The words tumbled over each other until they blended into one. Grayson wasn’t a docile and domesticated breed. He thrived in a dark wilderness that most people would run from. Sitting in a room and reflecting on his actions wasn’t even a remote possibility. Something was brewing. I’d have bet money on that fact.
“Your guess is as good as mine,” I muttered, regretting not taking full advantage of my chat with Hunter.
It was going to be a restless night.
On a bed, in a dismal room filled with boxes, I seethed throughout the evening. The rage had not simmered down but still blazed uncontrollably in every cell.
It’d been hours since I’d arrived at Scott’s house, and silence fell in the early hours of the morning. Breaths became shallow, and streams of conscious thoughts slowed and then stopped. Sleep had taken them both.
I needed to tread carefully. Or Hunter would demote me from my position on the council, and Larkin would love that. There was a mutual understanding between myself and my sister-in-law; we tried not to be in the same room together if we could help it.
Centuries on the council, years serving as an elite God told me that my fellow kin would happily banish me from their ranks. My responsibilities branded me as too much for them to handle, but I wouldn’t be restrained and make myself easier to digest. There was no appeal in becoming palatable. They could all fucking choke as I’d watch on with mirthfulness.
Fed up of the four walls that surrounded me and the incessant train of thoughts that looped in on themselves, I walked out of the room and through the house. My steps were soundless as I trekked down the stairs, noting the surrounding items.
The walls were lined with photographs of Scott’s family. A mismatch of people. Scott with golden brown skin and long black hair stuck out. Parents who were Caucasian and blonde. And a boy, a little older than Scott, also Caucasian with darker hair.
None of these people were related by blood, but they appeared together in multiple photos. School plays. Christmas dinners. Holidays. And then the parents disappeared, and a new blonde woman appeared in the photos. Graduations and game nights as a new trio.
In the hallway, by the front door, there was a table stacked with unopened letters, and multiple pairs of shoes haphazardly lining the floor.
My bare feet hit the cool tiles of the kitchen, and I looked around the space. “Let’s see what she has,” I muttered to myself.
Lazily, I ran a finger across the bottles that were tucked away in the worktop's corner. A collection of different drinks that had been cracked open and enjoyed. Plucking a bottle of gin from the range, I found a glass before pouring myself a measure and dropping at the kitchen table. Just as I let the liquid warm me, my ears pricked to the sound of movement.
Scott padded into the kitchen a few moments later and I used my aura to conceal myself in darkness, wearing it like a cloak. I observed her silently as she grabbed a glass from the cabinet, filling it with water before leaning back against the counter and taking a drink.
Her legs were exposed in the oversized shirt she wore for pyjamas. Smooth, thick thighs rubbing together before the shirt gave her some modesty. The mass of black hair tumbled over her shoulders and down her back in voluminous waves, ending at her waist. That was when I noticed the faint blue glow that surrounded her. Mortal eyes wouldn’t have caught it. It wasn’t for them. It was a warning for Gods. Hunter delivered a mark of protection.
“I see he’s still trying to clean up my mess. He placed a ward on you. So much for him trusting me to do the right thing,” I spat, clutching the glass so tight that a crack ran through it.
The shock of my voice emanating from the darkness made her jump. I released my aura from around me as I stood from the chair, leaving the glass on the table. Every muscle in her body tensed when she laid eyes on me. The confidence Scott had possessed yesterday afternoon when she’d told me she didn’t believe in our abilities was gone. Now that she had witnessed it first-hand, she’d retreated into her shell.
But it wasn’t enough to make her realise my true potential. I wanted some fun. That cocky, bratty personality had got under my skin, and infiltrating her home was the first step. Living together presented the perfect opportunity to destroy her fiery spirit.
“What did it feel like to have the hands of a God on you?” I asked her curiously.
She carefully placed the glass on the counter and shook her head. “Goodnight, Grayson,” she said curtly.
Scott took a few steps towards the door, but a dark wisp of my aura pushed it shut with a gentle click. I didn’t want to wake Holden. This was a private chat. One on one.
“You don’t dismiss the conversation,” I told her calmly, feeling anything but. “You don’t dismiss me.”
The vision of her walking away from me in the lab rushed to the forefront of my mind. In all my existence, I’d never had someone ignore my call, and yet this mortal believed she was above my actions.
As I walked towards her, she panicked and pulled at the handle of the door in a vain attempt to open it. A low rumble of laughter reverberated deep in my chest. At least she had a morsel of common sense knocking around her skull.
“You’re scared,” I said simply, amused at how easily she thought she could escape me.
Scott didn’t want to be alone with me. Her thoughts raced with what to do now that I trapped her in the room. If she was stupid enough to call for Holden, I’d make sure I silenced him permanently this time around. I’d taken him out with ease at the lab and would do so again with no remorse.
Instead of calling for him, she turned around slowly, so that we faced each other. This woman apparently didn’t know when to quit.
There was a change in her thoughts that made me raise an eyebrow and look at her with even more interest. Oh, I could definitely have some fun with her.
“You aren’t just scared,” I noted, continuing towards her.
She took a step back and bumped into the door that sealed her escape route. Standing in front of her, I lifted a hand and trailed my index finger along her jaw. Her breath hitched, and she stiffened under my touch. I used my finger to lift her chin so that she looked me directly in the eye. Something that she would have been told not to do.
