Chapter Fifteen
I sat at the dining table in Michael's house, a mug of tea in one hand and the other reaching for a pot brownie that had my name all over it. I took several nervous bites, glancing out into the living room where Michael was going over the ancient texts again, reinvigorated by the attack in the city.
He looked so much different at home than he did out in public. Out in public, he was the snooty stuck up archangel with fluffy blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, decked out like a businessman out for blood. At home, his fluffy hair was swept back from his face with a ponytail holder, a pair of thick black plastic glasses sitting on his nose, and he'd opted for a pair of fleece pajama pants and a loose fitting tank top as he fiddled with a pen between his fingers, making notes in a notebook on the night stand beside him.
Rowan had volunteered to assist him, sitting across from him on the other sofa. Rowan had also gone casual Friday on me as well, having changed into black lounge pants and a black Hanes shirt. He was currently reading a tome on ancient symbolism and clearly not enjoying it as he reached up to rub at his eyes every so often.
Simon came in from the kitchen, holding a plate of brownies and a mug of coffee. He offered the mug and a brownie to Rowan, who took it without looking up. He made the offer to Michael, who just gave him a dry stare, as if to ask if the incubus was serious about feeding him marijuana. Simon shrugged, then parked it in a fluffy armchair to eat what was left of the brownies.
My eyes drifted back to the kitchen where Xiphrus was cleaning up Simon's mess with Alaric. Alaric was laughing at something Xiphrus said as he threw away some garbage, and Xiphrus smiled down at him, like he was amazed at how fucking perfect Alaric was. I stared him intently, waiting to see if maybe Alaric would get creeped out by the guy, or if Xiphrus licked his chops. Didn't happen. Alaric yawned a little, gave Xiphrus a good night, or rather, good afternoon, and came over to me in the dining room.
"How you feeling, baby?" He asked me softly, putting his arm around me. I grunted as a response, because I wasn't going to lie and tell him I was just fucking peachy, but I also didn't want to bitch. So a grunt was all I had in me. Alaric sighed, leaning over to kiss the top of my head.
"Alright. Well, I'm gonna head upstairs and shower. Are you good down here?" He asked. I glanced over at Xiphrus, who was tying up the garbage to take it out. In the living room, Michael and Rowan were studying and Simon was bobbing his head to something blaring from his headphones. I looked back at Alaric, giving him a little nod. He smiled, brushing the hair back from my face. I reached up to capture his hand in mine. I could still feel tiny tremors coursing through me, and Alaric seemed to notice too, because he looked sad, and I bit back the guilt that surged in me. Instead, I forced a smile, then turned and kissed the inside of his palm, laying his hand on the side of my face.
"I'm fine, baby. Just gonna hang around down here for a little while longer, then join you upstairs, yeah?" I asked. He nodded reluctantly, gave me another kiss... and another and another before he finally pulled himself away to go upstairs. I listened to the stairs creak once, the sound of the guest room door shutting overhead, and the sound of a shower turning on. I sighed and looked back down at my cup of untouched tea, then decided to eat the rest of my brownie.
I watched as Xiphrus crossed through the dining room and to the front door so he could go outside to the trash disposal. I watched the door shut, and then turned all the way back around so I could watch him out the window. No big deal, he went to the trash tube, pulled the lid off and dropped the bag into the thing, then covered it and came back into the house. He went to Michael, who yawned and rubbed at his eyes before he squinted at the book, like he was physically having difficulties reading it. Xiphrus leaned over him and murmured something, probably along the lines of go the fuck to sleep.
Michael yawned again, nodding. He slid from the sofa, marking his spot in the book. He touched Xiphrus's chest, said something in a whisper, and rose on his tiptoes to kiss Xiphrus on the cheek. Xiphrus closed in his eyes in bliss, reaching his arms around Michael. The guy practically engulfed him in a hug and kissed the archangel back before Michael went upstairs to sleep.
"You're welcome to sleep in our guest room in the basement," Xiphrus said to Simon, who looked up with an arched brow, "We have a bed and a sofa down there as well as a television, in case you wish to rest somewhere more private." Simon nodded and rose to his feet, then looked over at Rowan.
"You comin'?" He asked. Rowan looked up, blinked a couple times, then shook his head and went back to reading. Simon shrugged, then gave Xiphrus a clap on the shoulder as thanks before he went around the other side of the house to go to the basement. I kept my eyes locked on Xiphrus, who stared across the living room at Rowan, who refused to look up.
