Chapter Nine

"Nooooo! No! I don't want to! No!"

I wiped my hands down my face as I sat at Kali's dining table, listening to Elias wail and carry on. There was nothing I could do, except sit there and listen, because he refused to let me or anyone touch him. It didn't help that April kept antagonizing him.

"Quit being a fucking baby," April sneered at him, "It's a blood test, not a biopsy... Biopsy is tomorrow, right?" She turned to look at Kali, who sighed as Elias released another scream of denial, and April whipped back around to reach for him.

Elias turned tail and ran back to his room, slamming the door shut. April started to go after him, but I rose to my feet and she immediately froze, glaring at me as I raked her with a less than approving sneer.

"For the record," I said, getting up in her face, not that it was hard considering how fucking short she was, but I had to give the bitch some credit; she didn't care how big her opponent was, she got right up in my face, or as best she could from two feet down, "If you lay hands on him, Kali's gonna have to look for a new handler." April curled her lip.

"Are you threatening me, you artificial bastard piece of—"

"No," Kali said immediately, coming to get between us, but she was facing me sternly, "Screaming and fighting about it isn't going to change the fact that he's scared. If anything, you're both exacerbating the situation."

"Then why am I here?" I demanded. Kali frowned.

"Because Elias needs you, not me, not April," she said, then peered up at me with those sparkling eyes, "Please." I clenched my teeth, glancing over her shoulder at April, who looked murderous. I wasn't sure what pissed her off more, Elias, me, or Kali. Especially considering Kali had her back to her, like she wasn't even thinking about April's safety.

Which she wasn't.

Tending to Elias is more important than April's bullshit, Jasper, come on. You know she likes to piss you off on purpose. Anything to goad you into a fight. I clenched my teeth at Kali's thoughts. I looked at her again, met those fierce icy blue eyes that begged me to take a peaceful route. At least for now.

"Please," Kali said again. I shut my eyes for a moment to find some level of calm that didn't involve smashing April's head open on the nearest wall. When I opened my eyes again, Kali was staring up at me hopefully.

"Where's the equipment?" I asked at last. Kali nodded.

"Go to him first, I'll get the supplies."

"It's going to take more than two people to hold him down," April said dryly, folding her arms over her chest. She stepped aside anyway to let Kali go to their room for the blood draw kit. I glared at April, pointing a finger at her that made her eyes widen in anger.

"You don't touch him. Ever." I turned and went back to where Elias was staying. The back room was very small, too small to be considered a room, but big enough for someone like Elias to stay temporarily until mother found him a safer location. Of course, Kali had done her best to make it as welcoming and comfortable as she could.

He'd formed a nest on the bed with all the blankets and pillows she'd given him, and she put a few generic pictures on the walls, and sitting on a small plastic set of drawers was a little stuffed toy dog with its tongue sticking out.

Elias himself was hiding under the bed.

I walked in, but didn't close the door. I left it a crack deliberately so he wouldn't feel trapped and just made my way over to the bed. I studied it for a moment before sitting on the edge, careful not to smash him underneath. He was very quiet under the bed, almost holding his breath, like he was hoping I wouldn't notice him.

"I'm not going to hurt you, Elias," I said quietly after a while. I spread my hands out in front of me and placed them on my knees so he could see I meant no harm. He didn't come out from under the bed, but he didn't tell me to fuck off either, so that was a good sign.

I had no idea what shit he'd been taught at his previous location. From the looks of it, and from what Kali had gathered for me, Elias didn't have more than a very basic education. He didn't know what anything in the kitchen was, didn't know what anything in the bathroom was aside from the toilet and sink. And yet when he spoke, he sounded like a regular teenager.

Cuss words and all.

I waited a moment to see if Elias would come out on his own.

"Hey, Elias, wanna see the sun again?" I asked. There was a short pause and I watched those little hands come out first, and while he didn't come out completely, he peeked up at me.

"The sun?" He asked hesitantly. I nodded.

"I can take you out to see the sun, if you let us draw some blood," I said and his eyebrows slammed down in disapproval, and he seemed to retreat under the bed, "Ope, guess not." I could still see him contemplating my words, frowning down at the floor as he twiddled his fingers nervously. He glanced up at the door at the same time Kali cracked it open to step inside, and he ducked further under the bed again.

Kali paused, then glanced at me with a frown. I just waved her over to the bed and to close the door. Kali turned back at the same time April put her face in the door, both of them speaking in hushed tones, as if we couldn't hear them across the room.

"What the fuck are you doing," April growled, putting one hand on the doorframe and the other on the door. Kali blocked her from entering, her brows knitted in a stern frown.

"I'm helping him draw blood, April, that's it—"

"Don't fucking do this, Kali, not again. He's already got you all over Polly."

"Jasper has nothing to do with my empathy for other people."

"That empathy is gonna get you killed," April sneered, pausing to glance past Kali at me, and I just gave her a hard smile that she met with a glare, which she turned back to Kali, "Don't get close to this one either, Kali. I already hate watching what Polly does to you."

"Polly doesn't hurt me."

"The fuck she doesn't. If she's not trying to eat your insides, she's stressing you out on a daily basis, and now you have another one— a boy," April emphasized, as if there could be nothing worse. Kali closed her eyes for a moment, and I heard her wrestling with the emotions April stirred up inside her. Everything from anger to hurt to exasperation.

"I have to help him," Kali said at last, opening her eyes to look at April, who glared, "I owe him that much."

"You don't owe him anything," April snapped, "You don't owe anyone anything, except the Mother. She's the whole reason you're alive and safe, she's the whole reason you made it this far without fucking melting down or..." Her voice trailed as she looked over at me again and I frowned.

Or having your entire life destroyed, her thoughts whispered.

I smiled bitterly.

