A/N
The photo above is pretty much one of my first photoshops ever. It goes with the chapter though :)
___
11:46.
Less than fifteen minutes and I am staring blankly at the woods. It's happening. It seems impossible but it's seriously going to happen. I turn to my closet, grabbing out a black hoodie and slipping it on. I pull the hood over my face so it covers my black hair and most of my face. I slip into some black leggings, the fleece inside hopefully enough to warm me up as I run through the snow. I look at my combat boots before grabbing my tennis shoes. It's a dumb idea to grab tennis shoes when there is snow on the ground, but I will most likely need to run. I leave my phone on my bed as I inch to my door, my heart in my throat as I pull open my door, only for it to be slammed seconds later.
"Where are you going?" Zeuxis' voice makes me freeze and I look at him with wide eyes. His face is impassive, but his eyes show worry and clear anxiety. I almost choke up and tell him everything, but that's when something in my chest rips out and I find myself lying easily.
"A midnight run. Mind your own business," I snap. Zeuxis' surprise matches my own as I yank open my door and step into the hallway. I quickly jog down the stairs before turning to the front door. If I go out those I'm sure Zeuxis would stop me there. So I look at the back door. Looking at it sends goosebumps up on my arms. I hate those doors. I despise the woods, which is exactly where I am going to go. The trees look like desperate souls reaching for the clouds, and shadows practically cover everything. The shadow of a particular tree actually creeps into the house, covering part of the couch Aunt Janice has in front of the doors.
I shake my head to clear away my fear before opening the back door carefully. "Cassie, you are my business." Zeuxis appears beside me as I cautiously step out of the house. I stare at him for a moment before licking my lips and closing my eyes. I once wished Grim away, and now I can wish him away.
Go away! Go away! Go away!
I pray it works. I keep on thinking those words over and over as I think of who Zeuxis is. Anxiously I open my eyes to see him gone and in his place is the wall. Happiness and pride ripple over my chest before I remember he can appear at any second. I quickly close the door and step down the rickety steps. I walk slowly into the woods at first, but as soon as I pass the first bare tree, I am running.
My feet pound against the ground as I rush around. I almost run into trees at times, but something within me makes me move around them at an unusual speed. I jump almost like a gazelle over fallen branches and slip over broken trees as I just keep running. I wonder how much longer I can run.
My eyes glance up at the moon. My chest explodes as I see it is inches away from its highest point. When I look down again, my heart stops in my chest. Standing about one hundred feet away from me is a familiar form. My mind almost doesn't recognize him, but them my eyes connect with soft black ones and my mind completely blanks.
"Cassie!" He shouts, making a move to come for me. I whip around in seconds and launch myself ahead. I pray he won't do that disappear and reappear act he always does, and dart away from him. I run for what feels like forever, surprised at my stamina. I keep running and running. I turn to look over my shoulder to see Grim still behind me, and shockingly enough, he is actually floating, flying after me. I shriek and almost run like a cartoon character. Luckily I wore my tennis shoes because they grab the friction in the ground and propel me forward. That's when I find a rather large dead tree and my eyes light up. I glance back at Grim before turning around. I spin around and launch myself into a different direction. I crunch against the ground, hiding within a bush. Grim flies past me seconds later, trying to still chase me. I then see the old tree and dart over to it like the Flash. "Cassie!" He shouts again. His voice makes my ears practically hum in joy and my heart flutter in love.
I press my back against the tree, sighing in relief as I place my head against it softly. He seems to be going in the completely wrong direction, letting me catch my breath. My lungs sing in relief as I get a breath of the frigid air, feeding myself. I close my eyes before looking down at my franic chest. The jacket does a poor job of keeping me warm, but as my eyes lock on my hand, I freeze completely.
Sitting on my hand is a dark line. I looks like a snake wrapping itself around my hand, but it's not. It doesn't stop either. It turns a dark shade of black as I look at it. It wraps around my fingers and swirls around my palm before I notice my other hand. My hand also has the tribal design printed across it.