Shit, Rowan's cold shoulder game was strong as fuck. He didn't appear to give a shit that Xiphrus wanted to talk, maybe get to know him some more. I almost felt sorry for Xiphrus. Because I was also on Rowan's no touchy-feely game. Not that I wanted to touch the guy anymore than I already did. Uhm, ew? But it was more like an emotional thing. I wanted to connect with him, but clearly Rowan didn't.
And honestly, I was starting to understand why.
Why get to know someone when you didn't plan to stay in their lives for an extended period of time?
Something told me that the moment this whole thing was over, Rowan was gonna get lost in the wind and we'd never find him again. It was incredibly disappointing. But then, I was used to family taking off on me, so I guess it was time to suck it up and get over it... Not that that made it any less painful.
When Xiphrus seemed convinced Rowan was not interested him, he turned his attention on me and I immediately looked down into my mug of tea. Sadly, I wasn't as good as Rowan at the whole ignoring my entire family thing. I could see Xiphrus moving out the corner of my eye, hear his heavy footfalls on the honey wood flooring as he made his way into the dining room. I heard the chair across from me scrape on the floor.
My eyes flashed and locked on him as he took a seat across from me. I glanced out the corner of my eye where Rowan was sitting quietly with the book balanced on his lap while he sipped at his coffee. He seemed entirely disinterested, but I noticed his finger tap the top of the book three times quick, then three times slow. It was deliberate, almost like he was saying he had my back if anything went wrong.
I looked back at Xiphrus to see him staring at me, and I couldn't stand the intensity of his stare, so I just looked down at the table.
"What the fuck do you want?" I asked. I hadn't actually meant to say it that sharply, but I guess it was a conditioned response. So I sat in silence, waiting for Xiphrus to respond. He swallowed a couple times, like he was trying to find his voice.
"How are you feeling?" He asked at last. I wanted to laugh at that. How was I feeling? Oh yeah, I was feeling just fucking fantastic. Almost lost my husband today, found my long lost brother, discovered a prophecy that requires the destruction of my relationship, the bad guy has an even badder twin, oh yeah, and now not even my pot brownie was kicking in to keep me from having nightmares all night.
"Peachy," I deadpanned. Xiphrus sighed, reaching up to pinch the bridge of his nose before lowering his head.
"Stanton. We haven't exactly spoken alone since... since the hospital, and I would like to address that now, if I may."
"You may not," I bit off, tightening my grip on my mug, "We know what happened. For the billionth time since I can remember, you tried to kill me. And for the record, before you think that that attack ruined what chance at a relationship we had, don't worry. There was never a chance of me forgiving you." Xiphrus grimaced.
"Stanton, I'm so--"
"I swear to fucking god if you apologize, I'm going to throw this mug at your face."
"I don't know what happened," Xiphrus said instead, and I rolled my eyes, but Xiphrus smacked his hand on the table and I stiffened as he glared at me, "I'm serious. This time, as any other time in the past, I do not know why I attacked you. It's the beast, that much I can tell you. The beast inside me becomes restless whenever I'm around you. Even now, it's tense." I did not like the sound of that. The idea of seeing that thing again... I wasn't sure I'd be able to deal with it anymore. I felt like I was going insane already. One more and I was going to snap. I could feel it. My nerves were frayed.
"Of course it doesn't like me," I answered dryly, making him frown, "It doesn't like anyone."
"That's not true," Xiphrus said, making me raise an eyebrow, "It... It likes Michael."
"Huh. It seemed to favor Atlan too. Or wait, that was you wasn't it? Oh, that's right; you're both the same damn thing."
"Stanton, I want you to stop thinking with your heart right now. I understand you're angry, believe me. I am not asking for your forgiveness, or for us to hold hands and pretend like nothing bad every happened. I have come to accept that our relationship is over and it will never become what it was. However, what I am saying to you right now is a clear and logical statement, not something spoken to you through my heart." I narrowed my eyes, annoyed at his rationale. I still wanted to be angry with him, but I sighed and decided, sure, why not, I'll give it a shot.
"What do you mean?" I asked at last, unable to contain the exasperation in my tone.
"The beast did like Atlan. I will admit that, as did I. But it likes Michael more. It... It has never attacked him. It fights to protect him, and it fights alongside him. They've worked together before."
