Hearing the door click shut behind me, I staggered to my bed and fell on it, breathing hard. I desperately searched under my pillow for the tattered length of pink material that I kept there. I brought it to my nose and inhaled deeply, calming almost instantly.
The scent of lavender was long gone, but it remained in my memory so vividly that I would swear the smell was as fresh as the day Adelaide last wore it. Closing my eyes tightly, I brought the memory of gifting it to her to the front of my mind.
“Come, my love, the day isn’t getting any younger, and we have a test to study for tonight.” Adelaide smiled that sweet smile that I fell in love with.
“I’m coming,” I grinned as I shut my dorm door. It was rare for us to spend a day alone. If I was completely honest, most of the time, I didn’t mind. The men that would soon become part of Adelaide’s Faction had become brothers to me in everything but blood.
“What do you want to do first?” She stood on tip toes, trying to loop her arms around my neck.
Adelaide was a tiny thing. At times, I felt like a massive brute trying to catch a fairy. Lifting her off the ground so she could reach my neck, I gave her a quick kiss and then lowered her back to the ground.
“I have a gift to help keep you warm on our walk.”
“I was hoping you would keep me warm,” she fluttered her lashes at me.
I loved it when she attempted to flirt. She was not very good at it, but I appreciated it nonetheless because she clearly lacked much experience. It made me feel special that I was the first for her to try her feminine wiles on.
“That can definitely be arranged, but when I can’t be there, this will help.” I pulled the bright pink scarf from my backpack and wrapped it around her neck.
“I love it!” She lifted a length of the scarf, admiring the color.
My angel couldn’t get enough pink in her life and we teased her mercilessly about it.
“Just another bit of pink to add to your collection,” I smoothed her pale blonde hair away from her face.
I grinned at seeing the joy my small gift brought her. I didn’t have the riches some of my brothers had, but that had never mattered to Adelaide.
She giggled and took a flying leap into my arms. I caught her easily and the little tease started biting gently on my lips as I chased her mouth, trying to deepen the kiss. Getting tired of this game, I moved one arm under her ass then took my other hand and pressed her mouth firmly to mine. She moaned sweetly as our kiss became more passionate and we lost ourselves in the moment.
A door slammed in the hallway and we both broke apart, breathing hard. I slowly lowered her to the ground, enjoyingthe feeling of her body against mine. Adelaide looked a little dazed, but I had a massive grin. My chest puffed out with pride at how affected she’d been by our kiss. How did I get so damn lucky?
We left the building and strolled toward the nearby forest. The day was beautiful and I breathed in the sweet smell of lavender that always followed Adelaide around. Truthfully, I could be walking knee-deep in a sewer and still find enjoyment if my angel was with me.
Tears came to my eyes as I drew up my knees to cradle the scarf to my body. I knew I had to go to Selene, but I needed this moment to find the strength to keep going.
Hopefully, if Damien came through, I wouldn’t have to deal with the bitch much longer.
I spent another ten minutes allowing myself to get lost in the precious memories of my angel before dragging myself off my bed. I pushed the scarf back under my pillow and went into the bathroom to splash my face with water. I’d delayed as much as I dared, so I dried my face and left my room.
The journey to Selene’s apartment was a long one…not nearly long enough. She was at the very top of the building with a balcony outside her apartment that looked out over the coliseum.
The only reason I wasn’t forced to live there with her and the rest of this fucked up Faction was because I’d convinced her that I needed to stay close to the warriors. Putting on a good show and pleasing the Brummond was more important to her than torturing me, barely.
I stopped in front of the apartment and stared at the massive black doors, feeling a sickness settle in my stomach.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked and arranged my features into a mask of indifference.
The door opened, and Beatrice grinned evilly at me. “It’s about time you got here. Selene isn’t happy with you.”
I couldn’t give a fuck if the bitch was happy, but none of the hatred I felt showed on my face. It would give her too much pleasure to inform Selene of any infractions she thought I’d made against her or her cunt of a mistress.
Beatrice had been the first member of the Tempest Faction. She was almost as sadistic as Selene herself. They’d been lovers since before the war. I thought that would make her jealous of the other Faction members, but she loved lording over the rest of us unlucky bastards.
The creepiest part of the whole deal was how similar Selene and Beatrice looked like each other. They had golden blond hair, blue eyes, similar facial features and were nearly the same height. The two could be sisters and seeing them intimate with each other added another layer of depravity to the Faction.
Beatrice opened the door wide and gestured for me to enter. I stepped into the apartment, and my feet sank into the plush red carpet. The walls were adorned with hand-painted wallpaper in deep red featuring black gothic designs, and all the furniture was a matching deep scarlet, accented with fluffy black pillows scattered throughout the room. An immense gold chandelier hung from the white ceiling in the middle of the room. A massive black stone fireplace was on one wall, with a huge portrait of Selene taking center stage, surrounded by a frame of pure gold. It looked like a high-class brothel, and for all intents and purposes, it was.
The rest of my assigned faction was present. It was rare for all of us to be together because I wasn’t the only member who wasn’t exactly happy to be here.