Abruptly, I feel a burn on my chest in a particular spot. I unzip the jacket and look down with wide eyes as soon as the realization hits me. I stare down in my chest in a daze, watching my birthmark twist and grow across me. The branches of the once dead tree swallow my whole chest in its inky trail, a branch now reaching across my breast and further. I can feel the heat from the Patch of Death as it wanders over my body. As I stare at my chest some more, I think my eyes widen even more as it suddenly goes from a soft pink to a deep black. The mark looks like an ever-growing tattoo, looking insidious. My breath catches as the stark branches reach across my throat. I feel the heart from the patch drift across my jaw before freezing inches above it. I'm almost covered in the tribal mark by the time it stops growing and my whole body heats up in warmth from the branches.
"Cassiopeia." The familiar voice makes my head snap up. I gasp as soon as my eyes connect with blue eyes so blue they look the ocean. Even in the middle of the night, they look an electric blue as I stare at them. The man in front of me looks so familiar, my mind fights to remember who he is. I was so stuck in looking at the marks growing on me, I was oblivious to the fact he showed up.
My skin itches more as I look at him, and I soon find out why when he introduces himself. "I'm Thaddeus. But you may know me by the God of Life." His hair is combed perfectly across his head, curling over one blue eye and his jaw looks sharp. I gasp as I realize he looks exactly like Grim just with different eyes and different hair. Just like Ravenna and I. That's when I finally recognize who he is.
I've seen him once but heard him twice. His voice makes chills form across my spine, especially as I remember hearing it the one time Grim was trying to scare me and he whispered to me about Grim not daring to hurt me. The other time I saw him was when I was at Grim's and accidentally summoned him in my dreamland. No wonder the guy kept telling me he created me and was so curious about me. I was talking to Grim's brother in my dreamland, the God of Life. The realization makes me want to throw up the cupcake I ate earlier.
"Nice to finally meet you," I say softly. I have no idea what to say to him, so I just get straight to the point as he nods in agreement. Seeing his perfect face looking so much like Grim just...brighter makes me uncomfortable. "Let's get this started, Grim is searching for me as we speak--" I suddenly get cut off as Grim shouts again.
"Cassie, please!" His voice carries a plea that makes my heart beg my legs to move to him. I can sense the anguish and pain in his tone making my eyes sting. Thaddeus just watches me, his blue eyes so strong and alarming I can't look up at him as I speak.
"How fast can you do this?"
"As fast as you would like," he says softly, stepping closer to me. I nod my head frantically.
"Please," I almost throw up as his hand touches me. It sends waves of pleasure through me and heats wells up in my chest. Wait--that's not heat from his hand. My gaze flicks down to see the mark practically glowing with blackness and almost pulsing as it flicks the black lines all over my body. "What is happening?" I whisper. Thaddeus surprisingly answers me. Maybe it isn't that surprising since I have to know everything in order for him to wipe my mind.
"The darkness in you doesn't like the light in me," he says, his tone hard. His words are aloof, but get the point across just fine. The Patch of Death is upset by his presence and is trying to fight him off. It's not that weird. "You know everything Cassiopeia, which gives me the ability to clean your mind perfectly. Are you sure about this?" His voice is unusually soft.
"Yes," my voice is unusually hard. "I need this to be done, otherwise you will try to kill me," I hiss. There's that badass demon slaying Cassie coming out as she sassily speaks the God of Life.
"Do not assume, Cassiopeia. I have no wishes to harm you, in fact, I would like to protect you. You are the single thing that will destroy my monstrous brother."
"Monstrous brother?" I echo. He doesn't even give me an answer to what he means by that, he just continues.
"You are the single greatest thing I've ever created with the power to end the world," his eyes light up as he speaks. "The angels somehow consider me their master, but I am nothing but a God. They look to me for orders, and I refuse to command any of them. They work on their own to protect me, and in their twisted mind, you are the single thing that can risk my existence." His words almost push me over. If it weren't for his hand still placed on my shoulder I would have surely fallen back against the tree. I go to speak, only to get shut up by another shout. This time it makes me almost call back.
It's my father.
"Cassie!" As soon as I hear my dads voice, my whole entire body tenses and I fight to scream back. My dad. Where is he?