Now that I was finding hard to believe. Michael, who was all Mister Perfect, everything has to be good and just, fighting alongside a total abomination? How in the hell did the beast even tolerate him? Atlan made sense. Atlan was cold and brutal and sadistic, just like the beast. And while Michael was a humongous pain in the ass, he was also very morally driven. He believed in innocent, in beauty, and love and peace, and all that holy mumbo-jumbo. Not to mention, Michael didn't attack out of bloodthirst. He attacked to protect and serve. He was dainty and fragile in comparison to Atlan. And now he was telling me the beast liked him? Enough to fight with him?
"And the beast did like you, Stanton," Xiphrus murmured, and I frowned immediately at that, "Back in the beginning, my beast adored you too. It was why you'd never seen him. My beast knew you would be afraid, so he kept a low profile. He came out only when you were in danger, and because he and I worked to protect you so much, he had no reason to come out. It wasn't until that day... when I came to you, the beast lashed out. He was angry and I don't know why, Stanton, I honestly don't, and that's how I know we are two separate beings, despite sharing a soul. I don't know why my beast attacked you, but he sees you as a threat now, as a danger."
I tried to see this rationally. Tried to take a deep breath and count to ten. Tried to focus on some kind of effect from the pot. I even tried to repeat his words in my head again to calm myself down and see it from a logical standpoint...
But how the fuck could I do that? How the fuck could I see his flawed logic? Of course the fucking beast didn't like me. The beast adored whoever it was that stole Xiphrus's heart the most. It loved Atlan and now it loves Michael. Anyone who was not the person Xiphrus loved. And that meant Xiphrus clearly didn't give a shit about me, like he kept saying he did.
And what was this bullshit about calling the beast a he? Like it was a fucking person and not some demonic fucked up curse without a heart? The beast was not a he. It was not a regular creature. It was a fucking monstrosity, a parasite that fed on the soul of its host. It didn't have feelings. Fuck, I don't think it even actually loved Atlan or Michael. I think it just loved the goddamn sex it got out of the deal.
Because that's what the beast was. It was the primitive part of a creature. It was all about the pleasure. Sex was pleasure. Violence was pleasure. Torture was pleasant. Hell, if it liked mining for nose gold, I had no doubt that fucking thing would end up with a destroyed nasal cavity.
As for why Xiphrus thinks his beast attacked me? It was simple. His beast saw me as a threat to his pleasure. I was an obstacle. Like a construction cone in front of a semi truck. Of course, instead of swerving out of the way like someone with a conscience, the beast would just bulldoze anyone in the way. And right now, I was in the beast's way.
I always was. I was in the way of pleasing Atlan. I was in the way of the murder rampages. I was in the way of Atlan's world domination. I was in the way of sex with Michael. I was in the way of a peaceful and sexual life. And Xiphrus fucking knew that. He just didn't want to see like the asshole father he was.
"Whatever," I said at last, making Xiphrus sigh heavy, sitting back in his seat, like he was fed up with trying to talk to me, "Speculate all you want, but I already know what this is about. We're leaving in the morning. And we're taking the books with us. Then you can go back to your hunky dory life with fucking your angel." I stood up at the same time Xiphrus sat up straighter, like there was something in him that had snapped him upright. Those pale blue eyes flashed red. I blinked rapidly, wondering if I was seeing things again.
Had to be.
There was no way the beast would come out now. It only came out during battle... right?
Xiphrus looked up at me, and this time, when his eyes went red, they stayed red. I blinked hard. Once. Twice.
Oh shit.
"Rowan," I managed, dropping my mug on the floor. It smashed to pieces, the tea splattering out across the floor as Xiphrus slowly rose to his feet. He hissed at me, baring those long fangs. Out the corner of my eye, I saw Rowan drop the book in his hands and shove his coffee aside, shooting to his feet at the same time someone called from upstairs.
Xiphrus started toward me from around the table, breathing out a long hiss, flashing his fangs again. Rowan stood on the periphery, like he was waiting for his chance to jump in and do something. I backed up until I was up against the wall by the front door and Xiphrus was already on me. My breathing went from ragged to gasping, my heart hammering hard against my chest, so much that it hurt. I felt a tingling sensation starting in the tips of my right fingers, spreading up my arm and into my chest, my knees weak.
And fucking Rowan just stood there, staring.
"What the hell are you doing?" I managed.
