“Mine is in my bag, in the closet,”Ares chimes in, proving he’s not really sleeping at all.
“Thanks.” Milo heads over to the closet and disappears for a second. When he returns, it’s with a sleek silver laptop already open in his hands. “Password?”
“My soul is black, just like my heart,” Ollie deadpans in a gravelly voice.
“CapitalB-u-t-t-3-r-f-l-y,” Ares answers, readjusting his neck and ignoring Ollie’s comment.
“Are you shitting me?” Ollie turns to look at the man I’ve been secretly calling the Dark Lord for a few weeks.
“What, no one would ever guess it,” Ares defends.
“No fucking kidding,” Dante comments, chuckling.
“Do you want to use my computer or not?” Ares sounds a little defensive.
“Did you really come up with that password?” I smooth my hand over his abdomen.
Ares lets out an evil little laugh. “I did.” I smile, agreeing no one would ever guess it.
* * *
I run cold water over a washcloth and drag it over my face. My cheeks are pink, flushed from exertion, or possibly from holding back from connecting with Dante’s ability. My skin feels too tight, like every muscle in my body is on the verge cramping. Every time he urged me to use the electricity from Ollie, or Ares’s shadow abilities, I could feel something under my skin demanding tobe set free.
Leaving the cool cloth on the back of my neck I brace my palms on the sink, letting my head hang. I’m on edge, and frustrated that I can’t control the dominance I feel when I’m with Dante. He seems to think it has something to do with his ability to shift and his animal. After our training session I really think he’s right. I snapped at him several times today when he pushed me for more.
“Our first appointment is at five,” Ollie reminds me,rapping on the bathroom door.
“I’ll be right out.” I force lightness into my tone. We have enough to deal with, without me adding another abilityI’ll have to learn to use on top of everything else.
Pulling the washcloth off my neck, I let it smack to the sink with a wet plop. I look up into the mirror and take in my appearance.My long blonde hair is pulled back into a tight, high ponytail. The cascading waves aresomehowsleeker than they have ever been before, I attribute the lack of frizz to Ollie’s expensive haircare products. I tilt my face from left to right. The itching feeling is still under my skin, so I expect to see something brimming under the surface, some clue as to what might happento meif I embrace the power simmering inside me. I glance at my miss-matched eyes, will they change the way Dante’s do when he shifts? Will they be the same color, or will I still look like a freak even if Idoshift?
“We’re going to be late,” Ollie singsongs. “Do you need a hand in there?” he adds, sounding way too hopeful.
“I’m coming now.” I wring out the washcloth and lay it over the sink to dry, before straightening out my black t-shirt. I didn’t have enough time to shower after training, so I take a whiff of my underarm, wondering if I stink. I should have spent what time Idid have cleaning up better instead of worrying about things I can’t control. I don’t think I smell, let’s hope Dante’s nose isn’t too sensitive.
We all pile into the black suburban from the garage and within ten minutes were in a much more rural area. While the guys and I were at school today, Ares arranged appointments to seesome of the houses Milo had saved on his phone.
“It should be right up here.” Ollie leans his face closer to the passenger side window. Ares slows the SUV, watching the mailboxes for the right address. “Right there,” Ollie says as he points, his voice a little high with excitement.
“You were right about the privacy. I can’t see any of the houses from the road.” Dante leans forward from behind me. Thankfully, the car ride has given me time to settle so I don’t feel bombarded with his powers. I think being around Ares and Ollie helped too.
Ares slows the car, preparing for the turn. “Are you sure this is it? I don’t even see a for sale sign.”
“The address is right.” Milo holds up his phone with the house pulled up, showing the same address.
“Just head up the drive, the agent should already be here.” Ollie’s head is turning from left to right, checking out our surroundings. The lane isn’tverywide, just enough for one car, and both sides re lined with trees thick enoughso you can’t see through them.
“Geez, this is secluded. I can’t even see any other houses,” Milo mutters.
“Whoa, it’sprettyrustic,” Ollie says when the trees recede enough to see a brown house up a head.
I lean forward to get a better look. It doesn’t look rustic to me. It’s not new or fancy, but it looks like a really nicely maintained house. It’s set into the side of a hill with two garage doors under the house and around the side. There’s a wide set of stairs leading up to a front porch that spans the entire house.Three small gables lined up above. As we get closer, I noticesome of the brown paint is chipping and the porch definitely needs to be re-stained.
“There she is.” Ollie points to a white car parked near the garage where a woman is closing the driver’s side door. She lifts her hand in a wave then uses it to block out the sun, a smile already on her lips.
“You found it okay,” the woman announces the second Ollie pops out the door. Her smile falters, but she recovers quickly. “Are your parents here?” Her voice is a little tight. She thinks she’s wasting her time with us.
“It’s just us,” Ollie tells her not looking in her direction. She squints her eyes trying to see into the car.
