Page 82 of Of Monsters and Mazes

I hung back as Butterfly soothed Alessi and Rai while they were both being tortured by the noise of the Red Sector. Ordinarily, unless Jericho selected a serial killer from the human world as tribute—which he’d done once or thrice—this stretch wasn’t a problem in and of itself. Humans didn’t seem to kill with the same frequency and cultural normality that devils or angels did, and it was a nonissue to walk through a hallway haunted by its victims.

No, the real reason this was typically the most brutal and deadly Sector in the Labyrinth was because this was the point where Jericho unleashed his dog for a hunt. It didn’t matter if the tribute had braved and conquered every section without a hitch. This was the end of the line. Rai never, ever failed to catch his prey.

I couldn’t say if it was the noise ringing through his head that sent him into such a violent frenzy, or if it was simply the thrill and adrenaline pulsing through his veins from watching the men and women struggle through his challenges, but not one tribute had ever won the game, because not one had ever made it past his charge.

But this time, the monster of the maze was on the tribute’s side. Which was completely unheard of, quite frankly. I was still wrapping my head around the fact that all of us were, in one way or another, bonded to Butterfly. For Alessi to encroach on something of mine was expected. But Rai?

I would question whether he was genuinely helping her, but there was nothing fake in the way he looked at her. I don’t know what that woman did to win his whole heart, but she had it in her hand, whether she knew it or not.

Why did watching them interact make my chest constrict?

Was this going to be a problem?

It wasn’t just his shift in loyalty that was throwing me here. If Rai was on her side, to the point he removed her tracking marks to hide her from Jericho, what did that say about me? Was I the only one who wouldn’t betray him?

Or was I the only one who didn’t have a choice?

I followed them through the corridors, paying little mind to the bloodied walls. The Red Sector was more of a village than a true maze. Though the homes were conveniently spaced and arranged to mimic the feel of winding corridors, there were abundant short cuts and open rooms if one was feeling claustrophobic.

Butterfly surveyed the area with saucer eyes, before she addressed the three of us. “Do you think any of these homes would have a shower? Maybe a change of clothes?” She asked with hope in every word.

Rai shook a hand through his hair, while his expression was in a permanent wince from the noise of it all. His eyes fell on the vest that he’d given her.

Don’t even get me started on how much that was throwing me. Her skirt was barely visible under his oversized clothing, and the fact that he’d dressed her in his leather felt irritatingly possessive. Not to mention the fact that I’d accidentally caught a glimpse of her very missing underwear.

What did she do to win his heart, indeed.

“There’s a very strong chance.” Alessi motioned to a nearby home with a tip of his chin. “You may have to try a few places before something fits, but you can definitely take a shower. I’d insist on it even.”

“Do I smell that bad?”

“Bad? No.” Alessi ruffled her hair with a smirk. “Just overwhelmingly of walnuts and pine.”

Her whole body turned red. Rai’s did too. She smoothed out her skirt like a nervous tick, and that reaction from both of them cleared up any possible confusion. Not that I had any.

I moistened my lips that had gone completely dry with a slow swipe of my tongue. I couldn’t make heads or tails of this reality. One where Alessi fucked a tribute wasn’t actually all that rare. But… Rai?

Had Rai ever been with anyone other than Jericho? I was fairly certain the only thing he’d ever shoved in a vagina was his right horn.

And he touched Butterfly.

That blood bond must have been powerful on a damn near legendary level.

What a pain. This meant the onus of following orders was now entirely and only on me.

I recalled the feel of Jericho’s fingers digging into my chest, and his fingernails scraping along my sternum, and a shiver ran up my spine.

“I’ll help you find something.” I heard the words leave my lips before I could rationalize and sort out a better plan. I nodded towards one of the houses where the door was cracked. Butterfly met my gaze with a vibrant smile, and I wished she wouldn’t look at me like that. “You’re safer with me than these two perverts anyway.” I side-eyed both of them, eliciting a laugh from Alessi and a scoff from Rai.

“Thank you.” She was always so polite when she wasn’t being a sarcastic fireball. I liked both of those sides of her.

She followed me into the house, while the others kept watch. In the backroom, there was a chest of drawers. She ran straight to it and started digging for clothing. Her whole face lit up with the kind of over the top joy that I’d only seen from Alessi when he looked at catnip. She came up with a blue sundress with pink flowers and simple black undergarments that seemed to be sized just right. She held them both in front of her, and looked to me like she was waiting for my approval.

“What do you think? There are a couple other colors in there too if you don’t like it.” Like there was a color in this world that wouldn’t look good on her. Ridiculous.

“If you’re trying to give Jericho a heart attack, that’s the one.” I forced a chuckle in an attempt to play that off as way less real than the words had felt. But my heartbeat had been completely off kilter since I met her, and considering how tightly Jericho and I’s souls were linked, there was no reason to think he’d see her any differently. Maybe she’d kill us both.

She hugged the dress to her chest with unreasonable levels of joy, then she looked to the bathroom, and her brilliant blue eyes legitimately sparkled at the sight of a shower.