Part of me screams to call out to him, but the other part of me bellows that it isn't real. Grim has many powers, and imitating my father is surely one of them.
Hearing my father's voice is like a kick to the nuts and I almost crumple into a paper ball in front of Thaddeus. "Cassie!" My dad's familiar voice makes my heart sing in desperation and my brain shout no over and over. I know it's not him. I know it's not. Yet...
My mouth opens and my voice shouts back. "Dad!"
As soon as I do that, Thaddeus tenses to attention and his eyes scan the horizon. I'm still stuck in a trance as I call out for my father. "Dad!" My screams become more and more frantic as I almost start running toward where I last heard him.
"Cassiopeia," Thaddeus gives me a rough shake. My head bounces back and forth, but I don't dare look at him as I look around for my dad.
"Dad!"
"Cassiopeia, listen to me. Your father is dead. That is my deceiving brother calling for you," his voice is hard. So hard it, in fact, cuts me right out of my stupid state and I find myself locking eyes with him. He stares at me before nodding gently. "It isn't real." He nods more, and when I finally nod back, his eyes turn to a steel and he suddenly whips around. My arm snaps forward with his hand still attached to my shoulder. I'm unprepared for him to suddenly start running with me behind him. His speed is inhuman and trees turn into blurs as we run past them. I'm practically flying as he swerves left and right to avoid trees. If it weren't for that fact the God of Life was holding onto me, I would seriously find myself wondering how the hell I am running as fast as a car on the freeway.
Then it all suddenly stops.
My wrist howls in pain as a hand suddenly locks with my left one and pulls fiercely. I am jerked backward, almost tripping over my feet as I turn to look at what caught me. It's Grim.
His jaw is clenched shut and his eyes are glued to me. I can see the amount of pure rage dripping off of him as he stares at me and I bristle. Despite the Patch of Death constantly squirming across me from his presence, I inch closer to Thaddeus. As soon as Grim notices this, his eyes fill with anguish.
But it doesn't change anything.
Just a second ago as he stared at me, I saw the monstrous side of him Thaddeus spoke of before. Grim's shoulders are set, his hand still firmly locked with mine. His fingers wrap around my knuckles, pressing down firmly against the back of my hand.
"Theodosius," Thaddeus says from beside me, walking forward to cover me up. Grim's hand twitches in mine and I can tell he is fighting the need to kick his brother straight in the head. "Leave her be. She is no longer in your hands."
Grim's eyes fold over and the bars suddenly come in place, keeping me from reading any emotion left in him. "My hands?" His voice is sickeningly husky, making my heart once again call out to him with open arms. Grim tilts his head left before laughing. It's fake and completely sarcastic, just to rub it in Thaddeus' face.
"She is no longer your concern," Thaddeus says, his voice unnervingly calm. Grim abruptly stops his laughter and his eyes slice over to Thaddeus' with a burning passion.
"Go shove a pipe up your ass," his odd insult almost has me cracking a smile. "She will always be my concern." Grim's tone is annoyed, his eyes practically dripping with poisonous hatred.
"Not when I am done with her," Thaddeus states proudly. I can see the confusion line Grim's brow before he suddenly gets it. His hand tightens it hold on mine as if making sure I am still with him and his mouth drops slightly. His eyes then slice over to mine, instantly penetrating me to my soul.
"Cassie?" His voice is just above a whisper. I can see the betrayal flick over his eyes and I beg my legs to start running toward him.
That was the heart talking.
Luckily my brain is still intact and running strong, keeping me in my place. The right place. Running into Grim's arms would be the wrong place. I need to stay behind Thaddeus--literally.
I don't speak, making frustration, pain, and most of all, heartbreak float across Grim's expression. His hold tightens on my hand and he is suddenly pulling me forward. I let out a yelp of surprise as I practically fall into him. His hands protectively wrap around my arms, keeping me trapped in his arms. I almost kick against him, locking my eyes shut, but when I open them to aim, I'm shocked to see we are in a different part of the woods. I look around for a short moment before breaking out of Grim's hands. I spiral into the ground, my hands suddenly reaching out to catch my fall. I let out a weak whimper as my wrist jars into the Earth, pain still radiating off of it from when Grim suddenly caught me like a fish before.
