Their Thief

Thirty-seven

Damaris Rana

"You've got to be kidding me," I muttered rubbing my hand down my face.

I stayed seated on the couch as I watched the man at the door try to convince Vincent he had to go to the medical bay because his mother was dying and asking for him in her final moments. He was the ninth person to appear in the last week trying to lure him away from me. Max should have given up after the third guy failed.

"My mother died four years ago." Vincent bluntly stated before slamming the door in his face.

Taking a deep breath he turned around to face me with his arms crossed and levelled me with a glare. "How long does Max plan to play this childish game?"

I sunk down and pulled the throw up to my chin. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Shaking his head, he went back to the dining table where he was working on his laptop before being interrupted. I would have volunteered to get the door, but considering how when I tried to last time I was almost tackled to the floor by him, I decided against it.

Though I had a hint of fear lingering in my mind regarding Vincent, most of it was gone by now. With each day that passed where I was stuck with him, I realized he wasn't as scary as I first thought. He was more like a cranky old grandpa who yells at kids to get off his lawn and gets hated for it while everyone is unaware that he's doing it to protect the garden his deceased wife cared for so much. Except, in this case, he's trying to protect his life and it's not because of sediments but because of fear. It's become very clear during the time I've had him practically stuck to me that he's terrified of Alec, Luca, and Jace. I'm starting to think Max is the only one who's not.

I continued to browse through the list of shows trying to find one to start. Just when I settled on one, I tensed as Vincent's phone rang.

"Yes, King Luca," he answered. "She's right here," he replied after a pause before walking over to me with the phone.

Since they left, all three had been calling at least once a day to check on me. Alec and Luca usually called once in the morning and once before I went to bed, and Jace mostly texted me and sent random memes throughout the day. My lack of reply never stopped him. Instead, it seemed to fuel him to send more.

I grabbed the phone from Vincent's outstretched hand. "Hello?"

"Hey, Love, how's your morning going?"

A shiver went down my spine at the sound of his voice. Ever since they left, I'd been feeling tensed and anxious, like I was missing or forgetting something important. The sound of their voices momentarily relaxed me until they ended the call, or well technically when I made up an excuse to hang up most of the time.

"Fine," I answered.

"Hmm," Luca answered, disappointed that I was still replying with as few words as possible. "Have you eaten, yet?"

"No, I'm waiting for Max and Lola." I could hear Vincent stop typing and release a frustrated sign before continuing.

Luca lets out a chuckle. "Don't let Max drag you into trouble, and tell him to leave Vince alone, I think that man is close to blowing a blood vessel because of him at this point."

"Hmm," I agreed, nodding my head. Max really was out to annoy Vincent. He had been since the first moment I saw them together in the same room.