“Asmodeus Death… whatever your last name is, get your ass down here right this minute!” Ellison shouts from somewhere in the front yard.
I tuck myself out of sight, having already hidden myself from his illusion. I’ll stay up here, out of sight like I was taught to do. I don’t even have to turn invisible to keep him from finding me.
I was never to be seen or heard. My purpose was to kill, so I will protect Ellison from whatever darkness haunts him and remove myself from his life before I destroy it.
“Asmodeus, my mother is a bitch, we all know this, do we not? So get down here. Saying awful shit and trying to get under your skin is her go-to. I didn’t know you were weak enough to give in to it.”
Ah, so now he’s trying to annoy me enough to get me to come out. He has to realize that won’t work with me.
“There’s a strange person here. Come save me!”
As if someone could enter the yard without me being aware of them.
“Fine! You be a stubborn ass. You rot up there if that’s what you want!” Ellison snaps before going inside.
I love his hot little temper. It’s adorable.
Closing my eyes, I lean against the part of the roof that rises up for the second story. Not that I want to fall asleep when memories ofherare there waiting for me.
It’s not too long before I hear the front door opening again. I question whether he’s getting in the car, which would force me to climb down and follow him, but the keys to the vehicle are in my pocket.
“I’ve taken my suit jacket off,” he says.
My brow furrows. Does he think such a simple thing will get me to come down?
“My vest is too stuffy.”
I press my back against the rough wall, interest piqued. I do enjoy a jacketless Ellison. It’s a rare sight and it will be a sight for my eyes only… but no… I must stay strong.
“Oh no… I have lost my shirt. Thank god there is no one here to see me standing in the front yard with no shirt on. The air is cold on my bare skin.”
I scurry across the roof, realizing that this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see my sweet, sweet Ellison half naked.
“There you are,” his illusion says, appearing beside me just as I reach the edge to see that while he’s taken his jacket and vest off, the shirt is still firmly in place.
His illusion sits down on my back, pinning me against the roof.
“You have betrayed me,” I whine.
“Really, you should know better than to believe everything you hear,” he says through the illusion as he sits there. We both fall silent for a moment. He’s staring up at me from the yard but also looking down at me from on my back. I’m caught in that stare with nowhere to go.
Ellison continues speaking through the illusion. “People love to make others hurt to feel better about themselves. They want to break you down so they can get their way. I’ve known this about my mother since I was very young. I’ve chosen to allow her to do it to me because I’ve trained myself to believe that I deserve it. My mother claims she does it to protect me, to keep me safe, but we all know it’s done because she wants me under her control.”
I shake my head. “Everything she said is true. Everything you saw was real. There is nothing wrong with what Beatrice shared. I wouldn’t want someone I cared about around someone like me either.”
“That’s because my mother doesn’t know you. She likely never will.”
“Even if we get married?”
He lightly smacks the back of my head. “I’m goingfarout of my comfort zone to say all of this shit to you and that’s what you have to say to me?”
I laugh as I lay my head against the roof. “Possibly.”
“Just… ignore what my mother said. I am. Now get off the damn roof and come inside like a normal person.”
“I was promised a naked Ellison.”
“You were promised no such thing.”