"How dare you betray us like this?" Grim stares down at me, not daring to help me up. "Betray me?" I know it's the heartbreak making him stare down at me with the amount of hatred in his gaze but I still flinch and curl up against the cold ground. "We were willing to risk everything for you, and you take it upon yourself to run into the enemy's arms like that. What the fuck, Cassie?" The amount of vexation pulsing off of him doesn't surprise me. Actually, nothing surprises me except for the sudden bristling of my spine.
"Exactly," I snarl. I bridle quickly before crossing my arms and narrowing my eyes. "That's exactly why I had to 'run into the enemy's arms'!" I shout. "Can't you see that if something were to happen to you guys I couldn't live with myself." I point at my chest, the mark now slowly calming. My hands still hold the black ink, but the heat isn't inching up my neck anymore.
Grim stares at me with wide eyes before he comes up with a comeback. "Don't you understand that if something were to happen to you, I wouldn't be able to live with myself either. And think about it, pumpkin," he hisses out my nickname, making something kick in my stomach. "I live much longer than you!"
"Exactly!" I cry again like an upset eagle. "I'm a human! You're a God! Even if I were to stay here I would die eventually! Why cause more pain in future years when you can forget about me in a hundred years anyway!" I hope my words make sense to him. I know they do when he suddenly jerks and his gaze flies down to the ground. My handprints are stuck in the muddy ground, wet from the old melted snow. When Grim doesn't respond, my anger flares and grows like wildfire. "It makes sense, right?! You'll forget about me anyway, so why not just speed it up!" I snap my fingers, taking a daring step toward him. Grim's eyes flash up to mine and almost burn through my entire existence as he stares at me.
There's so much hidden in his eyes I'm almost pushed back by the force of his emotions. "Because," his voice is unusually soft and unguarded. He takes a moment to continue, sucking in a breath. "Because I think that I love you, Cassie." His eyes meet mine in seconds. It feels like all the air in my body, the air in my lungs, the air in my blood, even the air in the cells that make me, gets sucked up and I am left as a deflated balloon. My eyes turn into flying saucers and my heart stops its erratic beating. It feels like my soul literally gets pushed out of my body for a moment before everything comes rushing back to me. Air is suddenly sneaking into me and I let out a deep gasp, almost coughing on the oxygen washing into me. "I want to spend every minute with you, can't you see? The past few days have been torture. I want you to look at me with love again. I want you to slowly piece me together until the real me peeks out again. I want your smile aimed at me, and I know that sounds cheesy and cliche--as you would say--but it's true." He takes a deep breath. "My life without you was colorless. It was gray and black. The moment you appeared in it, even in that damn church, the colors flickered. The moment you spoke to me, my life finally turned into a colorful spectrum. And goddammit, the moment you smiled at me I knew I would do everything in my power to protect you. From the start, you had me wrapped around your precious finger because from the start I loved you!"
Grim's deep admissions cause my brain to shut down. It didn't expect this. I expected lots of yelling, harsh grasps, and demeaning words. But a declaration of love from the God of Death? It seemed only my heart's fantasies.
Time decides to show it's wrath upon me, slowing the time as Grim steps toward me. It's in slow motion, his hands gripping my waist and tugging me to him. His hands feel like the wildfire that burns through my body and his musky scent filling my nose smells like the glaciers in Antarctica. It's when his lips land on mine I truly experience the thrilling meeting of fire and ice. My body turns into mush as his lips forcefully crash onto mine, and I suck in a chilling breath of the icy air. His tongue slithers erotically across my bottom lip before gently prying my mouth open. I'm in a state of shock as we suddenly get locked in a battle of the tongues. We swirl our tongues around each other in a spiral, pushing all of our angered anxiety into our feverish kiss.
That's when a hand is suddenly on my wrist and yanking me away. By the heated growl from the patch on my chest, I know it's Thaddeus before I even turn around.
