The elevator doors closed in front of me and took me down.
“Shake it off, girl,” I said aloud just before the doors opened, making me gasp in surprise. One that obviously wasn’t heard by the two people in front of me, practically dry humping each other in the lobby.
Tiffany had her legs wrapped around Aster’s hips, and his hands were holding her up firmly by her butt, which was thankfully still covered in denim. Their mouths were locked, and Tiff’s elbows were resting on Aster’s shoulders as she ran her hands through his hair.
Oh yeah, this really wasn’t going to help keep my mind off having sex with Atlas.
I let out a cough, but unfortunately for me, the power of Aster’s kiss must have been potent stuff indeed, because Tiff just moaned as Aster clenched her butt harder with his hand. I cleared my throat louder this time and finally, just as Tiff threw her head back with Aster kissing his way up her neck, she spotted me standing there. And all I could think to do was grant her an awkward little wave.
Tiff squealed in shock and quickly tried to detangle herself from Aster, who didn’t exactly look in a hurry to let that happen.
“Alex!” she shouted in shock, her skin reddening as she brushed her hand through her hair. Aster said nothing, a cheeky grin on his face as he finally relinquished his hold on her ass, letting her slide to the floor. I couldn’t help but smirk.
“Give us two minutes, Alex.” Apparently, he wasn’t ready to let her go just yet, after all.
“Sure, I’ll go wait outside, let you two say your final goodbyes.” I winked, slinging my backpack onto my back.
“Oh, and Aster,” I said, pointing to the corner of my mouth. “You’ve got a little bit of lipstick just… yep,” I said as he wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. He rolled his eyes at me when I gave him another wink as I walked past them both with a smile.
It was clear that those two had felt something for each other since the first time they met at the base. Back when Aster had everyone believe he was one of us. When we had let the fox into the henhouse, one that wasn’t there to eat us but instead to protect us. I remembered the shock of finding out what he truly was on that abandoned highway. He had saved my life then, and after that, it was starting to feel more like a habit I was desperate to break for him. No wonder Atlas thought he was the best candidate for keeping me alive, which was why I knew he washaving such a hard time with all of this. As this time, we were purposely walking into danger instead of running away from it. Which meant, for Aster, our mission was going against the grain, something he had certainly been vocal in expressing. And he hadn’t been the only one because the moment we got back to the Capitol building, we found everyone in Atlas’s office still waiting for us. Like they knew I had been on a fool’s errand.
Much to their surprise, we had been offered more than just a name; it showed us the truth. One I knew Bronte and Aster had been skeptical to believe. But more than anything, our new knowledge proved the importance of crossing the Rift.
Not that my uncle agreed.
Well, that wasn’t quite true. The part he had a problem with was that it included me in that plan. Of course, I had argued that it had to be me. Because for some reason, these scars weren’t just the key to opening the Rift, but also, they were the key to seeing the truth. To seeing past the veil of lies that Demetrios had woven over the people of Theïkós. Which had me questioning, what else could they do?
Perhaps they weren’t as much of a curse as I had always believed them to be.
So, in the end, convincing the others of the plan hadn’t been the hard part. Saying goodbye was. And clearly, after what I had just witnessed in the lobby, I would say I wasn’t the only one having a hard time. Because having to say goodbye to my uncle after we had only recently been reunited… yeah, that was tough.
Especially when he had taken me into his arms and whispered out a pained, “I have only just got you back.”
“I know,”I replied, and with tears in my eyes, I held on to him a little longer. After that, he made me promise to be careful, and this was when Aster made his own promises to protect me with his own life. I could see that it helped ease my uncle’sworries a little, but in the end, we all knew we were walking into the unknown.
Which meant we also knew that there were no assurances we would be walking back out again. But some things in life were worth the risk, and as for Theïkós, right now that was one kingdom that needed us just as much as its current king. Because Demetrios had a plan, and we may not have known exactly what it was yet, but I could pretty much guarantee it didn't end when Atlas killed his brother. No, if anything, that would only be the beginning.
“You ready?” Bronte asked as I approached, seeing her with the horses and the escort that was going to take us as far as the Rift.
“As ready as I will ever be, I guess.”
She raised a brow. “Okay, out with it,” she said, getting straight to the point and being as blunt as ever. But she wasn’t wrong, because there was something I wanted from her.
“I have questions.”
“You usually do,” she replied dryly.
I scoffed. “Yeah, but this time, they matter more than most.”
“Ask, Alexandra.”
I took a deep breath before telling her all the things I hadn’t been able to say earlier when recounting my vision, because it was how I had gotten that vision that I really needed to talk about. The promises I had made to Riley. The bargain I had made with whatever dark entity had taken him.
I had to believe there was some truth in it, despite not knowing if it was even possible. A bargain built on hope. A promise made in desperation.
So, I took another breath and asked, “Has the darkness ever taken over a human before?”
She looked surprised by the question before shrugging slightly.
