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It was like watching my abuela’s novelas.
“Good girl,” he praised. They kissed a while longer and my nausea built with every stolen touch and forbidden sweep of lips. At this point I was just hoping they didn’t fuck. Gods, it wasn’t me, but it would feel like a shadow betrayal all the same.
I had to get out of this dream. Just as I tried pushing at the barriers, willing myself to wake up, Abyssian thrust something into her hands. Abraxia looked down.
I’d seen this once before, and I would never forget the details of the jewel encrusted dagger she now held.
My heart stopped.
“Use this. A normal weapon won’t work, not against his kind. This has been spelled to hide its true identity. If you give it to him as a gift, he won’t suspect it.”
The smile he gave her was relaxed but nothing could mask the sinister edge in his gaze. He’d always been watchful. Involved. Ever-present. I’d assumed he was just protective. The first time I’d seen him, Eres warned me of danger. Now that I recognized him for what he was, there was no unseeing it, and for five thousand years he’d kept this secret.
He didn’t just betray his brother.
He fucking destroyed him.
Something in me snapped. Rage overwhelmed my senses. I tried to lash out, to shift, to strike, to turn that fucking blade on him instead. He’s the one who deserved it. To my utter surprise, Abraxia stared down at the weapon in her hand, then gripped the handle harder, just as I imagined doing it myself.
She pulled the blade free of its sheath, again, just as I wanted.
“Xia?” Abyssian asked. Abraxia angled the blade so that the edge acted as a mirror, and a thin sliver of her face appeared. In the reflection of the steel, I sawmyeyes staring back.
I reacted without thinking further, plunging the blade into Abyssian’s traitorous chest. It slid between his ribs, just as Styx taught me, the silver tip finding his heart, if the bastard had one.
“Xia?” he said again, this time in a hushed whisper. I took a step back as he stumbled. Then, all at once, righted himself as though nothing had happened.
Abyssian reached up and grabbed the dagger by its hilt, wrenching it from his chest. He observed it for a moment, turning it over in his hands and inspecting the dagger.
My lips parted.
Shit. Fuck. Dammit.
He looked up at Abraxia, and a menacing smile formed on his face, a dangerous sparkle in his vile, glacial eyes.
“Hello, Reagan.”
My eyes flew open. I sat up, gasping hard and then panting heavily. I pressed a hand to my chest while I looked around. My cousins were none the wiser, all sprawled out in various positions, deep in sleep. Jo had rolled over, cuddling his book instead of me, and I was thankful I hadn’t woken him. Weak sunlight streamed through the drapes of the living room window. It wasn’t quite dawn.
I carefully tucked the blanket around him, then tiptoed to get my things so I could change in the bathroom closer to the front of the house. My hands were hurried as I undressed and redressed for the day.
The dream wasn’t real, but it sure as hell felt real. My rage was real, that much I knew. The two other dreams were part of his past. One confirmed, and the other ... I didn’t know. He couldn’t say. It didn’t involve him. But this? If there was even an ounce of truth to it, I had to tell Caius, and it couldn’t wait.
I donned black jeans and a sports bra, then grabbed a thin tank top to put over it. Tartarus would be warmer than Earth.
An unwanted thought barged into my mind, making me question if I was doing the right thing. Abyssian was his half-brother. They’d been locked in Tartarus for five thousand years, and how long had they been alive before then? I’d known Caius for all of a few months? Maybe? I didn’t even know what day it was anymore. Would he believe me, his girlfriend, over his own flesh and blood? It was a dream, and I was essentially accusing his brother of an incredibly heinous act.
Eres chastised me immediately, and she was right to.
“You’re not his girlfriend or some tryst. You are his mate.”
“I know that. It’s just ...”
“Just nothing. The terms of the bond are beyond what you can understand. A mate doesn’t deceive.”
I nodded, silently accepting her admonishment, but I questioned if that could be true. People were still people, and shitty people ended up with mates too. I wasn’t a bad person, and Caius knew that. He would listen to me.
Not bothering to repack my backpack with anything, I grabbed my socks and boots, then walked through the house and into the kitchen where I thought I’d be alone. Instead, I found a small light was on. Sin was leaning against the counter, seemingly deep in thought. That wasn’t odd for her given she frequently slept like shit. That’ll happen when your dead mother returns as a talking ghost you can’t get rid of. I’d probably be up at the crack of dawn if I had to constantly hear a lady berate me and my life choices.
