“I can tell you guys have some business to discuss, and I need to get back to work.” Uriel turned to Azazel, then leaned up and kissed his cheek. “I’ll see you later for dinner.”
Anubis turned his back, giving the couple some semblance of privacy, but he couldn’t drown out their conversation.
“Of course, call me if you need or miss me.”
“Always.”
How sweet, Anubis thought, and it made him a little jealous. He and Anput liked and respected each other, but they didn’t act like lovers. They slept in separate rooms, and when Anput gave birth to Kebechet, they dissolved their union and focused on co-parenting their daughter. Seeing Uriel and Azazel, Anubis had a quick thought to find a lover but quickly swatted it away. He couldn’t let anyone distract him when he had plans to correct his past career mistakes.
“You can turn around now; Uriel is gone,” Azazel said.
Anubis faced his friend and got to the meat of their meeting. “Whatever deal you made with Sobek, cancel it. And don’t tell me you can’t; I know how sneaky you can be.”
Azazel smirked. “He told you about his request?”
Anubis nodded. “But don’t bullshit me and tell me you’d do all of that for babysitting privileges. What do you really want, Az?”
“Fuck, you are one suspicious bastard.” Azazel shook his head, leaning on the edge of the conference table and looking at Anubis.
“I’ve never denied being a bastard.” Anubis shrugged. “But I won’t have you taking advantage of Sobek.”
“You get that he’s a grown man who can care for himself?” Anubis didn’t speak and stared at Azazel. “Fine, I’ll break off the deal.”
“I’m supposed to take your word for it?” Anubis wanted to see proof that the contract was canceled.
“What? Don’t you trust me?” Azazel said jokingly.
“With some things, sure, but not when it comes to deals done behind my back,” he snapped, but there wasn’t any real heat to his words, just frustration.
“Why are you getting angry at me? Sobek was the one that came to me on your behalf,” Azazel said.
“Az, don’t play coy with me,” Anubis said seriously. “How long have you wanted Sobek to work for you? To be just as loyal to you as he is to me. Especially after what happened a year ago when you had to kill Gadriel.” Anubis closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Look, you are one of my dearest friends. Over the years, we’ve had each other’s backs and fought for and against each other, but there’s one person I asked you never to mess with: Sobek. I never want him to slip into that kind of darkness again. He needs to remain pure at heart. If you want someone to be your darkness, look elsewhere. You have enough demons at your disposal. Hell, I’ll even send some souls to you so you can cultivate and use them for evil deeds you hide from your family. But again, leave mine alone.”
“What about him being an expert source for the business and economics television program?” Azazel asked.
“I’m good with that.”
“All right, deal,” Azazel said, and a stack of papers appeared in his hand. He showed it to Anubis, and he saw Sobek’s name and signature. Anubis grabbed the documents, and without looking through the papers, he set them on fire, feeling assured that the deal between Sobek and Azazel was severed.
“You know I wasn’t going to follow through with the agreement,” Azazel said. “I’m a hanged man. Love does that to you.”
“Sure, sure…I believe you,” Anubis chuckled.
“So, if you know about the contract between Sobek and me, I take it you’re ready to do some acting? Maybe you'll win an award.”
He wanted to say he didn't care about winning an award but realized he would be lying. “I want to give it a shot,” Anubis said.
“I’ve been waiting for this day.” He stood and went to his desk, taking out more papers and then dropping them on his desktop. “Take a look at these.”
Anubis went over to his desk and saw that they were scripts.
“I want to make a deal with you.”
Azazel picked up the first script, scanning through it. “I’m listening.”
“I want you to co-produce, direct, and act as the lead in these and stream exclusively on After Life Streaming. Actually, we're starting auditions for new actors next week, and I want you to be the one to pick the actors.”
“I know you have other directors who can take these over, what’s the catch?” Anubis said, looking away from the script in his hand to his friend. The man was sneaky and always had some trick up his sleeve.
