“I have business,” I told her abruptly.
She sucked in her cheeks, and I knew I would be hearing from Ignacio later.
When the room cleared, I echoed Hunter’s footsteps towards the study without invitation.
“What do you want, Grayson?” he asked, taking a seat behind his desk. “I’ve had enough of you for one night.”
Even with minimal participation at the table, I was still deemed the biggest problem in his life, second only to Quentin and her partial divinity.
“I wanted to talk to you about Quentin and your plans for leaving her in lower Elysia,” I said, dropping into the chair opposite.
“It’s not your problem. It’s a temporary arrangement and once the council sees sense, she’ll be back here for a hearing.”
“You’re going to risk leaving her there? The minor Gods aren’t exactly willing to fall in line with our desires.”
“The vote isn’t extended to them,” he snapped. “Larkin didn’t want her here, so I got rid of the problem.”
“And potentially created a larger one in doing so. You’ve entrusted her with Archer. Have you forgotten what he’s been like over the last few centuries?”
“Are you fond of her?” Hunter asked, voice smooth like silk as he glanced up from his seat. “Are you after a little half-breed whore? I’m not convinced by the little display you tried to put on with Elva tonight.”
Brutal images flashed before my eyes. I wanted to spill his blood and paint the walls with it. There would be no need for my aura. I’d dig my fingers beneath his flesh and rip it away from his bones, savouring every scream, and when his body repaired the damage, I’d inflicted, I would do it again until there was a blue and gold river flowing through Elysia. When he’d beg, only then, would I show him mercy by ending his pathetic life.
Hunter leaned back in his chair, lounging in it as he took me in. “You’ve spent a lot of your time with her, Gray. It didn’t catch my attention until Larkin pointed it out.”
How fitting that two snakes should find themselves together, bound by marriage? I would have been impressed by their cunning if they didn’t act as if they were above it. Paint me as a villain, but at least I owned it. I wasn’t ashamed of who or what I was.
“She’s my host. You told me to make this initiative work. Told me my very existence was on the line if I didn’t comply,” I pointed out.
“That didn’t mean jumping into bed with her.”
“What proof do you have?” I asked, pushing my luck. “Or is it merely speculation of your wife?”
“Archer is insistent that you’re hiding something.”
Tipping back my head, I let out a hollow laugh. It was a tough decision on who to murder first. Hunter or Archer? Which one would bring me the most satisfaction?
“We all have secrets, brother,” I said, lowering my gaze to him once more. “Be worried about the ones that Archer is keeping.”
Hunter straightened, narrowing his eyes. “When I gave you the position on the council, I thought you might grow up. Learn to rise above the hatred you receive. I don’t expect him to forgive you for what you did, even if it has been a lifetime.”
He was trying everything in the book to get a reaction out of me. It would have worked if I didn’t have Quentin to think about. If I launched myself across the desk and beat my brother’s skull against the wall, it would lengthen her time in limbo. She needed certainty to feel comfortable, and I needed to deliver that to her.
“I doubt he’s forgiven you,” I quipped in return. “Or perhaps he no longer cares about Larkin, since he has a new obsession.”
The only way to throw Hunter off the scent was to place distractions before him.
“I told you about the tulips he floods her home with,” I continued. “How he follows her around like a lapdog when he can. And you just handed her over to him.”
“He’s not that stupid. She might be pretty, but she’s not worth losing your life over,” Hunter told me unequivocally.
“You don’t know that. She should be here where we can make sure nothing more comes of this.”
“Her divinity or their so-called relationship?”
It would have been easy to stride over and smack the smug look from his face. He wanted the admission from me, concrete evidence so that he could play the next cards in his deck. And if there was no one else involved, I would have given it to him.
We’d played the long game, and I’d grown tired of it. The bloodlust simmered so close to the surface. I wanted to rid the heavens of my brother and take my place. I wanted to watch it all burn and rebuild it from the ashes in my image.
