Page 46 of God of War

Ares tosses my balled up napkin at me and I laugh. I feel like I owe him more than a joke. There’s a tug inside me, a tug to say something real. I stall, rolling my lips between my teeth.

“Everyone at school — before I dropped out, anyway — they’d do stuff like that. I never did.”

“Why not? You didn’t like fun?”

I shrug. “I didn’t like people. People... stare and whisper. They judge you. It was just easier to stay away. Besides, with my dad being who he is, either they were afraid I was a narc, or their parents were afraid I was a bad influence. Couldn’t really win.”

The silence settles between us, heavy and sour with the mention of Dad.

“Why is your sister with your aunt?”

My eyes snap to his, narrowing quickly. “Why? Has Lilly called?” I grab my chair and drag it closer. Beneath the table, my knees bracket one of his, the denim scraping against my bare skin.

“You’d tell me, if she did. Not just hide it from me because it makes your life easier, right?”

Ares holds his hands up in surrender. “Whoa, calm down. It’s just a question.”

It doesn’t feel like just a question. Not when it comes to Lilly. The only good thing left in my life. My eyes stay narrowed, assessing him, but I take a breath. There’s no reason to lie.

“Dad’s sister keeps her most of the time. Has for a few years now.”

“Why?”

“Why do you think? To keep me in line.” I look down and flick my thumbnail against the edge of the table, bitterness rising in my throat. “I get to see her if I’m good.”

Ares makes a noise that I don’t comprehend. When I look up at him, I realize the noise isn’t coming from him. He’s gripping the arms of his chair so hard that the wood is groaning. His knuckles are pure white.

“Aunt Judith, she’s Dad’s sister. She doesn’t really like kids, but he sends her checks every now and then so she puts up with it. When Lilly was born and Mama—” I swallow hard, my throat going tight, “— My mom died, he said it was too much, taking care of both of us. So Aunt Judith took Lilly in. But Lilly’s growing up now and I think the old bat’s finally sick of her, so Dad agreed to take her back full time.”

“When?” Ares asks.

“A couple of weeks,” I reply carefully. My lips tremble and I press them together tightly for a moment. I don’t want to talk about this.

“I’m scared.”

I say the words, yet they don’t feel like mine. It’s like they’re sentient, have been growing inside me for so long that they’ve come alive and have their own desire to be free.

“I’m scared,” my lips say again. “That Dad’s taking Lilly back to replace me, because he can’t control me anymore.”

God, when did my mouth get so dry? I reach for Ares’ beer and he lets me take it. Watches me take a long gulp. When I slam it back on the table, I’m resolute.

“When she gets here, I’m taking her away. We’re leaving and we’re never coming back.”

18

Delaney

Ares doesn’t say anything. He just stares. Those cold, storm gray eyes bore into me. Heat prickles over my skin, followed by a bone-deep chill that makes me feel like he’s tearing at my seams, pulling me open and studying my insides. Seeing all the ugly, dirty parts of me that I don’t want him to know about.

“Anything else for you two?”

Shan’s already taking my plate and the empty beer bottle, not acknowledging that it’s on my side of the table. I offer her a strained smile.

“I’m good.”

“And you, handsome?”

Handsome. She called him handsome.

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