I rack my brain for how to explain something that came to me as naturally as breathing. A book was usually written by a spell user's hand, you knew it intimately, by the time one called a book to them it was well established as a piece of their body. I'd trained people before, but those were people who were born with some sense of magic and what it was.

"You need to envision it," I instruct firmly, earning an exasperated scoff. 

"I've never seen the bloody thing." He retorts, and I curse under my breath. Anubis had just produced it, he hadn't handed it over. I run my hand through my hair, imagining the best course of action without risking him running off. If I sent him on his own to get the book from where he'd been turned, there was the stark possibility that the book would render him unconscious if it was opened incorrectly. 

My own book had a mind, an entity, inside of it. Was it wrong to suspect that this one might have its own intentions given that it was created to tell the user about the power of Death? All the more reason to retrieve it, if someone else picked it up... I shudder at the thought. 

"It should feel like something is calling you, you've used drugs, right? Think about it like a fix, something that you're addicted to, that you'd do anything to get your hands on. You can pinpoint it and call it to you."

Taking in my words, he reluctantly nods, and we both flinch as a crack of lightning rolls across the sky. "The whole damned place smells like death, I can't concentrate on an addiction that I don't have or that I can't see, Nic." 

I could only imagine the lightning was a warning shot, a reminder that we'd just sent out a beacon that a torch of war had been lit. We'd once again ended up declaring sides, though nobody could know it was us on this side of the ring. I curse once more, wishing for more time, wishing for better circumstances. But, this was how I'd learned and he'd proven that high stakes could be worked around. 

"Randy, I really need you to think outside of logic." I plead, shuddering once more as thunder rolls in. 

"Why don't I just go get it?" He moves to step away from me and I can't help but clutch onto him, shaking my head. 

"What if it sucks you in? It's too risky, the safest way would be to call it to you."

"Well, we are wasting time. I can't just hold out my hand and tell it to come here." With a wave of his hand, I hear the whistle of the incoming object before I see it. Covering my ears, the book flies past us as Verando ducks out of the way and the object skitters across the ground, steaming as if it was one fire previously. The sky opens up, starting with a steady downpour that blocks out any hope of a realistic conversation. 

I grip his shirt, yanking it off his shoulders as I pop the remaining few buttons. "Wrap the book in this and put it in the car. We need to go." 

"That would never work twice." Verando snaps at me before obediently running to retrieve the object, tossing it into the back seat and closing my door as I buckle in. His hands had damaged the frame but not enough to make it leak. Though the door whines in complaint as it latches, I find I'm panting harder than I'd allowed myself to acknowledge as he gets in on the other side. 

Starting the car, he looks over his shoulder as we throw the vehicle in reverse and grumbles under his breath. "We have company."

I don't recognize the figure standing in the road, but by the nature of their haunting stillness, I imagine they were not here with good intentions. "It could just be a person."

"No time to find out." Stepping on the gas, the car roars backward, crashing over the top of the being as he wheels it around and I feel my stomach threatening to flip. Placing my hand firmly over my mouth, I grip the overhead handle as he shifts it back into drive and accelerates down the slick back road. "I'm sorry, Darling. Are you alright?"

Glancing at him out of the corner of my eye, I see that he's more pale than I remember. A more natural color of his upbringing, than the tan he usually boasted. The silvery hair matted down from the rain, though his body didn't steam as it used to. In fact, he didn't even look chilled. I touch his arm, ghostly cold as I retract my hand quickly. 

"I-" What could I say? I didn't mean to react so sharply. Spying him frowning, I offer him a small, reassuring smile. "I'm more worried about you than me. Just another day in the life, really." I mutter, unable to stop myself from admiring the sculpted chest and even muscling. I'd noticed when he'd turned to look over his shoulder. The scars truly were completely gone. 

"I'm fine." It was a cover-up, I knew by the tone of his voice that he was anything but fine. "Nic, reach under your seat, there's a compartment up under it, open it and pull it out."

With a heavy sigh, I do as I'm told, frowning at the variety of handguns and knives I produce. "You're supposed to be retired." I remind him, shortly. 

