Chapter 102: Chapter Eight

Mason

Cassius stood in the corner of the kitchen, his eyes doing that creepy white thing that had the rest of the universe shitting itself, while the council looked on.

Genesis shivered, Ethan pulled her close.

Stephanie sighed as Cassius’s feathers strained toward her and fluttered, damn flirt that man was.

Not like he could help it— they were bound together by more than just their bodies— the spiritual realm was not something I would ever pretend to understand— nor did I care.

“Damn it, Cassius,” Ethan rubbed his face with both of his hands. “At least let us know how it’s going.”

I crunched down on the pinecone in my hand— the only noise in the entire room was my loud chewing.

Ethan’s jaw flexed.

I crunched harder and shrugged.

He could go to Hell, and he knew it. The last thing I was going to do was stop my nervous eating because it bothered him.

Guilt lingered at Alex’s predicament. It was my fault he was in there. But the thought of going through another mating had me ready to puke up the only thing I could manage to choke down.

It was a sad day when a werewolf couldn’t eat meat. Others viewed it as a choice, a way to honor her, not understanding the reality that I lived on a daily basis.

The simple truth?

I wanted to die.

Every breath.

Every second.

Every minute.

Every day.

Every year.

But Cassius would not allow it, and the only way to kill me was pretty damn difficult.

Cassius barked out a laugh.

Which was comparable to the world ending, since the man rarely laughed out loud for all to hear. Frowning, I leaned forward on my haunches, waiting for him to say something.

“He’s angry.” Cassius’s mouth pressed into a cheerful smile. “He wants to end me.”

I growled. “He always wants to end you.”

Cassius’s smile fell. “He won’t take her.”

“What do you mean he won’t take her?” I repeated. “He must.”

The room dropped a few degrees as Cassius stood and breathed out. “Impossible.”

I saw my own breath before my face as the man I called King—cursed in what I could only identify as shock, before he disappeared altogether leaving a single purple feather behind.

“Hate it when he does that.” I crossed my arms. “Complete wastefulness of his abilities, use a car man.”

“Was it just me or did he look… surprised?” Stephanie asked. Her hands were shaking. She was being strong, but she was nervous, tense. After all, she’d lived her entire existence believing Alex was her brother—she was protective to a fault and nervous about his ability to commit to one being for the rest of his life. Then again, weren’t we all a bit worried about a siren settling down? Especially a siren who was as powerful as Alex?

The man could seduce a houseplant if he so desired.

I crooked my head. “He blocked your thoughts?”

She colored. “I’ve been trying not to pry.”

I snorted.

And earned a glare from the Dark One.

“Well.” Ethan stood. “We could sit here all day or—”

All eyes fell to me. “Yeah, yeah.” I stood and grimaced. “I’ll get to work. Does anyone know what the female eats?”

“Try food.” Ethan winked. “Same as Genesis.”

Genesis walked over to me and patted my hand. “I’ll go shopping with you.”

“The hell you will.” Ethan growled, his eyes flashing green, fangs lowering.

With a sigh, I tilted my head in his direction. “Do you truly think me incapable of taking care of your mate?” My question hung awkwardly in the air because Ethan knew my shame: when it mattered most, my own had died in my very arms.

My stomach churned.

Nausea threatened.

“I’ll be fine, Ethan.” Genesis rolled her eyes and whispered out of the corner of her mouth, “Take me to the mall and I’ll find you the biggest pinecone you’ve ever seen, after that you can check on Alex.”

She made me smile.

Because she reminded me of what I had lost.

“You have yourself a deal.” I winked.