"I'm just drawing blood," Kali told April firmly. April gritted her teeth and I could still see she wanted to fight, but it was mother's orders to retrieve blood, so she finally relented and went storming out of the apartment, slamming the door shut behind her.

Kali watched her go, then came over and placed the supplies on top of the plastic drawers to prep everything.

"Who bought him the dog?" I asked, referring to the stuffed dog. Kali looked up, then back down at her supplies.

"April," she said, making me raise an eyebrow in surprise, "It was my idea." I nodded, because that made more sense. Kali didn't have an income. April was her source of money. Still, it was sweet of Kali to think of Elias, enough to ask April for money, something she didn't do often.

"Has he been outside since we got here?" I asked. Kali frowned as she cleaned the supplies and set everything up.

"No, I assumed he wouldn't be outside ever again," she told me honestly. I shrugged, glancing down under the bed, then back up at Kali, who folded her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow.

"No," I replied, leaning back on my hands on the bed, "I'll take him outside if he gets his blood drawn." Kali stared at me.

"You're joking."

"No."

"Jasper," Kali said slowly, making me sigh at the incoming lecture, "Don't give me that. You can't keep toeing the line. Sooner or later, mother is going to get fed up with your bullshit. There's a reason she keeps the artificials from you. Taking him outside is..." Her voice trailed. It made sense that she was so weary, not even because mother would be pissed.

Oh sure, mother was gonna punish me well for taking Elias outside, but he needed some kind of motivation... and no one should ever live without seeing the sun.

Of course, Kali was terrified because of the dangers outside. Again, she had never been out in the real world, and even she knew that. Sooner or later, she would have to experience it in order to fight for and protect mother. It didn't change the fact that she had anxiety about the whole thing, which very much added to my refusal to let her do any missions for mother.

Kali was still... Kali. She wasn't like April. She wasn't easily manipulated or tricked and our relationship had fostered that considering how loving and open my handler was compared to hers. It was all thanks to Milo that either one of us knew how to be... people.

The day Milo died, I wasn't the only one who lost him.

"Oh god. Oh, Jasper— Jasper, please—" The memory was fuzzy. Kali's sobs came in and out of focus through a muffled ringing in my ears. I had the vague sense that she was trying to get me up off the floor, but it was like my muscles had seized up on me. Everything hurt and all I could do was coil tighter around my handler's vessel.

The signs were all there.

His body was so cold, so very cold. And while his skin had been pale before, such a pretty shade of cream against my dark hands, the color had become faded and washed out. The smell of blood made me nauseous and I remembered gagging a few times, choked by the stench.

Everything afterwards was nothing but a distant blurry memory of being force fed, of mother and Kali crying all over me, and the strangest coldest sensation in my chest.

I had always thought soldiers were being dramatic when they said that losing the love of their life was like having their heart carved out of their chests. It seemed like a silly comparison.

Until it happened to me.

Suddenly, nothing really mattered anymore.

I was still here.

Milo was gone.

And life fucking sucked.

"Oh," Elias's voice had me snapping out of my daydream and Kali also turned to look down under the bed curiously, "Oh, that... I'm sorry." He reached out and took a hold of my pant leg, making me frown and look down to see him peering up at me. Those big red eyes were somehow the saddest looking set of puppy eyes since Polly showed up.

Sad, I heard his thoughts echo, making me frown, Jasper is sad and it hurts... It makes me sad. Seeing him hurt. I don't know why. I hope he feels better. Feeling sad sucks. It sucks a lot. I swallowed at that, gripping my knees so tight my knuckles turned white and Kali looked at me, confused, but I just shook my head, not trusting myself to speak right away.

"Elias, can you maybe hop up here? I think Jasper might want a hug," she added, making me snap my eyes open to glare at her and she just smiled innocently. I started to get up and leave, only to go still as Elias shimmied out from under the bed and reached out, throwing his arms out around me and yanking my head against him.

I didn't know what to say, because I didn't expect him to do it.

Even funnier was when he put his hand on the back of my head and gave my head a clumsy, but reassuring pat.

"Don't be sad," Elias said firmly, "I love you very much." I gritted my teeth, clenching my fists against my knees and making a mental note to fight Kali in the ring sometime for putting me on the spot. The situation was hard enough without my fucking heart cracking wide open with every gesture, with every experience, with every little cry or whispered I love you they gave me.

Knowing what that was— Knowing what love felt like, and knowing they were sharing that with me of all people was fucking intense.

And knowing that it could all be ripped away so fast, so suddenly, and right from under my feet...

I cleared my throat roughly, shaking my head and giving Elias a firm hug back so he wasn't uncomfortable with his first hug. He seemed delighted at the return and squeezed me tight.

"Wow," Elias exclaimed suddenly, pausing to lean down and sniff me, making me smirk, "You smell so different."

"What do I smell like to you?" I asked him as he sat down beside me. I glanced behind him at Kali, giving her a nod to just go ahead and see if she could take some blood. She took Elias's arm and bent it out, pausing to see if he'd protest, but he appeared thoroughly distracted by conversation now.

"It smells strong," Elias mused thoughtfully, pausing to shift uncomfortably when Kali wiped the crook of his arm, but when he saw me raise an eyebrow in encouragement, he quickly studied the ceiling in search of answers, "Ahh, like... smoke? Kinda like smoke, but it smells sweeter."

"Tobacco," I filled in, making him scowl, "What else do you smell?" Elias wrinkled his nose thoughtfully, his eyes starting to drift toward where Kali was about to insert the needle, but I took his chin and made him look at me, his eyes widening.

"You also smell fresh air," I said, making him blink owlishly, "Outside air, not processed air, and the air outside this compound is some of the freshest, cleanest air you'll ever get."