"Stop talking," Rowan commanded, and I wanted to look at him like he was nuts, but I was not going to take my eyes away from Xiphrus's. I was not going to lose those glowing red eyes, those massive elongated fangs. The beast towered over me, baring its fangs and growling low in its throat. Its nostrils flared as it inhaled deeply, getting in close to my face. My breath shortened until it felt like it was stuck in my chest, my chest going still as pain lanced through my heart, spreading up to my jaw.
I couldn't breath; fuck, I couldn't breath!
My vision was staring to get get wavy, my eyelids struggling to slam shut again the fear, but I just couldn't do it. I couldn't pass out. Not now. Not with him in my face like this. Not when he was about ready to sink those huge fangs into my throat.
"Rowan," was that my voice? It sounded so far away, so choked, "Please."
"He's not going to hurt you," Rowan spoke gently, staying out of Xiphrus's peripheral vision, so he could look directly at me over Xiphrus, "He wants to smell you. Just let him." I had no idea why the fuck he was saying that. I had no idea how he could stay so calm like that. How was he not freaking out? How was he not afraid? How was he not screaming at the top of his lungs? I sure as fuck wanted to scream, especially as Xiphrus ducked his head down and sniffed at my throat.
Oh my god, I'm going to die.
I survived too many attacks. I almost went pancake this morning. This was it. I was finally going to have my head ripped off and my innards gouged out with those claws.
Xiphrus pressed his face in against my neck, and I felt his lips there. In the next few seconds, everything moved so quickly that it was a blur. One second, Xiphrus was at my throat, I felt his lips, felt his fangs brush my skin, and the scream that ripped up my throat echoed in the house and rang in my head, and apparently was so loud that even Xiphrus took a step back, the beast startled by the sound before it bared its fangs and snarled. I heard Rowan curse, shouting from upstairs, the basement door banging open.
I spun around and grabbed for the door, but Xiphrus grabbed me and threw me back into the dining room so I landed on the table, effectively breaking it and slamming onto the floor. I gasped for air. My intention was to get up and run, but I couldn't move. My chest was killing me. I couldn't breath. My limbs were going numb.
"Stanton, oh my god!" Alaric's voice came from the living room where he was joined by Michael and Simon, both of whom pulled up short as Xiphrus swung around to snarl at them. Michael stiffened for a moment before he seemed to snap out of it and took a step forward. Alaric grabbed his arm to stop him, but Michael brushed him off and approached Xiphrus slowly.
"That's enough," Michael said angrily, making the beast frown in confusion, "That's right, you heard me. You broke my table. I loved that table." The beast hesitated, then turned to look at the ruined table, then noticed me on the floor and seemed to get pissy all over again. It snarled at me and took a few steps toward me, but Michael was across the room and grabbing Xiphrus by the arm. The beast swung around, making like he was going to hit the person who touched him, only to go still when he realized it was Michael.
"Don't blame him," Michael warned him, releasing him and stepping back, "You're the one who broke the table. You did it. Not him. You're hurting him. He's sick. Xiphrus knows that. You're scaring Xiphrus too. I know you are. He would never attack his own child like this." The beast looked warily, eyeing Michael closely before turning to look at me. It chuffed a few times, shaking its head like it wasn't sure what was happening. It growled and turned back to Michael, baring its fangs.
"I don't care what you have to say," Michael deadpanned, making the beast only peel its lips back further off its teeth, "Are you sneering at me?" Almost immediately, the beast pursed its lips. It still growled low in its throat.
"I want Xiphrus back now. He needs to take care of his son. Do you understand me?"
A chuff, a growl, a whine.
"Now."
A growl that faded. The fangs in his mouth began to shorten, the red in his eyes flickered. Michael stayed in front of Xiphrus, watching him intently until Xiphrus appeared to be back to his regular self.
"Stanton!" Alaric shot across the room when he thought it was safe and dropped beside me. Rowan was right on his heels, cursing and looking up.
"He's having a heart attack. We need to get him to a hospital," he said. Michael nodded and went for his phone while Simon grabbed a pillow from the living room and ran back over with it to tuck it under my head. He snatched a bottle of aspirin from his pocket, popping it open and taking a pill out, shoving it in my mouth. Alaric worked my jaw to get me to chew on it, and I cringed at the horrible orangey flavor of it as it was crushed to powder in my mouth.
Meanwhile, all I could really do aside from chew up the next pill that went into my mouth was stare up at Xiphrus, who was staring down at me, a look of absolute horror on his face. He didn't seem to be able to move for a full moment before he dropped down, pushing everyone back with the sweep of his arm.
