For Love of Evil - [Roman Godfrey/Hemlock Grove]

-8-

Roman and Lyra dressed in silence. The tension of those three words she had spoken weighed heavily, the embarrassment distracting from the sight of their naked bodies.

Neither of them dared look at one another in fear of their vulnerability; unable to read how the other felt, due to their own self consciousness.

Roman had taken things too far, he had become aggressive the moment he realized he could not control Lyra. He felt like an idiot once she had whispered those three words he was sure he had never heard fall from another's mouth.

Why had she said that?

She couldn't have meant it. Perhaps it was her way of overcoming the control of their dreams, making sure things played out differently in reality.

"I'm sorry." Lyra spoke softly, jumping into her jeans, zipping them up. She kept her eyes out of Roman's line of sight, feeling the small ache between her legs from what they had just done.

"Don't be." Roman reached into his pants pocket, taking out a small vial of coke.

He placed a small amount on the back of his hand, closing one nostril, inhaling deeply with the other. The fine white powder disappeared. Lyra watched as Roman sniffled, massaging his sinuses with his forefinger and thumb.

His self destructive nature sent a pang in her chest. She could feel the utter hatred of himself radiating all around him in an aura. He wasn't angry with Lyra, no, he was angry with himself.

"At least my throat is still intact." Lyra nudged Roman with her hip playfully, trying to sway his self loath.

"Maybe the dreams will stop now." Roman spoke coldly, walking out of the room.

Lyra followed behind, seeing Roman put his hand behind his back, gesturing with his fingers for Lyra to hold his hand. She clasped his hand, feeling the silver of his ring press into her flesh as their fingers intertwined.

Roman came to a halt, causing Lyra to bump into his back. He turned around, nodding toward her father's study. "What is it?" Lyra asked, her brows pulling together curiously.

"That where your dad does most of his work?" Roman asked, watching Lyra's eyes widen.

He knew that his thoughts had registered by the look on her face. "You ah, ever think about going in there... looking around for what you really are?" Roman smirked, but Lyra found his twisted smile ridiculous.

"He'll know." Lyra said.

"So?" Roman entered Ares' study, scoping around nonchalantly with a cocky stride. He sat on the desk, ignoring the papers scattered along the top of the oak surface.

"Roman, get down!" Lyra growled through her teeth, grabbing Roman by his forearm, trying to pull him off the desk.

He smiled wide, exposing his teeth. "Why? He's already gonna know we've been in here." Roman stated, pulling Lyra by her arm until she smacked into his body with a thud. "I should've fucked you in here, over the desk." Roman said playfully, holding her in place.

"Get down, please, before you leave butt impressions in his paperwork." Lyra pleaded.

Roman hopped down from the desk, standing above her in defiance, not because she had asked him to, but because he wanted to.

"You should really try to figure out what you are. Maybe you could help us."

"Us?... What do you mean by that?"

"Peter... We have the same dreams. We're trying to figure out who killed Anita. Whoever did it, is gonna do it again. We have to stop it before that happens."

"The gypsy boy?" Lyra smirked, catching a glimpse of Peter through Roman's eyes.

She saw them standing in the middle of yellow police tape, staring down at the ground where Anita's body had been found. The light of the moon shined down on the pair through the trees, the feel of a cold front moving in.

"You dream about Peter too?" Roman asked. Lyra detected a hint of jealousy in his tone.

"No, why?"

"He has dreams about you. Told me to stay away from you." Roman moved her long black hair away from her neck, his hand gently grabbing a hold of her exposed throat.

"And you didn't listen?" Lyra flirted, inhaling a small laugh as she trailed her hand up his arm.

"I don't listen to anyone." They shared a smile before Roman took Lyra's hand, guiding her out of the room to the top of the staircase. Lyra dropped her hand from Roman's, following him down the stairs until reaching the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."

Lyra nodded as Roman opened the door, stepping over the threshold onto the porch.

"Hey!" Lyra said, causing Roman to turn around. "Why are you so interested in catching who did this? It's not your battle."

"Yes it is. A monster stopping another monster... it's my battle. It's our battle." Roman turned, walking toward his jaguar parked in the driveway.

Lyra kept her eyes on him, seeing the dark aura of self hatred surround him again. Roman was so confident, no one's opinion of him mattered, only his own. No one could possibly hate Roman as much as Roman hated himself.

Lyra knew what Roman's mission was, it was to prove to himself that deep down, he was a good person. But Lyra saw all the problems that lied ahead after his victory.

Roman would never prove himself worthy of anything more than the title of a monster - Roman would simply revert back to his old ways. Stopping whatever it was out there, would only make Roman realize he's no different than what he had set out to destroy. His mission would be redundant.