently brushed her hand over the section of the hologram of the earth realm was on displayed.
“Come out, come out wherever you are sweet Dawn…” She cooed. �
�Play into my hand just the way those arrogantly foolish parents of yours have done…”
Lucena stared deeper into the hologram, focusing on the energy trail last seen by her son.
“Just like his father,” she seethed. “Just couldn’t stay away from those toxic Sirens…”
After a long while, the Queen of Light smiled wickedly to herself.
“The sins of the father,” she began, “are the sins of the child. I wonder if your father ever told you the truth about your mother Dawn…”
In a flash of motion, Lucena disappeared through the double doors into the hallway that led to her private chambers. She’d been saving this for the perfect moment, and if the oracle was right, Dawn would cease to exist and Han will never find freedom; and everything in the universe would be just fine.
Aiden
Being a rogue member from the House of Light is dangerous. Not only do I have to battle members of the opposing caste but I have to evade, and possibly kill members of my own kind just to make it through another day. Stepping out of the blinding light, I appear out of nowhere on an abandoned side street in the Downtown area of Burbank. I can sense the presence of a few scattered Greys. They are weak, untrained and I need answers. Cloaking themselves with a mask of invisibility is not enough to keep any member of my kind away. If I wanted to I would pluck one of them from where they stood like the feather off of a chicken. With the sun high in the sky and the heat rising to less than comfortable levels, I am anxious to get out of here. I have other things to do, and I hope that I don’t have to teach any of these young Greys a lesson.
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