"What're you--"
"I can heal him better than any doctor," Xiphrus told Alaric when he started to demand what he was doing. Alaric looked at him nervously, then at Michael, who nodded before he went back to talking on the phone. Xiphrus reached for me so he could do his whole hands on the chest thing, but my panic flared up. I shoved everyone away from me and scrambled backwards until I was in the corner of the dining room, gasping hard for air.
"Don't touch me! Get away from me! Fuck! Just stop touching me!" I snarled, then stopped to grab at my chest as pain rocketed it up into my head and down my back. I slid to the side against the wall as Alaric ran over to me again.
"Stanton, please--"
"No! No! I don't want him anywhere near me!"
"Stanton, he's not going to--"
"Yes, he is! He always does! You're stupid! Fuck, everyone is so stupid! You saw the whole fucking thing and you're still trying to-- trying to tell me-- tell he's-- tell--"
"Shit," Rowan cursed and ran over to grab me, pulling me down on the floor and onto my side just as a wave of nausea struck me and I moaned. I curled up tight, grabbing at my chest as I tried to get air into my lungs, as I tried to get up in order to get away, but I couldn't move anything now. I was stuck in this trembling fetal position, cold sweat soaking the back of my shirt and running down my face. Alaric knelt beside me, stroking the hair back from my face and whispering things I couldn't hear anymore.
All I could hear was the blood rushing in my ears, a sort of ringing in the distance.
I watched Alaric petting me while Rowan rubbed at my back, like he was trying to get my lungs going. Simon was running for a garbage bin, and thank god he did, because the moment he arrived with it, I vomited. Meanwhile, Michael had disappeared into the living room with the phone, clearly not wanting to be around for the destruction of his lovely dining room and Xiphrus just sat there, watching me.
I stared back at him, unable to move as I struggled to catch my breath between tremors of pain wracking my body. Our eyes held and I wasn't sure what was going on between us. It was like looking at each other over a huge tidal wave. Like I was being sucked under, and he knew it was happening and he knew he couldn't do anything, but watch and he hated it. And fuck me, there was this deep buried instinct to reach for him. Gods, I hated that urge. Hated that I couldn't look away from him because right now, I didn't want to be coddled. I just wanted someone to be there.
And he just stared at me, even when there was a knock on the door and Michael ran to get it. I felt a powerful energy fill the room and Michael came into the dining room with Hades right behind him. Hades didn't bother with snarky greetings, take a moment to make an inappropriate joke. He walked in, decked out like the only damn color in his wardrobe was black, his hair coiled up out of his face, like he came prepared to do surgery.
The crowd around me parted like the Red Sea as Hades made his way over to me and got down beside me. Overhead, people were talking, but all I could do was see their mouths moving. Hades said something to them, then looked down at me. He flashed a light in my eyes and I blinked it away, glancing over to see Xiphrus was still watching intently, his hands tightened into fists on his knees as Michael stood beside him, his hands on Xiphrus's shoulders. He was working those massive shoulders in an attempt to calm his lover, meanwhile Xiphrus looked like he was going to start chewing on his fingernails.
Alaric went to his side after a moment, saying something to Michael, who responded. Alaric teared up and covered his mouth as Hades got settled in beside me and got to work doing his fucking doctor thing that involved poking me, shocking me, and eventually things faded out completely.
I was blanketed in a warm darkness. It felt like I was cocooned in thick blankets. It was so warm, so comforting. I never wanted to leave. I just wanted to stay warm and safe in the darkness. Of course, it didn't last, much to my displeasure. Instead, I found myself waking up sometime later in the guest room upstairs with an oxygen mask on my face, a machine beside me hissing and pumping.
My chest kind of ached, so I lifted a heavy hand to touch my chest, only to feel something ridged there. Blinking in confusion, I ran my fingers up and down a long puckered bit of skin, like a line... a scar. A surgery scar. I drifted my hand back and forth over the space over my heart, delicately stroking the scar. It was mostly healed, but not completely. No doubt it would end up permanent.
I dropped my hand to the bed, staring up at the ceiling.
Shit.
That's all I could really apply right now. Just... shit.
I blinked a few times, then looked around the room. There was a pile of blankets in one of the chairs, meaning someone had slept there last night, probably Alaric. The bathroom door was open, but no one was inside. The sound of people moving around downstairs... footfalls, some heavy, some lighter. Voices muffled by the walls and floor. It smelled like breakfast was being made downstairs. It smelled good. Was that bacon?