"I don't think I've ever heard someone describe Styx's air as the freshest and cleanest," Kali said dryly, which made me snort and Elias grinned at our play.

"Okay, so Styx's air is a little stinky too," I said, making Elias laugh, "But only because it's a big city and big cities can be stinky sometimes. It's got so many smells that they kind of just make a mutant stank." Elias laughed more at that, and luckily, he barely noticed Kali finishing the blood draw. She marked and labeled the vials, placing them in a metal case that she locked up for me.

"Are you gonna run these to the Mother yourself?" Kali asked as I rose to my feet to take the case from her. Elias hopped off the bed, studying the bandaid in the crook of his arm. He probably had no fucking idea who Bluey was, but he still seemed to like the colors of it as he walked over to get his stuffed toy, a confused smile on his face.

"Yeah, and then I gotta swing back into town," I said, taking out my phone to open the tracking app. Sure enough, Wren was still out and about and it looked like he was just splitting off from Theo, who returned to the palace. This left Wren to depart to...

Well, guess we'd have to find out, huh?

"Are you staying here tonight or are you still torturing that cherub," Kali asked and when I stared at her blankly, she rolled her eyes, "Just let him go already. Wouldn't it tickle you pink to have Bethany killed anyway? You never liked her." I smiled.

"Good night, Kali, love you super lots and lots," I answered instead. Kali wiped her hands down her face as Elias scowled between us, clearly not understanding the dynamic.

"I love you too," she said in a nasally whiny tone that had me grinning now.

"I don't understand anymore," Elias declared, scrunching up his nose again.

"Just say it back, if you mean it," Kali added, making me nod in agreement. Elias's eyes widened and he looked up at me.

"I do!" He exclaimed. I laughed.

"Don't feel obligated," I replied, making him cock his head in question, but I just ruffled his hair, which made him groan and squirm away, "Make sure to give Polly my love when she wakes up, and save her some of those Oreos I brought."

"She'll be psyched," Kali said with a sad smile. I gave her a firm kiss on the forehead, cradling her head against me and Kali sighed, patting my chest before rising to kiss me on the cheek, "Please be safe... and have mercy on the cherub, Jasper. Even if he isn't head over heels for Ryk deep down, he still deserves a chance... and if he does like Ryk, well..."

"You're not earning him brownie points," I deadpanned. Kali smirked and popped me on the buttcheek to shoo me out the door. The whole time Elias watched us in wonder, like he couldn't wrap his head around such a relationship.

It was a little sobering, so with that, I took my leave.

I teleported the moment I left the cover building in Styx, reappearing in a quaint little bed and breakfast in Edinburgh, Scotland. Almost immediately I had to avoid hitting my head on doorways, making me sigh as I ducked through a lounge room doorway and towards the stairs, glancing down at mother's most recent text about her room number.

I scanned the code from her text against the door lock and I stepped inside to the smell of English tea and blueberry scones. I slowed in the small entryway, leaning on the wall to take off my shoes as I listened to the soft voices from the kitchen to the right.

"I'm worried," came Bethany's mumbling as I drew near the cracked door. I peered inside to see Bethany sitting at a small round kitchen table, cupping a mug of hot tea in her hands as she stared at the table.

She looked worse than when I'd last seen her.

Mother, on the other hand, was glowing like she'd just had a spa day. She played the loving girlfriend part well, though, as she came fluttering over to drape an arm over her shoulders. She placed a firm kiss against Bethany's temple, startling Bethany out of her stupor.

"I know, baby, I do, but really, D'Angelo is safe and sound. Jasper is watching over him and you know I trust no one else to treat him well," she murmured, patting Bethany on the head. For a split second, I saw the ferocity that made Bethany a truly deadly archangel. There was a flicker of anger at being coddled, patronized, but very quickly was the reminder that mother could, and would, destroy her... and D'Angelo.

Unfortunately for her, her motherly instincts were right for once.

"I just want to see him," Bethany said in frustration, and mother was careful to pull away so Bethany couldn't see her roll her eyes so hard it was a miracle she didn't lose her eyeballs in her skull, "Or at least hear his voice, why can't I just hear his voice?"

"I told you, it's not safe," mother said casually as she went to take the electric kettle off its stand to pour in a mug and I watched her drop cube after cube of sugar in, "If Yhwhwa suspects for even a second, well... That would be bad for all of us, wouldn't it?" Bethany's eyes widened for a moment before she looked away. She looked panicked.

"Gosh, that would be detrimental," mother continued, touching her cheek in a dramatic fashion, "But, for whom would it be worse? You? Or Yhwhwa?" Bethany swallowed.

"Surely... Yhwhwa." The way she said her father's name, like it choked her. She clearly wasn't comfortable using his real name, considering she spent all this time practically calling him daddy every time she introduced herself.

Interesting, I noted. Mother did often mention Yhwhwa's name, but not in any concrete sense. Sure, he'd be pissed when he found out about Bethany and D'Angelo... But why did that work for mother? Why was she teasing Bethany about it?

I'd always known Yhwhwa's people were involved with mother, but not in the way anyone thought. Right now, the only connection was Bethany and D'Angelo, but mother had mentioned Yhwhwa a dozen times before, and certainly not in a heartwarming sense.

I had a vague memory of mother hovering over Tenjin while he was working at one of the computers. At the time, I had no idea what was on the computer. It was gibberish to me. However, mother and Tenjin seemed to know exactly what it said and mother looked excited, but Tenjin's brows were slowly knitting into a frown as if he were realizing something.

"No," Tenjin said abruptly, making mother blink and turn to look at him. The expression was one that dared him to say that again, and Tenjin wasn't stupid; he knew mother would kill him if he denied her, but whatever he was reading on the screen clearly spooked him more than mother did.