"Think that ship has long since sailed, darling." He retorts, "Check the clips, make sure they're all loaded. They're blessed bullets, probably won't do much for a god but.." Sighing, he grits his teeth hard enough that I hear the grind. "Your shop...."

Could we ever go back there? They'd tear it apart possibly. 

"I'm not worried about that." I decide firmly. "We'll deal with it when you're safe. When we are safe."

When would that ever be? This was permanent, there was no end date for this final job. Those icy eyes watching the review, the tension radiating off of him, and yet there was silence in that I couldn't hear his heart beating. I couldn't feel his thoughts, feed off his intentions, we truly were separated. "We're being followed."

"I imagined." I murmur, "I keep hearing a swishing... it's hard to tell if it's the door or if someone is following after us through the woods." Despite being in a car, where it would be near impossible to hear us, I feel inclined to whisper. "What are we going to do?"

Mulling it over, an eternity seems to pass with the rain hammering down all around us. "These human vessels can't last very long in these conditions, I think if we keep driving, we can lose them in traffic when the sun comes up and then we can regroup. I'll call Tiberius and arrange to swap out the car with him, he can keep driving it and Tomas can follow behind him and see who's chasing us. From there, we can assess what we're going to do going forward."

I needed my medication, and my supplies, I placed my hand over my stomach and pinched the bridge of my nose as I tried not to get overwhelmed by the situation. How did a quick trip turn into this?

I feel him watching me and when I peer at him, I know he's struggling too. "I'm going to have Tomas take you home, Rowan can take your place. She can help me."

"I'm not leaving you," I snap, bewildered by his audacity. It was beyond that I wanted to help him, that I wanted to be with him, I couldn't risk him running away from me. Our bond had been snipped, he could die and I would be alone... that was something I wasn't prepared to entertain. "Why would you even say that? Why would you think, after all these years, I could ever want you to do this on your own? You're hardly holding it together, you have no idea what you're doing and now you don't even have Eve."

Panting, I stare at the road, watching the headlights flash across the street signs as I try and calm myself. The trembling in my body, the fear, the anguish, my body was on overload. He doesn't argue back with me, only sitting, waiting for me to get it all out. 

With a sob, I rub my eye with my wrist, pulling my knees up into the seat to curl up into some form of comfort. "God damn it." Shouting helped, announcing my displeasure with our situation. "If I'd known Darrius would have needed a hellhound..."

Another strangled sob works its way to the surface, it made sense but why did it have to be us? Why did it have to be him when I was so incapacitated? 

"You would still have taken him." Verando reminds me, his voice low, gentle. 

"I would never have traded you for anything. I would never have- I couldn't imagine that this would come of it. Randy, this is all my fault. Is that why you asked for our tether to be cut? Is that why you don't want to be bonded to me anymore, you want to leave.. or.. or.. die?" I managed, the tears were free-flowing now. "Are you trying to leave so you can finally be done with this?"

Reaching across the small space, he moves to take my hand but hesitates, possibly worried he might kill me or maybe it was the temperature of his skin. I don't care, I snatch his hand, making him stiffen as I clutch it with both hands, bringing the knuckles to my lips in an attempt to bring some warmth back into the icy body. "What an odd sensation. You're so warm." He muses, making me choke out a broken laugh. 

"Imagine what it was like to be a mortal cuddling with this? You're lucky I was practically made of ice, you would have melted me." I manage, holding onto him impossibly tight. He wasn't like he was before, his hand held its own once more, I couldn't hurt him as I could in his weakened state. 

Offering me a flash of my favorite look, he takes a slow breath. "I wanted our tether to be cut because our children are going to need one of us. If this baby... goes poorly.. or if something happens to me, at least they will have a chance of growing up with one parent. Nic, I've not been 'happy' for a long time, but that doesn't mean I'm not madly in love with you. That I don't love our family, and love our life, that I don't enjoy our moments together. Happiness is just a cruel mistress, it's not a reflection of my home life."

I take this in, absorbing each word, it was a concept I couldn't comprehend. I'd never been through, never experienced the drowning sensation he'd spoken of, the black veil and dark, looming beast that had come to him in the dream that felt like it was a lifetime ago. 