I reached up with a shaking hand to pull the oxygen mask off my face. I set it aside and slowly pulled myself up into a sitting position. My body ached in protest, but I ignored it as I swung my legs over the side of the bed and slowly rose to my feet. My legs wobbled and I caught the nightstand for balance before I took a deep breath and started forward.
Damn, now I knew what it felt like to be ancient in terms of feeling. I could only move at a shuffle, and my body felt like it just wanted to curl up and die. I managed to make it to the door, stepping out of the room and wobbling over to the stairs. I could hear the voices more clearly now.
"... something about shapeshifters, but it's difficult to translate," came Rowan's voice from the dining room."
"It's understandable," came Xiphrus's voice next, "It's been a very long time since we've dabbled in the old language. I've contacted Joxeia to come and assist us. He'll be here in the afternoon."
"Oh joy," and what would a party be without Hades there to stir things up, "Just what I want after surgery."
"You're not the one who actually had surgery," Alaric said in frustration, "Are you sure I can't go up there and check on him again? What if he's awake? What if he's hungry?"
"Too bad," Hades responded, "There's no way he should be up and about anyway. Immortal or not, open heart surgery isn't something you can just get up and run away from." There were murmurs of agreement and I was more than happy to prove to Hades I was just fine. I hobbled down the stairs, taking one at a time, but avoiding that particular step that creaked. It was like an old-fashioned security system to alert them who was using the stairs, and considering everyone seemed to be in the kitchen, they'd deduce it was me and stop me before getting to them.
I made it to the main floor, but fuck, I was exhausted. I wanted to sit down on the sofa and curl up and sleep, but there really wasn't time for that. Instead, I went over to where Rowan had left his pile of books. One was laying open to a passage about shape shifting in early creatures. I managed to plop down and the moment I picked up that book, I'd alerted the household to my presence.
"Oh my god, Stanton!"
"What the hell."
"I have not had a patient who's annoyed me this fucking much since Theo had Recharge."
"If you get blood on my couch, you're going to need a lot more than open heart surgery to stay alive."
"Yo, Stanton! Want a brownie?"
I ignored everyone hollering at me, their chairs scraping on the floor as they all got to their feet to come and harass me. I turned the page in the book, scanning over the scribbles indicating shape shifting abilities and those who had exhibited them. Of course, it wasn't exactly written like that because everything had to be so goddamn simplistic it was confusing back in the day. I scanned over words meaning shape shifting, and the names of certain creatures. Of course, they weren't the official names. We were mentioned in titles. Destruction, Creation, Wisdom, Death, Night, etc. And it got confusing because you weren't sure they were talking about the creature of night or death, or if they were talking about the actual act of it. Basically, it was like trying to decipher a five-year-old's plans for world domination.
Impossible. Confusing. And the scribbles looked like they were done in fucking crayon.
"Stanton," Alaric was beside me, and I barely spared him a glance as I looked back down at the book, "What are you doing? You should be upstairs. How did you even get out of bed?"
"Like I always do. One foot at a time, lots of groaning and cursing."
"Baby, you need to get back to bed," Alaric said gently, leaning down to put his hand over the book so I was forced to look up at him, his hazel eyes pleading with concern. Those eyes were red-rimmed, like he'd been crying, puffy even, and there were dark circles under his eyes like he hadn't slept, and he was paler than usual. I frowned immediately at that.
"Are you alright? Shouldn't you be in bed?" I asked. Alaric offered me a smile, and opened his mouth to respond, but Hades did it for him.
"Actually, you both should be in fucking bed. And I don't mean doing fun extracurricular activities either. Like, sleeping, because you know, sleeping a necessary part of our basic health. But you know, what the fuck do I know, it's not like I'm a doctor or anything," Hades drawled, then bit into a scone and paused to lick his lips and look at it like it was the best damn thing he'd seen all week. Rowan shook his head at him while Simon smirked and Michael rolled his eyes before looking over at us with a frown. Meanwhile, Xiphrus was silent, just staring across the living room, directly at me. I looked back at him for a moment, then shook my head and looked back down at the book.
"We need to figure this out before it's too late. That Viviana imposter is gunning for us hardcore now. We don't have time to sit around and relax."