"No," Tenjin repeated again, shoving himself up from his seat. Even being smaller than mother Tenjin wasn't intimidated, even when mother narrowed her eyes down on him like she was thinking about squishing him like a bug under her heel. "I absolutely refuse. This was not in our contract. I work with artificials only, not-not fucking monstrosities." Mother stared at him.

"Our contract specified that you work under my orders until we have reached our final goal," she responded coldly, her arms folding over her chest. Tenjin stared at her for a moment, then shook his head and threw a hand at the computer, as if to show her exactly what was at stake.

"If this is your final goal, I refuse," Tenjin stated, which only had mother continuously staring at Tenjin, and that seemed to make him uncomfortable as he adjusted his glasses, "I understand your goals, your desires, yes, but this is beyond vengeance. This is beyond punishment, Greek. You are toying with the apocalypse, toying with something you have absolutely no understanding of. There is a good reason why Yhwhwa keeps this information under lock and key."

"Certainly," mother agreed, slowly smiling now and that seemed to unnerve Tenjin as he took a step back, glancing at the computer screen, like he was hoping to find help there, "I know what it is that I am playing with, worm. I don't need you to tell me that." Tenjin's eyes flashed at the insult, cheeks flushing lightly with offense. He looked like he wanted to say something, but was at a loss for words before he finally pinned her with a malevolent glare.

It was the first time I'd seen anyone stand up to mother.

"Then I am nulling our contract," Tenjin stated. Mother smiled.

"You can't," she said, and when Tenjin opened his mouth to argue, she swept over and caught his arm, making him hiss as she held it out and hovered her other hand over it, "The contract isn't finished until I say it's finished, and, Tenjin, sweetheart, you have a lot of work to do." With the wave of her hand, a handwritten contract appeared written into Tenjin's arm, blood pouring from the writing and Tenjin hissed again, trying to snag his arm back, but mother gave him a harsh tug up against her so she was smiling down at him as he glared at her.

"You can't do this," Tenjin seethed, "What you're playing with is apocalyptic, worse, it's an Abrahamic apocalypse! We have no idea what those things entail! There's a reason no one has touched this before, why Yhwhwa demands it be hidden, why—"

"You know what," mother mused, yanking Tenjin by the arm and making him curse and stumble to stay on his feet, "I am getting very tired of cowardly men telling me what I can and cannot do. Just because Yhwhwa is a weak male does not mean I am anything of the sort. You forget, Tenjin, my childhood was the apocalypse." Mother dragged Tenjin across the room as he squirmed and protested, barking curses in Japanese the whole way.

She threw Tenjin into one of the large test tubes where artificials were created and when Tenjin rebounded off the glass to come out, she slammed the door shut on him. Tenjin cursed and went to teleport out, only to find he could go nowhere. His eyes widened and he put his hands on the glass as mother went to the dials on the nearby computer.

"Don't worry," mother said as she hit a few buttons and a second later, a thick clear fluid began to fill the test tube and Tenjin gasped as it splattered on top of him, "Think of this as just a little warning, Tenjin." The liquid immediately began to fill the tube, already climbing up Tenjin's ankles and soaking his pants and shirt.

"You can't," Tenjin sputtered, moving his hands on the glass as a particularly thick glob hit his face and he coughed, his glasses falling to the floor as he jerked his head up, "Stop!"

"I can't kill you," mother murmured as she pulled on a lever and the flow of fluids into the test tube climbed faster, sloshing around Tenjin's waist as he panicked, "But I can certainly show you something worse if you don't continue your research in a professional manner."

"They'll kill you," Tenjin blurted, making mother smile as she lowered the lever on the fluid pouring into the tube and it picked up the pace, splashing up into Tenjin's face as he coughed, "My pantheon will kill you! Yhwhwa will find you— Hades—" Wrong name to say, because mother's eyes darkened and she curled her lip. She pushed the lever all the way down and the tube filled the rest of the way with clear fluid.

Tenjin choked, the fluid filling his mouth as he desperately started pawing at the glass around him, his eyes panicked and flashing gold, red, blue.

"I think," mother murmured as she came over to watch Tenjin drown in the fluids, his eyelids fluttering as he struggled to stay conscious, "There are much scarier things in the world than Yhwhwa or Hades. Perhaps I should show you exactly what that is." Tenjin's eyes rolled up in his head and he passed out from lack of oxygen, stray bubbles rising up from his lips and nose as he slumped down to the bottom of the tube.

"Jasper," mother called abruptly and I looked up, startled out of my trance of watching Tenjin suffocate, "Can you do me a favor, clean up this mess and make sure he gets back to work? I have another meeting I need to get to that is far more important than listening to this little boy bitch." I frowned, but just nodded as mother vanished and I immediately went to the panel to drain the tube.

The moment it was clear, I opened the test tube and peered down at Tenjin. He was still alive, but unconscious. I dragged him out under the arms and took him to a cot, peeling off his soaked clothes. I paused, noticing for the first time that Tenjin had an interesting star shaped scar on his chest. I passed my fingers over it, and briefly saw an image of Tenjin sitting in a traditional Japanese style futon bed on the floor, holding a knife dripping with blood. His hand was trembling, but he completed whatever it was he intended, because he looked satisfied.

I looked back down at Tenjin's unconscious face, his breathing labored as he tried to get his body to function properly again. Drowning couldn't kill a god, but that didn't mean it was a fucking party to try.

Interesting, I thought at the time.

What was mother fucking with that was so dangerous?

I mean, obviously playing with Beasts and Antichrists was dangerous, but what exactly was so apocalyptic that even Tenjin himself was afraid to mess with?

Something that even scared Yhwhwa.

