Page 130 of Loving the Liar

Fuck.

Turning around, I know I have to walk back to the hospital, but it’s too hard to move after what happened. I can’t go looking for him.

I’m stuck, hesitating on the spot until a blacked-out SUV drives toward me, stopping right where I am. I step off the road, walking backward toward the forest as two men get out. A terror like no other grips me. I know this isn’t good. That eerie feeling that has been following me for weeks is back.

“Aphrodite,” one says. “You failed to commit to your duties.”

I put a shaky hand in front of me. “Don’t come closer.”

“Your presence is required at the temple, and you will suffer the adequate punishment from the Shadows.”

“Wait.” I step back as one of them approaches with a syringe. “Wait, please. Help!”

He’s too quick. A prick at my neck and the forest is blurry a few seconds later. And then everything disappears.

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chris

Forever Young - Henry Morris

Iundo the top button of my black shirt and pull at the sleeves of my suit jacket. The last place I want to be tonight is the temple, but Eugene Duval called and said I had a meeting with him. He didn’t sound happy. Tough. I’m not too happy either. Ella ran away, trying to throw whatever remnants of love she had for me in my face.

It’s not the fact that she doesn’t want me that angers me. It’s not even that she doesn’t have faith in me. I can fix that. I can not give her a choice. I do what I want with her.

But what really gets to me is that she wants to make me believe she can live without me. It’s the delusion that she can move on. She can’t. She never will because I won’t let her. She underestimates my obsession, and she puts people in danger with that mindset. She puts herself in danger. Because the further she tries to run, the tighter her leash becomes. And the harder she tries to escape, the more creative I have to get to make her see I am her only option if she wants to live a peaceful life.

She’ll tire before I do, I can guarantee that.

I huff as I enter the temple, nodding to the butler opening the door for me. In my right pocket, I play with a pearl, rolling it between the pad of my thumb and forefinger. In my left, I have Ella’s phone. I’m mad at her that she left without it. I can’t contact her, and I can’t make sure she’s safe. She’ll be punished for that. I’m going to call on her as an Aphrodite, lock her in a room with me, and show her what happens when she makes me worry.

Going up the grand staircase, I ignore my phone buzzing in my suit jacket. It’s Megan. I know it’s her because only she calls ten times in a row. She pushes and pushes until my mind breaks and all I want is to see her dead body on the floor, staring vacantly at the ceiling.

With a nod at the security guard outside of Duval’s office, he opens the door for me.

“Christopher.”

Eugene Duval is charming for his age. A fifty-something with broad shoulders, salt-and-pepper hair, and the same glacial gray gaze he gave his son, Achilles. As the president of the Silent Circle, he earned the name Zeus. Nothing here happens without his knowledge or approval. Nothing anywhere happens without his knowledge. I can only assume why I’m here, and I don’t think I’m wrong in thinking I’m about to get a serious telling off.

I don’t really care.

The Circle tried to kill my father. I had to use Megan’s family’s influence to stop them. I have no loyalty to them. I’m here because it’s an advantage, not because I have any affinity with them. I’m only one man; I can’t take down the Circle, but I can surely use it for my own interest.

“Eugene,” I say in greeting. I pinch the legs of my pants as I sit down and rest my ankle on my knee. “What can I do for you?”

He relaxes in his seat, putting the pen he was holding on his desk, and smiles patiently.

“It really isn’t my favorite thing to bring in a Shadow to remind them of the rules, but sadly, as your leader, it’s something I sometimes have to do.” He pauses, as if giving me a second to start getting scared.

When I give him nothing, he continues.

“I like to think of the Circle as a safe place for all of you. Somewhere you can ask for favors, fulfill dark fantasies, find a family.” With a sigh, he shakes his head. “But we all have a mission here. We all have to make ourselves useful. Mostly, we all need to know our place. Isn’t that right?”

Keeping a calm demeanor, I join my hands, resting them on my stomach. “Naturally.”

“I’m glad we agree. And you know why we have you in the Circle, don’t you?”

“I do.”

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