"I have no intention of dying. Darrius needs me, Xaiver and this child need me, you need me. As long as that stands, I intend to be right here with you."

"What if I died?" I manage, holding onto his hand impossibly tight, watching him, taking in every feature and expression change. 

Considering this, he pulls his lips into a thin, somber line. "I would make it till our children were 18, I would do what I could to prepare them for this life, then I would return Fenrir to hell. That's where I'd probably stay."

Anubis's words flash in my mind, that he'd seen the future, he'd seen Verando in the underworld, trapped with Fenrir. Did that mean that at some point... I would die? Everyone died, but immortality felt like reassurance that that time would be very distant. 

"Do you ever wish I would have jumped out that window?" I finally murmur, wiping at one lonesome tear as I attempt to steady my breathing. The corner of his lips pulled down, infuriated by the suggestion, but at the same time, I could only imagine he understood where I was coming from. 

"And here I thought I was the only one who had thoughts like these. I tend to think of that often, how your life would look if I'd never stepped into it, if I'd done what I was told and never disobeyed my father. But, I've begun to accept that we both desperately needed each other. We still do, I mean, let's be frank- you'd be ten times dead if it weren't for me. You were quite useless when we met."

"Me!" I demand, shocked, gaping at him. "You have made plenty of questionable decisions, sir. Conquerer... I wish they'd put more about my aid in those books, I saved your ass plenty of times."

While I seethed, I caught him smirking, dimpling his cheek. 

The car thumps as we leave the back road and hit the interstate, flying down the asphalt at an uncomfortable speed it was all I could do to keep myself together. The stress of the day, the reality of our situation, and the realization that he was correct. Our children needed me, I couldn't stay with him for very long, he would need to practice.. and work. 

Spying an overhead sign of one of the magic-friendly hotels we frequented, I startle him with my sudden outburst. "Pull over."

"Did you not hear my plan?" He snaps, straightening back out from the slight deviation the car took. "We're not stopping."

"If you're going to send me home, then yes we are. We are in to public of a place, and surely we've left them behind. They're expecting us to drive all night, they'd never think we'd be close by. As long as I don't use the pendant, they won't know where we are. We aren't hiding from lycans, we're hiding from gods who have no idea who has the stone. Either way, I'm sure you can handle them. Now pull over."

We make hard eye contact, I reach for the wheel and he sighs heavily, sliding off the road and down the exit, following the signs for the large hotel that had often been one of our own solaces. It was a good brand, a brand that housed us many times over our travels in the US. "I'm shirtless." He reminds me as we pull into a space. "And we have no luggage."

I shrug, reaching across the space to grab onto the chain and yank him to me, I crush my lips to his once more. "I'm fully intending to finish undressing you, so stop worrying about the clothes and get us a room." Speaking against his lips, invading his cool mouth with my tongue, I earn a groan of appreciation as he kisses me back. 

"Foul creature." A reluctant submission, I'd won. 

The looks we received as we entered the lobby with his shirtless body and our near-drowned state were beyond what the clerk was ready to witness. She clears her throat multiple times, trying not to stare, tapping quickly into the system as he gives her my name instead of his own. "Looks like you're a frequent customer.. er.. for long stays. How many nights?"

"Just one. Top floor, studio." He hands her a card, careful not to touch her as she takes it, flicking her eyes up and down once more. With his pierced nipples, daring physique, and drenched appearance, I struggle to blame her as I slip my hand into his back pocket.

I startled him, making him jump, something that was happening too often. Our lack of connection must be bothering him, too. Or perhaps he was as overwhelmed as I was and was hiding it better. The lights flicker, I bite my lower lip in apology as he glowers at me to behave. 

"Anything else?" She asks, handing the card back. 

"I'll send you an order down once we are settled, my husband is quite famished-" Before he can finish, I sigh, thanking the woman and grabbing his arm to pull him towards the elevator. "Rude." he scolds as I press the button. 

"Punish me, then." I shoot back, shoving him into the elevator and climbing his body as I kiss him. Verando lifts me, slamming my back against the wall as he pins me beneath him and I tangle my fingers in his soaked hair. I can't help but whimper as he moves to my neck, kissing the junction there as I hook my legs over his hips, grinding against me so deliciously as I cling to him. The elevator dings, I cover his mouth with my hand as I slide off of him, glancing around to see the elderly couple trying to decide if they still wanted to get in with us. 