"Oh, Jasper," Bethany's voice startled me out of my memories and I looked up to see her coming out of the kitchen. I said nothing in greeting to her and she stared back at me. I knew she wanted to ask about D'Angelo, I could see it on the tip of her tongue, but she didn't. She stared at me for a moment longer, then immediately turned tail and went back to her room, slamming the door shut behind her.

I went into the kitchen where mother was sitting at the table, enjoying a bite of blueberry scone.

"Hello, my love," mother greeted me warmly and I came to give her a kiss on the head that made her smile, "I almost didn't expect you."

"Is that why you chose a country with tiny doorways?" I asked, eyeing the doorway I had come through and nearly hit my head on. Mother grinned at that, amused.

"You always were a giant."

"It's in my genetics," I said, which was a joke, but mother didn't seem to like that. Her lips twitched, her eyebrow twitched, and I sensed a moment of hostility, but it didn't last. She was quickly smiling again as she sipped her tea.

"Want some tea?" She asked, showing off her cute flowery mug. I shook my head.

"Nah, I'm a coffee person."

"You're in luck, I have that too," she said, rising to her feet to pour me a cup. I watched her drop a sugar cube in it and stir. "So, tell me, how are my children doing?" I pushed the blood vials onto the table and mother looked positively giddy at that as she hurried over, pushing my coffee to me and in the process spilling some on the table.

Not that she noticed, she was already opening the case and looking at the blood in the vials with fascination.

"Good," I answered her question, watching her study the vials as she slowly sat down, "Polly was asleep when I showed up, so I didn't get a chance to see her, but Kali said she was stable for today. Elias wasn't a fan of his blood draw, but he settled down long enough to allow it. I also got a chance to see Six, and he seems to be doing okay, no meltdowns, no temperament. He's as calm as usual. I still haven't found the location of Three, Four, and Five. Whenever Wren teleports back to wherever it is he's hiding, I can't see it." Mother frowned at that, lowering the vials back into the case to look at me.

"Even in his dreams?" She asked.

"I haven't found him asleep," I admitted, making her tighten up in displeasure, "As soon as he goes back to his place, he's off the radar. Can't reach him via digital trail or even his dreams. The barrier that Viv is providing is untraceable, inaccessible." The only reason I'd been able to send Ryk that dream was through D'Angelo's connection, but now that D'Angelo was dead and suspicious as fuck, he was a dead end when it came to locating the others.

"Perhaps we should strike at the barrier," mother murmured thoughtfully, making me frown at her curiously as she swirled her tea around in her mug, "No, it'll only enrage Hades and trigger a retaliation. He's too quiet. That bothers me. Hades doesn't go quiet for no reason. Have you seen him at all?"

"Just that time he went shopping for Niko," I said and when mother glared at me, I sighed, "Four. You know, it's just a name, it doesn't mean anything—"

"Yes, it does," mother snapped, and I raised an eyebrow at her anger, "It's his way of distancing himself from me. He did it on purpose."

"Mom, I don't think he named himself to specifically spite you."

"It's Four. Of course he did. Everything he does is to spite me," mother said in frustration, rising to her feet, "Fine, whatever, we have Ten's blood. Next time bring me Polly's information as well and we can see where we're at. We may need to go on the offensive this time."

"What do you want me to do?" I asked. Mother hummed as she went to pour herself some more tea and I watched her drop cube after cube of sugar into the thing, stirring thoughtfully.

"For now, keep tailing Wren. Make note of all of their movements. Keep bringing me the samples from the Styx compound. I'm going to visit the Valhalla compound in the morning, so I'll be radio silent for a few days."

"What's in the Valhalla compound?" I asked. Mother just smiled.

"Don't worry your sweet little head, Jasper, mommy can handle it on her own. Just keep up the good work, and please stop getting attached to Nine and Ten," she added, turning to lean back on the counter, taking a sip of tea and she smiled, "They won't be around much longer." I tensed, looking at her, but she didn't seem interested in continuing the conversation.

I wanted to ask what she meant.

What was she going to do to Polly and Elias?

Did it have to do with what was at the Valhalla compound?

I tried not to show my panic. I gave her a nod and rose to my feet, sneaking a kiss to her cheek that seemed to tickle her pink, before I headed back to Styx.

For once, I wish I had just teleported home so I could hide out for a bit. Mother's words panicked me, because I knew she was going to do something to Polly and Elias soon. I was running out of time to protect them, to protect Kali.

But Wren was still out on the town, so I managed to stick to the mission at hand. For now, Polly and Elias were safe with Kali, so I would have to concentrate on my job. Even despite the clawing urge to go running to Polly and Elias. I considered packing them up and just taking them somewhere far away, but it was too late now. Mother would be able to find me, find them, and things would go from bad to worse.

I had to stick to the plan.

At least for now.

So I reined in my control and forced myself to just sit on the edge of a rooftop, watching Wren pick up some things here and there. It looked like he was just running errands, popping into different shops, coming out with a bag or two, then moving on his merry way.

He was certainly a sight for sore eyes, I'd give him that much.

With the warm weather moving in, Wren wasn't wearing his signature leather jacket to hide his skinny frame. He had on a pair of loose lounge pants that billowed around his thin legs and a flowy tank top that didn't really suit him, but given the heat, it made sense. He was looking down at his phone with one hand, trying to brush his hair out of his face, but it was sticking to his forehead with sweat.

I paused to glance at the other people on the street, and while most people were dressed for the heat, none of them were overheated as much as Wren, which meant he was still in heat. I sighed, rising to my feet because it was only a matter of time before he either passed out or started humping the nearest light post.

I reappeared on the ground, changing my clothes into cargo shorts and a ribbed tank top. I slid out a cigarette and lit up, taking a few puffs to make it look like I'd been smoking for a while, before I took the street to accidentally bump into him.

It was easy, too, considering he had his head down, eyes on his phone.

