My mind churned, caught between two impossible choices: tell Runo I was done with his fucked-up games, walk away from the chaos that threatened to swallow us, or dive in headfirst and let the darkness take over like it used to.
I’d spent years keeping control, cleaning up after the other two and myself while feeding an empire that I had all but handed off to Brent and the other guards at this point. I was so far removed from the life that The King actually lived that I was just barely more than a citizen. But Runo’s chaos was tempting, the need to embrace the thrill we’d tried to leave behind growing.
The door creaked open, and Aeron walked in, holding a bowl of pasta, with small chunks of what looked like sausage littered across the top. “Please, for the love of God, tell me you didn’t heat that up in the kitchen?”
Aeron shook his head, a grin tugging at his lips as he shoveled a bite into his mouth, chewing with a deviant glint in his sea-green eyes. “No, I’m eating it cold like a savage. See anything?”
Thank fuck. He knew better than to heat up food in my house made with his favorite delicacy.
He came around to my side of the desk and parked his ass on the edge, the bowl balanced on his knee. I shook my head, my eyes flicking back to the monitor. “Brent hasn’t moved since we brought him here, and the guy I sent to watch Jade hasn’t reported anything either.”
Aeron swallowed, his gaze narrowing as he glanced at the screen, then at me. “What are we going to do about Runo?”
I chuckled, the sound masking the knot in my chest. “What do you want to do with him?” Slowly, I wheeled my chair directly in front of Aeron and then slid my hands up his thighs. He gasped, his eyes widening a little before choking on a bite of his pasta, the bowl wobbling in his hand before he set it down on the table with a soft clink.
“Is it weird that I kind of want to take Runo on a date?” he said, almost hesitant. “I want to get to know him before I make a decision. Slash won’t ever say it, but last night was everything he’s ever wanted. Sure, it takes a lot out of him, but he loves being able to lose it like that. I don’t like that part, and you’d rip him apart if he tried that on you. He brought you Brent to deal with, but for me? I need more than a meal. I need to see the man I fell in love with.”
I chuckled, my thumbs pressing into the muscle of his thighs. “You were always the softest of us, Aeron. No, that’s not a bad thing. It means you still have a heart. Sometimes I worry that we’ve lost that part of our humanity, the ability to feel beyond our demons. I’m intrigued by Runo and hell, I love the darkness he adds to our dynamic but he also terrifies me, Aeron. I don’t like not being in control.”
Aeron grinned, a spark of mischief in his eyes as he leaned closer. “Then take control. I’m surprised you haven’t already. You brought Brent here, and I know that’s because you can’t control what you don’t know. You need Runo to come to you.”
I grunted, my hands tightening on his thighs, the heat of his skin seeping through the fabric. He was right—I’d dragged Brent to the estate to keep him close, to keep Tyrone’s prying eyes away, but mostly to understand Runo’s game.
Aeron picked up his pasta again and took a few more bites. I watched the movement of his jaw, the way his throat bobbed when he swallowed, and something stirred in me, a dark heat I hadn’t felt in forever.
I dragged him into a kiss, my lips crashing against his, tasting the salt and meat of the pasta. Aeron’s eyes went wide, and he pulled back, gasping. “Samael… I… you…”
I licked my lips, catching a bit of meat that had fallen into my mouth, and frowned. “It’s terrifying that it tastes like pork. That’s wholly different than I was expecting.” Slash and I had never taken part in Aeron’s delicacies or his demons but now I was wondering if they didn’t slightly mesh together. Aeron was a fantastic cook—there was no doubt about that—and if I could get past the mindfuck that I was actually eating a person, maybe I could...No.
Aeron stared, his grin returning as he held up the bowl. “Do you want a bite?”
I shook my head, my hands still on his thighs. “Baby steps, Aeron. For now, let’s focus on the issue we have at hand.” I gestured to the screen, Brent’s intense stare still focused on the camera, his eyes staring straight into my soul.
SLASH
I forgot how consuming it was to let my demons run free in the middle of the night like that. There was a reason I had created a happy balance between my passion and reality, my head still throbbing from the crash after last night’s frenzy. I was a little horrified how rough I had been with Runo but if given the chance, I’d do it again.
Sighing, I sat up and ran a hand through my messy hair before turning my attention to the soft giggles coming from Samael’s desk. Aeron was perched on the edge, giggling as he shoveled pasta into his mouth, his sea-green eyes bright with a mix of mischief and nerves. Samael leaned closer, his dark eyes curiously studying the food like he might actually try it.
I always knew it would happen eventually, that we’d start sharing demons, feeding off each other’s darkness like we used to in the old days. But I thoughtthatdemon—the one that turned kills into meals—would stay far,faraway. I had no desire to eat the people I’d killed, no matter how well Aeron cookedthem. The thought twisted my stomach, a mix of disgust and a twisted curiosity I didn’t want to admit.
Brushing off that thought, I stood and moved toward the desk, ready to be the buzzkill this morning so desperately needed. If I caught Samael taking a bite of that pasta, my morning would be ruined. Aeron looked up as I closed in, my gaze falling to the security screens loaded on Samael’s computer.
The man was staring straight into the camera, which made sense since he had installed most of them. He and I had never truly gotten along but were cordial in the past few weeks. I didn’t really know how it fell apart, though, and even less why he had been one of the individuals Runo wanted gone. Niles, I understand. Jade, I could see why Runo wanted her dead but was glad in the end that we had chosen not to.
Something about her death wouldn’t have sat right with me.
“Has he moved?”
Samael leaned back in his chair and shook his head. “He knows this is the end. The only reason I haven’t done something is because of Runo. He has a reason for Brent being in that basement and I’m banking on it being better than some petty shit.” He folded his hands behind his head as I turned to make a jab at Aeron, only to have my phone buzz in my pocket.
“Fucking assholes,” I muttered as Aeron pursed his lips at me. I lightly smacked his cheek, pushing him toward Samael. “Do not kiss me with those lips. I know what you’ve been eating.” Slipping my phone from my pocket, I frowned at the number scrolling across my screen. A number that had apparently called three times already. “I guess they’ve found the body because the station is calling me, but why would it not be you trying to contact me?”
Samael shrugged. “I haven’t really been on anything active. I think Chief Matthews knows something is wrong, but I haven’t been in since I met Tyrone.”
I answered and put it on speaker, Tyrone’s baritone voice filling the room. “Ryker? Or should I say Jason?”
I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly too dry. “What?”