"Right," Alaric said slowly, however, he still left his hand over the book so I couldn't read the symbols beneath, "But, we can't fight her if we're basically dead ourselves, alright? Come on, we can go upstairs and I'll even go to sleep with you." I ground my teeth together. I didn't want to lay down... Well, I mean, I did, but I also didn't because I knew the task at hand was important. But one look behind Alaric at the people in the dining room and I knew if I didn't comply quietly with Alaric, the rest of those idiots were going to come in here and drag me upstairs.
Frustrated, I shoved the book aside and went to get up in a huff, but holy shit, talk about being on a tilt-a-whirl. My vision spun and I put my arm out to grab onto something. Thankfully Alaric was right there to grab me and hold me upstairs. I could hear people moving from the dining room to the living now, Hades leading the way.
"What's wrong?" Hades demanded, getting in my face. I blinked a few times, grimacing.
"Aside from feeling like I just spent six hours at a carnival, I'm looking at your face."
"Oh, haha, so funny. Sit down. Someone grab my bag from upstairs and some water from the kitchen. Oh, and crackers." I slowly sat down on the sofa, Alaric getting beside me and rubbing my back, holding onto my arm to keep from me toppling over. Hades got down in front of me and grabbed my face, making me grimace. I started to pull my face back, but the Greek was having none of that as he tightened his grip on my face and pulled me closer so he could examine me.
Meanwhile, Rowan was coming down the stairs with Hades's bag and Michael was coming in from the kitchen with a glass of water. Meanwhile, everyone else was just watching intently as Hades fished some tools out of his bag.
"You," Hades said, looking at Rowan, "Was the whole medical thing bullshit or truth?"
"Truth."
"Great, then you can pop a squat and get to work," Hades informed. Rowan nodded and sat on my other side, listening to Hades's instructions as they prepared to do a whole bunch of fun poking and proddings, plus some other tests I didn't give a shit about. Meanwhile, I was eyeing the book on the floor, trying to read the symbols from my position on the sofa. Not that it was easy, given that I was still feeling dizzy and lightheaded.
The tests felt like they went by in a blur. I couldn't remember Hades pressing a stethoscope to my chest, or Rowan taking my blood pressure, or what I got hit with. Just that I felt numb and cold at the same time. I also had gone from the sofa to the bed upstairs again, not sure who carried me and wishing whoever it had had just left me downstairs.
Now I was stuck in bed again, but at least this time, they left Alaric snuggled up against me. He stroked my chest gently with one hand, his eyes closed as he rested his head beside me. He was careful not to put any weight on me. It was so quiet, so peaceful. And yet...
"Alaric?" I asked, my voice hoarse.
"Yeah, baby?"
"He wasn't going to bite me... was he?"
"Xiphrus?"
I didn't answer. I just stared up at the ceiling. In my head, playing over and over again, was that image of Xiphrus's blazing red eyes and his elongated fangs getting in close before he dipping his face down against my neck. I could hear him sniffing, but his hot breath blasting my skin, his fangs scraping my throat, it set me off before I could even stop to realize what was going on.
He was sniffing me. Like he was trying to find something. And now that I thought about it, he'd done the same thing back at Viviana's place. Sniffing, chuffing, growling. He wasn't attacking me right off the bed. But everything had gone dark before I could figure out what was going on last time, and the same thing happened this time... And Rowan saw something too. He saw something going on. He was waiting on purpose, not because he wanted me to get torn apart, but because he sensed the beast was looking for something too.
What would the beast be looking for?
"I don't know," Alaric said at last, making me blink and look at him, "I don't know if he was going to bite you or not, and that's what's scaring me." He leaned in up and kissed me on the cheek. I let his words sink in. So even Alaric wasn't so sure anymore. In that case... was Xiphrus trying to bite me or did his beast pick up on something that we couldn't?
"Hey," I said at last, turning to look at him, "Can you get Xiphrus in here?" Alaric frowned, propping himself up to look down at me.
"Baby, now isn't the time for you to be fussing about with that. You need rest."
"It's important, though. Aren't you the one who's always talking about me trying to make up with family?"
"Yeah, but now I'm not so sure," Alaric murmured, making me frown curiously, and he sighed, reaching out to brush the hair back from my face, "Stanton, look. I... Maybe I made a mistake. Maybe you were right. Xiphrus seriously tried to hurt you, not just once, not even twice. I'm not sure how much more of this I can take." Now I was totally lost. That didn't make any sense. Once Alaric set his mind to something, he didn't just change his mind and he sure as hell never said the words maybe you're right. Alaric was always right in our relationship, even when he was wrong.
