Act of a Demon: The Dark Bloods - Book II ✓

Chapter 23 - Awkward is an Understatement

23.

Awkward is an Understatement

That didn’t take long, Reyna though as she looked at Mundus and Ayame. She couldn’t deny the twinge of jealousy that nipped at her even though she had just turned him down. Turned something big down.

She looked at her pocket and with her fingers brushed the flower petal tips that were peeking out from the hem. Reyna turned to Dante standing by her side and felt a degree of relief with his presence. It increased when she saw Verden tear Mundus away from Ayame.

She wondered if Dante and Verden had been out there long. It didn’t look like it which answered Reyna’s suspicion that the Aqua Oscura fountain area ran on the same time as Demon World’s. Not that Dante and Verden would have been able to enter the fountain looking for her even if they knew where to search. According to what Mundus said, only those who had their blood spilled on the area could enter if they had permission from the Dark Blood that invited them. She guessed that’s also how Lina was there, assuming the rules applied to Spirits.

Do Spirits even bleed? Reyna swore she had seen Flow bleed. Maybe.

The poke on her arm pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked at Dante, rubbing her shoulder. “What’d you do that for?” she asked.

“Verden told us to go,” he said and without waiting for her took off walking.

She eyed the half demon. His face was a familiar mask of indifference; the same one he had worn around them for their first week’s stay at his house. Reyna bit her tongue as she now realized it was aimed at his brother.

Mundus, on the other hand, wore his current emotions on his sleeve. There was anger—as always—but also a sense of confusion and yearning. The kind of yearning that drew that jealously out of her.

Stop it, she scolded herself.

The two demons were observing each other, fierce red eyes glowering into cold grey ones. Seeing the two so close to each other, Reyna could see Verden was a few inches taller than Mundus. He was slimmer too but not by much. She could also see their similarities in their almost identical hair and clenched jaws.    

Lina and Ayame stood away from them. Reyna didn’t know which one appeared more puzzled. They both looked beautiful though. If Ayame had looked like that in life too, she was rightfully called “Beauty” when they would say “death by Beauty.” Lina, though not as radiant, did hold the more vicious curves, and her long locks only seemed to enhance them. Mundus always was, and had been, surrounded by beautiful women.  

Reyna hugged herself and shook her head, willing her thoughts to stop.

“I said go, Reyna,” Verden’s voice was soft.

She glanced at him to see he hadn’t taken his sight off of Mundus, but he had. He caught her eyes and they wavered, but Reyna didn’t see with what because they darted back to Verden.

She turned and walked away and found herself running when she came in sight of the house. Verden must’ve expanded the seal if he meant to send them away while he and Mundus stayed where they were. When she came up to the front porch, she found Dante standing with his back towards her.

Reyna panted though she wasn’t out of breath from running. “Dante?” she exhaled.

He looked at her from behind his shoulder but didn’t turn around to face her.

“Dante?”

“What happened?” he asked.

Her hand shot to her pocket as if the flower would leap out of her jeans. “Mundus apparently came.”