The moment he bumped into me, he made a noise of surprise and jerked his head up, mouth opening as if he were going to apologize, except the moment he saw it was me, those brows slammed down.

I smiled.

Gods, his suspicion was cute. Well placed too.

"Well, hi, Wrenny ol' pal," I greeted.

"Don't call me that," Wren deadpanned, moving to walk past me, but I followed him and watched him roll his eyes. I went to take a peek into his head, to see just how annoyed he was with me, except it was so goddamn noisy today. In fact, the moment I dipped into his head to see what was going on, I had to dip right back out because of the instant headache that spiked in my temples.

"What's wrong with you?" Wren asked dryly without looking at me as I walked beside him. He was pretending to be uninterested, but the fact that he asked meant he was willing to talk to me.

"Heat headaches," I said, making Wren frown at me, "Every so often they hit me and it makes me feel a little sick."

"Maybe you should go home then," Wren pointed out. I grinned at him.

"You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Yes." The way he answered so flatly had me laughing. It was hard not to be amused by him, even with a fucking headache throbbing in my ears.

"Are we running errands for the family today?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Sort of," Wren muttered, making me smile that he had at least eased up enough on his displeasure for me to have a normal conversation, "You know, they ask me for specific shit, like I know what they're talking about, and it's not my cousin's handwriting that's throwing me off this time."

"What's he asking for now?" I asked. Wren paused, then cleared his throat.

"Ah, it's actually for an older cousin," he said, then stopped walking and seemed to be considering whether or not to tell me the truth before he shrugged and went on, "You're an incubus who's been in the community for a while, right?"

"Sure," I said, making Wren scowl at me and I smiled, tapping the side of my head, "I lost my memory of what happened before I arrived in Hades, but I still remember the basics. Why, is it a special something something for your cousin?" Wren flushed, fiddling with his list for a second before he handed it to me without looking at me. I smirked at his shyness, taking the list and looking past the scratched off items.

A bunch of vegan shit, some cologne from a specific store, a special meat substitute from another specific store, a few gardening items, and the last couple items looked like the fun stuff, which made sense why Wren saved it for last.

I could imagine him being shy and embarrassed about asking about the items.

"Ah," I said slowly, "I think I know a shop that has this item." Wren just nodded, still avoiding eye contact with me. I could still feel he was in heat. He was warm, sweaty, flushed, and there was the most delicious sweet smell wafting off of him like a Febreeze plug-in.

"Cool, just take me there, show me what the fuck that is, and I can go home," he said, looking worn out. I nodded and we continued down the street. I'd seen that particular item in a store I happened to browse around my first day in town. It was a very low-key sedate fetish store further down the street from Six Feet Under, the sex shop Wren had visited before.

Interestingly, that shop had this item. In fact, that shop had a couple of these items, but apparently Wren wanted to avoid a place where people knew him. Amused and intrigued, I led Wren to the other shop and we walked in without a bell going off to alert anyone we were inside.

Not that it mattered with the security cameras that I had learned to avoid.

The shop smelled sweet and musky at the same time, and Wren's natural heat pheromones seemed to get drowned out, which was a plus. Luckily, it was just us and two other customers, who were silently browsing elsewhere. I led the way down the aisles to find Wren's item.

"You looking for anything flavored?" I asked. Wren blushed hard.

"It's not for me, it's for my cousin."

"Oh, right, sure," I said and continued to stare at Wren, who glared at me now.

"What?" He demanded.

"Does your, uh, cousin want anything flavored?" I asked. Wren blinked, then averted his eyes.

"Nope. Just regular sensitive skin lube," he mumbled. Even as he said it, he looked flustered and just walked past me to start studying the shelves. I could've easily pointed it out to him, except I wanted to watch him look on his own.

He dropped into a squat to study the labels on the bottles, but I could see that getting down low like that made him dizzy. He held onto the shelf for a minute, pretending he was gonna pull something off, then changed his mind and rose to his feet.

And the moment he did, he teetered and threw his arm out to catch himself on the shelf, only to miss and step back. With incredible ease, I caught him just as he fell back. He instinctively wrapped his arms around my neck to keep from toppling off balance and I lowered him down to the ground as he groaned.

"Hey," I said, looking down at him as he panted for breath, blinking rapidly in an attempt to focus, "Hey, Wren, you good, man?"

"Mm," Wren mumbled against my neck and I smiled as he hid his face there. I could feel his nose rubbing against my neck, sniffing desperately like he was trying to find the scent of my pheromones to ease his heat.

"If you're gonna flirt with me," I murmured, moving my hand up along his back to cup the back of his head, "You should buy me dinner first."

"Fuck you," was his muffled response against my neck. I chuckled and slid my arms underneath him now, hoisting him up off the floor. I stooped to grab his bags as well, which he didn't seem to care about or notice anymore as he just clung to my neck, keeping his face buried there.

He didn't even seem to care that I purchased the last two items on his list on our way out. He just laid there in my arms, letting me carry him around like a princess. It almost brought a smile to my face, except he was still very warm, still very much in heat.

And his pheromones were getting stronger. They were sweeter, and it was probably his curse that was intensifying it.

The moment I stepped outside the shop, I knew it would be a bad idea to walk around with Wren like that. He was going to be a beacon to every horny thirsty motherfucker in the city at the rate he was going. Just being outside for those brief two minutes, I watched eyes all around me swing around to stare intensely at Wren.

It was like walking around with a steak in front of a bunch of wild dogs.

So I teleported to the only place I could think of.

My apartment.

I frankly expected D'Angelo to be there, to throw a fit, to hover and whimper and cry and moan, but weirdly enough, I didn't hear him when we appeared in the apartment. I felt his presence, definitely, but he wasn't speaking. I could tell he was hiding, and I made sure to keep it that way by pulling any power I'd given him away.

