Here Be Dragons (Completed)

Inconvenient

They killed Hendricks and they'd been rather thorough about it, too. He lasted several days, if the continued muffled screams were any indication, and I didn't see much of Kota, Nathan, or Silas during that the time it took for him to die. I did, however, see the body when they were through and, even though I rather enjoyed a good bloody killing, the remains were such that I was glad Owen had taken me from the room and refused to allow me access again. Silas had extracted his revenge quite violently and Nathan really did have a fascination with cutting off body parts-limbs, appendages, noses, made no difference. Kota...well, let's just say I never wanted to find myself at his mercy since I was sure he possessed none. 

I was passed around over the next few days, being babysat by the guys in turns. I was first left with Sean who, true to Gabriel's worries, did try to lure me down into his clinic so he could check my throat for strep but I distracted him with the promise of apple pie, immediately putting a stop to that silly doctoring business. We went straight to the kitchen where he sat on the island and kept me company while I baked. We shared the pie between the two of us, sharing a bite or two with Luke when he found us giggling in the kitchen, before Sean took us to the rec room where he passed out in what he labeled a 'pie coma', leaving Luke and I to play video games. 

Gabriel took me for a night and he made no mention of the box of braided hair I'd found in his closet, instead choosing to act like it hadn't happened at all. I kept my mouth shut on that subject, nervous of what he'd do if I did bring it up. Gabriel seemed more on the normal side but there was a turbulence to his crystal eyes that kept me on my toes and I'd rather keep my hair attached to my scalp, thank you. Luke's episode was also a thing that wasn't mentioned, me picking up on the unspoken rule and following it to the 't'. Luke seemed completely unaware that he'd lost his marbles and that two separate personas had temporarily taken over his body and everyone seemed keen to keep it that way. From the way they all tiptoed around him, I had a feeling that the two personalities I had met were by far the nicest, least dangerous of the ones Luke possessed. There was someone lurking in those chocolate eyes that I hoped I'd never meet and the others seemed to agree as they did their best to keep Luke calm and happy.

Luke stayed the night with Gabriel and I, and we ended up having what I could only describe as a slumber party-though I'd never taken part in one before so I couldn't be certain-on Gabriel's bedroom floor as Gabriel once again painted my and Luke's nails. The three of us slept in Gabriel's bed and I was rather shocked that they both felt comfortable enough with me to sleep next to them. That was, until Gabriel handcuffed each of my wrists to one of theirs so that I couldn't run away during the night. It wasn't the most comfortable way to sleep but we managed it as we made a Sang sandwich, with Luke and Gabriel acting the part of the bread slices. Other than Gabriel warning Luke not to get handsy, neither seemed to mind the cuddles and since I was the one in the middle, surrounded by two ridiculously good looking guys, I wasn't going to complain. 

I stayed another night with Victor who, after Sang-proofing the room and locking the door securely, allowed me to sleep on his bed without the need for restraints. I fell asleep and woke alone, though his side of the bed was rumpled and used so I assumed he'd come in at some point and slept next to me, if only for a little while. Much to my surprise, Nathan let me sleep in his room and, though he joined me as we fell asleep, he was gone when I woke in the morning. He did leave a note on the pillow telling me that I snored and it had made me laugh so hard, tears had leaked out onto his leather and Cypress pillow. 

North continued to do his best to avoid me, though I did find myself in his presence once or twice, and I could tell that he was extremely irritated by my prolonged stay in his home. He was much less aggressive towards me in the moments we did interact but it didn't take a genius to see that I unnerved him. It wasn't a fear of what I could do to him since he was double my size in both height and muscle mass, but the anxiety remained none the less. I assumed that he still hated me, however, we'd shared a moment in the kitchen as we prepared a rather late brunch for the others with the help of Victor and Gabriel. I'd taught him the correct way of opening a banana without bruising the fruit-you know, the way the monkeys do it-and he'd gotten so annoyed that I was right in my method that I thought his head was going to explode. Instead, after he'd calmed down, he'd offered me a strawberry, slipping the fruit past my lips when I'd opened my mouth in challenge. I hadn't thought he would do it but he had proved me wrong, his pointer finger grazing the soft flesh of my bottom lip as the sweet berry was placed on my tongue.