As things picked up, I did then look away, trying to block out the screams of pleasure from Rex and the grunts of satisfaction from Ruxnoth.
When they finally stopped, along with the sounds of slapping flesh, I looked over in relief to see Rex sprawled out on his back on the bed with a cover draped over him, while Ruxnoth was clad in a robe.
Ruxnoth strode to me, calling his power as he went.
“So long as you remain good for me, you won’t be made to endure this again,” he vowed, just before he reached over me and deactivated theNihilumbrawith a flood of his magic.
It all disintegrated, my bare feet touching the floor, and an involuntary huge sigh of relief escaped me, as the pain finally left.
I went to push off the wall, but he slammed his hand to my chest, knocking me back.
“What now?” I demanded.
“Because you took so long, even delayed coming to me long before I finally brought you here, which forced my hand with outing you to the world, some damage control is required.”
“What kind of—”
I grunted as his power sparked on my chest, a different kind of pain erupting then—a painful pull that felt like it was sucking the life out of me.
No.“You can’t siphon me, you’ll die. I’m living death. That will infect you.”
“Calm yourself. If it had been possible for me to siphon all your magic, why would I have gone to such lengths to earn your cooperation?”
“Just checking. Gods like to play with the little people.”
“Ah, but you’re not one of them, are you?” He stroked my hair. “You’realsoa god. Just of another nature than me.” He pulled harder, making me buck uncontrollably. “I just need a little for this damage control situation I mentioned. It cannot wait any longer, and unfortunately, you cannot assist with it in the way I’d prefer because it will take you time to recover from theNihilumbra.”
He pulled back suddenly, and I choked when I saw a shimmering blue cube containing some of my amber magic levitating above his outstretched palm. “Yes. This will suffice.” He eyed me suspiciously. “And it will also serve as a test.Your reaction to what I intend to do with this will demonstrate whether your loyalty truly does lie with Sanctus now.”
“And what might that be?”
He dematerialized what he’d taken from me. “Concentrate on your recovery.” He helped me off the wall and eased me down onto one of the fancy couches. Then he strode toward a door that I could see led into a bathroom in the far corner. He called to Rex as he passed by, “Escort Winter to his chamber. Explain the pool to him and collect his dietary preferences, then I will see to them.”
With that, he smiled at me, then disappeared into the bathroom, sealing the door behind him.
Rex told me as he sat up on the bed, “He has this thing about scrubbing himself clean after fucking. It’s some holdover from when he lived on the Celestial Plane, where they were all shamed for even having sexual thoughts, let alone actually fucking.”
He clothed himself with his magic, then walked to me, and I took him in properly. Now that he wasn’t in a compromised position.
That dark golden hair brushed the shoulders of his distressed brown military jacket with tons of pockets, the collar turned up and giving off a bit of a rebellious edge. A fitted chocolate-brown henley underneath that stretched over his strong and tall frame was half tucked into a pair of dark jeans. He looked to be in his mid-thirties or so—appearance-wise anyway.
“Sorry you had to see that, kiddo.”
“Sorry you had to endure that.”
He lifted a shoulder. “It’s not so bad.”
“I guess you have to ask yourself whether you’d be thinking that if the‘treatment’aspect wasn’t a factor.”
He stared at me.
Yeah, he’d clearly internalized a lot… Ruxnoth’s manipulations and emotional rewiring of people.
Although, at the same time, Rex had still tried to help me. So how did that play with the rest?
I got my answer in the next moment as he tried to clothe me with his magic too—I couldn’t even summon a spark of mine right now—and he clad me in a black leather hooded coat.
Just like my dad’s signature item of clothing.