Maybe he was just really that scared?
But he'd never turn on Xiphrus in the process.
"I want to talk to Xiphrus," I said at last. Alaric pursed his lips for a moment, his hand stilling on my head. He was still for a moment, so unbelievably still, before a smile slowly spread across his lips and it was not the smile I was used to it. It was a coy taunting smile that I recognized instantly, and my eyes widened, my mouth opening to shout, but he clamped his hand over my mouth tightly, forcing my voice back down my throat. I reached up to grab at his arm, but he wasn't budging an inch.
"Damn," 'Alaric' purred, reaching up with his free hand to trace his finger down the front of my chest, "And here I thought I was getting away with it. I probably should've watched your lover longer than I did." I cringed, reaching up a hand to shove him back, but he batted my hand away without any effort at all. My body was still weak. I couldn't fight him back.
And fuck, there was nothing creepier than this person wearing my husband's face to torture me.
Wait. No, there was something creepier.
If this person wasn't Alaric, then where the hell was Alaric?
"Oh, don't worry," 'Alaric' murmured, stroking his thumb on my cheek as he kept his hand clamped over my mouth, "Your sweetheart is okay. For now. I'll happily release him once I'm done with you." I looked at him in confusion, and he laughed.
"What? Did you misinterpret the event? Separate Death from Life. Did you think your husband was your life? Perhaps he is. However, why would I risk killing him and incurring your wrath when it's so much easier to just kill you? Or rather, it was supposed to be," he paused to close his eyes in frustration, his smile twitching before he looked down at me, "Do you have any idea how annoying it is when you plan something wonderful and it doesn't work out? Twice. Twice I provoked that beast to rip your head off, and every time, it stops right when your lifeforce is about to break. And twice I stood around, waiting for you to kick the bucket, but not once did you waver."
Shit. So the last two times Xiphrus attacked me... the beast attacked me... It was provoked by something else.
"So," 'Alaric' continued, "I had to actually come out of the woodwork and do it myself. I suppose what they say is true. If you want something done right, do it yourself. And unlike Viviana, who doesn't want you to perish from this earth, I will not hesitate, so say your last prayers, Death, for I am finished waiting for you to pass from this world at the hands of another." My eyes widened as he shifted his hand over my mouth and nose, squeezing tight. I squirmed, feeling a rush of adrenaline as I fought to get this fucker off me.
'Alaric' cursed, struggling to pin me down, getting on top of me at this point and covering my face with both hands.
"Come now, cease this," he chided, narrowing his eyes on me, "Do you truly wish to live another moment in a universe thus? Your husband wants you to forgive your murderous treacherous father. Your friends die faster than Shakira's career. Your brother wants nothing to do with you. Your job is to care for the dead. The depression is affecting your heart more than your panic attacks. You wake up every morning in misery. Why do you care to go on? What are you fighting for? Nothing. And no one. Because no one wants you." I squeezed my eyes shut, shoving harder at the creature on top of me. But it was no use, it wasn't going to get him off me. So I did the next best thing.
I flung my arm out and knocked the lamp off the nightstand so it crashed to the floor. 'Alaric' snapped head to stare at it, then turned to look at me. The sound of footsteps thumping up the stairs came after.
"Clever," 'Alaric' murmured with a smile, "But there is more than one way to kill Death, I assure you. I can be very, very creative. And I must say... I get off on watching you struggle. It's like watching a fly struggle in a spider's web. The fly thinks he has a chance, and oh how he struggles, and meanwhile the spider watches from a distance. She'll watch her prey writhe and scream before she slowly makes her way down the web, closer and closer." I cringed as he leaned down in my face, baring a pair of long sleek fangs with a very slight inward curve to them.
"And then, it's feeding time," he whispered, then vanished the instant the bedroom door opened.
Xiphrus came in with Hades right on his tail, and everyone else behind him. And with the threat out of the room, my body decided now was a good time to go on the fritz. I choked and grabbed for my chest, realizing that the scar there was no longer a scar... but a fucking hole where that Alaric imposter had dragged his finger. Pain exploded through my system and I threw my head back as Hades ran over with Rowan in tow, both of them scrambling with the supplies they had on hand to deal with a fucking hole in the chest.
Meanwhile, I was panicking.
Alaric.
Where was Alaric?
What had happened to him?
Alaric!