"Laundry's on this floor." The woman mutters, getting in as we begin the slow ascension. I chuckle, panting, breathless as I slip my thigh between his legs to grind against him while he guards me from the two unsuspecting elders. 

"Kids..." The man growls, pressing the button again as if somehow that'd make the elevator go faster. They get off just a few floors below us, I can't help but giggle as they scurry off, only to be met with the gaze of a predator when I look back up. I'd tested the devil and lost, I'd pay dearly for tempting him so publically. 

"Randy.." I manage, gasping as he claims my mouth once more. Kissing me deeply, rolling his body against mine, I slide my fingers over his nipples, producing a sultry growl.  "Don't be gentle."

"I don't think I can." It's a truthful statement that makes me swallow as I shove him backward out of the elevator, jumping onto his body as he carries me down the hall. Only one door separates us from the elevator, Verando fumbles with the key card as he shoves my body against the cool surface. I'm an inferno squeezed between two slabs of ice. "Your bodies on fire." 

Pressing down on the handle, I open the door behind us as I lead him inside the room by the belt. The door slams as I guide him, in my rush, I find myself tumbling into one of the large plush chairs, pulling him with me as he rights himself on the arms. Eyes blazing, he curses at the state of me, drinking me in as I fumble with his pants. 

In the dark of the room, I can't focus on anything but him, the way his strong hands hold onto me or the feeling of his lips brushing my skin. The missing piece of his heartbeat left a hollow note in my soul, I feel the emotion welling up inside me once more. One of those sinful hands finds my crotch, groping me through my pants as I whimper for him. "Take me." I plead as he kisses down my chest, sliding between my legs as he yanks my pants down and off. 

I spring free from my boxer briefs, he grins up at me with a sinister chuckle. "This for me?" He hums, kissing the tip of my manhood before he takes me greedily into his mouth as I hook my legs over his shoulders. One hand tangling in his hair, the other holding firm over my mouth to keep my volume under control. The tongue stud was something I'd not been prepared for, the coolness of his tongue, mixed with the hard pressure of the silver ball, I nearly screamed as my thighs desperately wished to press together and yet he so cruelly held me down. 

Those eyes never leave mine as I tremble, coming apart at the seams, completely at his mercy. "Randy please," I beg, so painfully close as he brings me to the edge over and over only to let me drop off and teasing me with his skilled tongue. "Please, I need you."

"Come for me first." He growls, pressing a kiss to the base as his hand works my length. 

I shake my head, sinking my teeth into my lower lip. "I want... you..." I manage, flushing, knowing I was pushing him to the edge of what he could tolerate. "I want you to take me."

"Take you where?" he muses, twisting his fist, bringing me so close to the edge. Verando kisses my inner thigh, sinking his teeth into my leg as I groan from the sensation. 

"Randy!" I gasp, finding my completion as I convulse under his sinful fingers. 

"You've made a mess." He shows me his hand, covered in my cum, before taking those slick fingers and sliding one into me. My arms wrapped around his neck, I was so sensitive, trying to hold it together as he used his fingers with little remorse for my state. "You're even more warm inside." His voice in my ear makes me squirm. 

I bury my face in his neck as he lifts me off the chair, carrying me towards the bed. "Don't say things like that!" It would seem he was on the same wavelength as me in more ways than I thought, he seemed just as desperate for my body as I was for him. 

"Promise me something." Verando murmurs, yanking my pants off the rest of the way and then finishing unzipping his own pants. I shiver as he stands before me, my adonis of a husband, in full restored glory. 

"Anything." I gasp, he kisses his way back up my stomach, trailing over my nipples with his tongue as he makes his way to my neck. I tilt my head back, exposing myself to him and groaning once more as he sinks his teeth into the skin there. Almost apologetically, he laps at the skin, kissing his way back to my lips and I taste the blood on his tongue as he invades my mouth. 

"Be as loud as possible. Drown out all this head trash, I want to hear you."