No!

I could feel D'Angelo's despair at being magically cockblocked, but the last thing I needed was him running to Wren for help.

Not that Wren was in any shape to help anyone.

By the time I got him on the sofa, he was breathing hard, his hips swiveling up and his fists tightening on the cushions. His creamy skin was heated, flushed red from his chest, up his neck, over his cheeks and nose, his ears. His eyes were glazed over and shimmery, lips wet from constantly licking them, and was that a bit of drool in the corner of his mouth?

Despite being a skinny bean pole, Wren was fucking adorable.

Those dewy dark eyes, pupils blown to hell, staring up at me with a hungry desperation, and it was only made worse by the bulge in his jeans that he kept thrusting in the air, like he was hoping to feel some kind of friction.

For a brief moment, I considered it.

That was my job, wasn't it?

Stalk Wren; in the end, probably trap him forever.

He certainly didn't look like he was in the position to complain. If anything, his gaze was locked on me now as he gripped at the cushions with one hand, his other fisting at his jeans, like he wasn't sure if he wanted them off or not. Except the way he was looking at me, it was like he was begging me to take them off, begging me to get down between his legs.

"Wren," I said, and my voice was rough and husky, making me clear my throat, "Listen, I gotta get outta here, you're making it hard to breath, but you're safe here, alright? Nobody can touch you here." I started to get up to leave, except I felt a grip on the back of my pant leg and turned to see Wren staring up at me breathlessly.

There was no point trying to look into his mind to see what was going on. It was a hot sloppy mess in there and I could just see it in his eyes, see that hunger, that desperation to feel something... to feed.

"Wren," I murmured, putting my hand over his on my pant leg and he stared at the gesture for a moment before looking up at me, "Come on, I gotta leave. Do you want me to call Beni? I, unfortunately, have his number now." I went to take out my phone, surprised when Wren laughed a little and I looked up to see him looking at me.

"He... can't help," Wren managed at last, making me frown, "He... I can't." He dropped his head, but his grip stayed on my pant leg.

"He's your server," I pointed out, "Dude would do anything to make sure you get fed right, so I'm gonna go ahead and call him and maybe he can tide you over long enough to get to The Winged Serpent—"

"No," Wren groaned, and I grimaced as he pulled at my pant leg again, "No, I don't want... to go there. I don't want to go anywhere." He slumped over on the sofa, trying to catch his breath and I sighed, pulling him up by his shoulders to settle him back comfortably on the sofa, except he moaned and put his arms around my shoulders.

I froze.

Ah shit.

"No," came Wren's desperate plea and I grunted as he actually managed to throw me over top of him on the sofa. Okay, that was not an easy feat, especially for a skinny ass person like Wren. I was well over a hundred-fifty kilos, a whopping seven foot. My height was on par with Hades, because that was exactly what mother had wanted from me.

Boy was she gonna be pissed when she found out Wren's tiny ass could throw me.

Even more stunning was the fact that once I had been settled in on top of Wren, he was staring up at me with glazed over eyes, his lips parted as if he were going to plant a fat one right on my mouth.

Fuck, it was tempting.

Worse was the sensation of him grinding his hips up against me, his breath a hot gasp against my face as he struggled to maintain eye contact. His hips bounced up against mine, and damn, his bulge was massaging mine to hardness so fast. I braced my arms on either side of Wren, panting as he moved, his back arching and his lips parting in a moan of relief.

He was practically humping me, his breath coming in sharp pants of wanton relief.

I gritted my teeth.

Don't move. Don't touch him. Just let him do his thing.

I faintly heard Milo's voice in the back of my head.

If there is no consent, there is no sex, Jasper.

Sex without consent is rape.

"Wren, stop," I managed after a moment, pushing down on his chest and Wren gave a strangled, frustrated gasp as the friction abruptly stopped, and honestly my arm felt like jelly as I managed to hold him still, "Stop, I need to call Beni, alright? I am not Beni. It's me... Hex. Remember? The annoying front desk dude who—" Wren didn't seem to be absorbing anything I was saying, because his next move was a frantic smashing of our lips together.

It was like I was being electrified from the inside out.

A gasp escaped my lips, which gave Wren the opportunity to suck my lower lip between his teeth, his fangs teasingly poking the sensitive skin there. I groaned, pushing against the sofa to lift myself away, but Wren's arms went around my neck and pulled me down.

There was nowhere to go.

Wren's heat was like a warm sweet blanket wrapping around us, pulling us closer and closer until I realized I was pressing down against him now. His body undulated against me as he panted against my lips, holding my face there so I couldn't pull away.

"Hungry," Wren murmured against my lips and I groaned as he nipped at my lip, then gently licked the spot, "So hungry, so sweet. You taste so good." I moaned, because I wasn't sure what felt better; the kiss or the praise. It had been so, so long since I felt this level of warmth... acceptance?

I found myself melting into the kiss without thinking about it, because all I could think about was... more. I wanted more, I wanted more of his lips against mine, more of that sweet taste, and I wanted to hear more praise.

I found myself kissing my way down Wren's neck and he moaned, throwing his arms back over his head, like he was opening himself up to me. I took a feverish path down over his collarbone, pausing to lick and suckle one of those tender rosy nipples. He moaned, thrusting his hips up against me and I felt a low growl start in my throat.

Mine. The word was so muffled. I barely heard it. Barely heard Darling growling in my subconscious, urging me to keep going. I fumbled with Wren's jeans as a renewed desperation came through me and Wren had no problem helping me whip the belt off his waist. When he tossed it to the floor, it made a satisfying snapping sound that for some reason resulted in both of us moaning.