"It needs to happen now Cassiopeia before it is too late." His eyes stare into mine, but I'm stuck in a daze. My lips feel swollen and my head feels foggy. I barely register the shadows surrounding us. Angels lean across trees to stare at me, tensed and ready to kill me if I make a move toward Grim again. I can feel the aversion dripping off of Grim as he stares at them, probably ready to take them on single-handedly. I know somewhere in my mind he would be able to defeat them all and protect me.
He would do anything to protect me, and I would do anything to protect him.
So before my heart can talk me out of it, my brain forces me to nod my head at Thaddeus. His eyes flood with relief and his eyes flicker over to his brother before back to me.
"Whoa, wait, no!" The despair in Grim's voice almost makes me fold up like a map. "Stop! Thaddeus!" Grim starts to plead with his brother. He falls onto his knees beside me, but I can barely register that as Thaddeus holds my gaze. So many thoughts run through me, all leaking with rising desolation. I feel something poke at my brain, making me want to wince. But I'm paralyzed, staring into Thaddeus' eyes.
It's happening.
I can feel it in my bones.
Grim knows it.
The angels know it.
Thaddeus knows it.
The angels seem excited, their wings fluttering behind them as they move closer to me like a lion stalking a gazelle. Thaddeus' eyes slither with so many treacherous colors while his brother begs him to stop beside me. His brother. Whose his brother?
My eyes finally widen as I stare into deep blue eyes of a man. Winter sinks it's bared teeth into my chest as I suddenly break out of my reverie. My voice wavers as I speak. "Who are you?" It's soft, so soft. It's almost unrecognizable.
"No!" Someone shouts beside me, sounding completely scandalized and scared. So scared. I look down just in time to see an unbearably attractive boy jump up, white snow dripping off of him as he grabs onto my shoulders. "Cassie!" He sobs softly, his eyes shining. His voice is deep and somehow awakens something inside of me. Tears leak freely from his eyes.
"I'm sorry, brother," the blue-eyed man grabs onto the crying guy's shoulder and starts to pull him backward. "It had to be done." The crying man suddenly jolts out of the blue-eyed man's touch and turns on him in a moment. I scream as he suddenly lands a solid punch to the man's face. My eyes dart upward when I swear all the tree branches cave inward toward me. My lips tremble before my eyes lock on a distant house light. It looks familiar, and I realize it's my house.
I glance down at the man destroying the other man while screaming horrible thing hardly recognizable to me. Fresh blood paints the white snow, the smell of iron washing into my nose. I didn't realize I was backing up until the small of my back touches a tree trunk. I turn to look at it before turning back to the men. The crying man has stopped and the other guy is coughing up blood as he holds himself up. That's when the crying man looks at me shortly. His eyes are so black I can see my horrified reflection within them. I look different. My raven colored hair peeks out of my hood and my cheeks are red from the freezing cold. That's when the blue-eyed man suddenly jumps up and grabs the once crying man and forces him on the ground. The blue-eyed man turns to me and I almost vomit at the sight of his destroyed face. His nose is definitely broken, blood leaking out of the corner of his mouth.
"Run." His voice is thick with an accent and cold to the core. I freeze before following his command. My feet turn before I can realize what I am doing and I am suddenly racing toward my house, leaving the crazy men behind me.
"No! Cassie!" The one screams in his rich voice. "Please!" His voice holds utter heartbreak and I almost turn around to cradle him in my arms. He sounds like a child when their parent reprimands them for stealing candy from the candy jar. Or like a mother finding out her child has cancer.
Completely broken.
The only time I turn back is when I am in the safety of my house, turning around to stare at the dark empty woods, leaving any sign of the crazed men locked out of my house and mind.
___
A/N
Book two is done, yay! So a pretty dramatic ending. Did you expect this?
Don't worry though, because book three is already on its way (if not already out) so yeah, look forward to that! Book three will be called "Claimed by The God of Death" and will continue with Cassie's story. I'm also thinking of adding in POV changes very rarely. Idk.
Glad you enjoyed, and make sure you check out the third book!
-MTBB