"Yes," Wren moaned, his hands sinking into my hair as I kissed his groin, just above his cock that was spilling precum down the sides. It was so erotic, so sexy, especially as his fingers twisted in my hair and pulled— pulled me down around his cock.

I opened my mouth up around him, let him thrust inside, and I felt him graze the back of my throat, but I was pretty good at blowjobs. It had been a long time, but it was like riding a bike. I still had good control of my gag reflex, relaxing my throat around him as he started to thrust his hips up against my face.

It was safe to say he was just face-fucking me, which was fine.

A strange deep sense of pride started to swell up inside me as Wren panted, pulling on my hair as he forced his cock down my throat. I peered up at him, watching him whimper and squirm, almost like he was fighting his pleasure. I wasn't really doing much aside from letting him slam his cock into my mouth, though, so I wasn't sure if it was something I was doing or if something was going on in his head.

Wren's dark eyes flickered open suddenly and he looked down at me, our eyes meeting.

Good... So good, feels so good, is this what this is supposed to feel like—

Wren came with a cry, a cry so sweet and so musical it sent a chill down my spine. I groaned as I felt him shoot his load down my throat, filling me until it spilled from the corners of my mouth. My body tensed, tightened, and it took me a moment to realize I was coming at the same time Wren filled my mouth.

I had come without even being touched.

I slid my mouth off Wren's cock, licking, sucking, and cleaning him the whole way as he moaned, lifting his legs so he could squeeze my head between his thighs for a moment, like he was trying to hold me there. I smiled as I faced the tip of his limp cock, then peered up to see him looking down at me in a daze.

"Yummy," I murmured. Wren looked at me for a moment, still in a daze, but I could see him slowly returning to reality. I could see the focus returning to those dark eyes that widened slowly, felt his thighs falling away from crushing my head, and a slow full body blush spread over his pretty flawless skin.

I didn't say anything, because I knew he was slowly starting to panic. Weirdly, he wasn't scared, just panicked. I expected him to just blow my head off for daring to touch him. Or maybe some curse words, maybe an accusation of some kind, but he just quickly sat up and scrambled to get his jeans up.

I sat back on the sofa to watch him belt his jeans, his fingers and hands trembling as he worked it through the loops. He wasn't looking at me now, and I could tell he was embarrassed.

Oh my god, I heard the faintest of whispers from his mind, holy fuck. No, it wasn't supposed to be like that... It wasn't supposed to... He wasn't supposed to— A thousand other voices suddenly chimed in and I couldn't differentiate between them and Wren, much to my frustration, so I had no idea if he was scared of me or scared of the situation or what.

"Wren," I started, but he was shooting to his feet and snatching up his bags.

"Sorry," Wren blurted, making me frown as I rose to my feet to help, "Sorry, that was an accident, I didn't—"

"I mean, I'm not complaining," I admitted and Wren stopped frantically grabbing his things to stare at the table, like he couldn't believe what he was hearing and he suddenly turned to stare at me.

"I forced my dick down your throat," he said, making me blink in surprise. He looked away, grabbing the rest of his things, "I'm sorry." I wasn't sure what was more surprising, the fact that he thought he forced anything on me and the apology. Last I checked, the guy wasn't one of my fans, so to think he'd apologize to me, he clearly felt guilty, except he shouldn't.

"Hey," I said, reaching for him and catching his arm, but he refused to look at me now, "None of what happened just now was forced. At least, not on your part." Wren stared at the floor, then shut his eyes tightly for a moment, his teeth gritted. He looked like he wanted to argue that.

"Hey," I said again, this time moving in front of him and he went to turn his face away, but I captured it in my hands and was surprised he let me touch him, let me tilt his face up toward mine so he was staring up at me with those big brown eyes, "If anyone should be apologizing, it should be me. I shouldn't have just ran off with you like that."

"You were trying to keep me safe," Wren said, which surprised me because I was actually expecting him to accuse me of kidnapping him, "If I stayed in that district any longer, I would've..." His voice trailed. He didn't want to think about it, and for some reason, the very thought that Wren could have been alone in that street, full of predators...

Mine, Darling's vicious growl caught me off guard, and I immediately let go of Wren's face to step back. He looked at me curiously. I cleared my throat uncomfortably.

"Well, you're safe now," I said at last, making Wren frown as I moved away from him now, "That's all that matters." I could feel Wren's eyes on me as I went to the small galley kitchen to get a bottle of water, grabbing a new pack of smokes from the nearby drawer.

"Are you sure," Wren asked after a moment and I looked up to see him near the door with his bags, frowning at me.

"Sure what?" I asked. Wren stared.

"Are you sure I didn't force you to do any of that?" He asked. I raised an eyebrow.

"Nobody forces me to do anything," I answered and he frowned at that, and so did I, because that was weirdly defensive, so I sighed, "No, you're fine, Wren. I'm not offended or some shit. I'm just glad you finally got something in your system." Wren flushed.

"I wasn't starving."

"Beg to differ," I said dryly, leaning on the counter to crack open the bottle as Wren rolled his eyes, opening the door, "Hey, maybe Beni would like it if you face-fucked him too." I didn't get a vocal answer, but when I looked up, Wren was slamming the door shut behind him loudly, clearly offended by my comment. I smirked a little as I took my cigarettes and drink to the small balcony window.

I peeked outside to see Wren leaving the building as I lit up another cigarette.

Weirdly, I wasn't a fan of the taste now that I had the taste of Wren in my mouth.

I put out the cigarette and set the pack aside as I watched Wren stand around for a while longer, staring at the ground. I couldn't hear any of his thoughts, just tons of voices overlapping along with the usual activity of the city.

He teleported away a moment later.

And I licked the leftovers of him from my lips.

In the deep recesses of my subconscious, I heard Darling stirring.

Mine.