Page 19 of Buried Secret 295

My beast growls at him, not wanting to switch back. My eyes look at the other man. “Simon will not hurt Salem. I need your eyes on me.” Except my eyes don’t leave Simon’s. “Look at me,” He says with more force. With a huff, I look at him while my nose crinkles with annoyance. His gaze and body language are tense. His palm is out as if he is trying to soothe me as he pushes his emotions toward me. Constantine’s emotions don’t leak often. He seems to be constantly holding them back from me. It seems as if he is forcing them to me so I can feel them. “I won’t let anything happen. Salem has you now. Nobody is trying to cage you. Between you and me….” His voice lowers, and he looks back at Simon. “...he is a bit of a bitch. We can take him.”

I can hear Simon scoff, and I growl at him, stopping him from saying anything more. “Plus, that was one of your first runs. I am sure you’re hungry. You can bite him.” My body leans, trying to look around Constantine, and he makes a ticking sound. “Not as you. Salem can bite him.”

My beast flinches back and lets out a snort. I feel she is giving in and shifting back. This shift is less painful than the one before. It almost feels as if my body is sucking inwards before snapping back together. Constantine turns his back to me, letting me have my privacy before throwing a robe over his shoulder. I slip the robe over my body. The lifting of my limbs feels exhausting. My muscles and bones seem to ache as I shift my limbs around.

I tie the robe around my waist and roll onto my back, groaning. “I hope the next shift feels better than this because I feel like shit.”

“Is this the reason you wanted me to come here? To be a snack for Salem after a shift.” Simon’s tone is teasing, at least. I’ve been trying not to use my empathic gifts. Yet, I reach outand only feeling curiosity coming from Simon. Maybe a bit of nervousness, but seeing someone shift might do that to anyone.

“I mean, it would be the gentleman’s thing to do. Don’t give me that look. We have discussed my rules.” He shrugs before adding. “I don’t have my supplies. She needs blood with powerful magic to refill.” As much as I want to argue with him, I can’t find it in me. The blood bags back in the realm of dreams have little to no magic inside them. It does little to replenish, but those with power in their blood don’t like to share that with others.

As Simon walks over to me, he stops before Constantine and points at him. “You called me powerful. No take-backs.”

Simon extends his wrist to me, and I slowly sit up, grabbing his wrist and biting down. My eyes close as his power hits my tongue. I don’t want to stop, but I know I need to as I break away and seal his wrist. My eyes look up into his. “Thank you.”

He nods before tilting his head and lowering his hand for me to take. I snap up and look at Constantine. “Am I a wolf?”

“No, that would be too normal, and you’re anything but normal. We need to research, but you are a Midnight Beast. There has only been a handful over the centuries.”

“Am I like a yeti? I ran on four legs, though?” I ask because it’s not every day you change into a beast.

“Think if a wolf had a baby with a grizzly bear and got launched into the stars for a while,” Simon responds, and I didn’t think his imagination would have allowed him to develop something so imaginative.

“So, I look badass?” My eyes go between the two, and my beast practically purrs inside my head at the praise.

“Super badass.” Constantine agrees.

Chapter fourteen

Today, Constantine and Igo into battle, or maybe we should start referring to it as a dispute. He is being dramatic about how today will go, although I know I should admit he is probably right. Since I found out that Marcus would be there, all I feel is dread. They are the ministry; why couldn’t he send a member of his office? It has to either be to fuck with me, or he has something up his sleeve. I don’t know how I will react to being in the same room as him. Emotional situations and me aren’t a great combination.

I continue to train myself with my routine that I did with 203 every day. My body feels antsy, wanting to fight again. I miss the adrenaline rush that came with the physical fighting. It also didn’t help that I was good at it. Actually, I was great at it. Monica has helped me create almost a dream simulation system where I can battle monsters she creates. I don’t want to lose myedge. Plus, it reminds me I have faced more terrifying things than Marcus, at least visually more frightening things.

This nervous energy has not been helping my productivity for the day. I feel like I need to be doing something, yet all I have been doing today is working with Monica on my appearance. She has made my curls look even better than what my spelled hair usually looks. I need her to write down how she did this because it makes me feel more like me. After doing my makeup, she slipped me into the suit she custom-made. The midnight blue fabric has pinstripes adorning the pants and coat. A silky cream-colored shirt with custom heels completes the look.

I feel terrified when we stand side by side outside the gothic-style building that looms ahead. We are about to meet with them, and I know they have weeks to plan. Marcus and his team have the moves to change and bend the laws to their will. They can file paperwork to make my life hell and have us playing catch-up, leaving us behind.

Constantine gives me a tight smile. His shoulder playfully collides with mine, which helps snap me from my thoughts. “We are going to get through this,”he tells me as he opens the door, holding it open for me.

“If you say so.” I walk ahead and sway slightly before righting myself as I open the second set of doors. My heels click against the tiled floors as I straighten myself, trying to stand taller.

When I sway again, and my ankle tries to buckle under, Constantine reaches out and loops his arm in mine, steadying me. “Not that I care what you wear, but why the heels?”

I drop my voice so it’s slightly above a whisper. “They are special shoes, so if we have to stab someone in the face, we can.” Monica helped me make them. Each one has blades within, so if I feel stabby, I am accommodated.

Constantine scoffs, and his grip tightens. “Peter needs to step up his suit game. None of my shit is that cool.” He tilts his head at me and smiles. “I look pretty damn good, though.”

My heels click against the tiled floor as we approach Conference Room 101. “Do we need a lawyer? This feels like we need a lawyer.”

“Not now, but I might need one in the future. I believe Simon is going to be a litigator of this meeting. Dean Campbell is also supposed to, but who knows where his allegiance will lie.” His words sound ominous, yet calm. I feel nervous but pull that back, faking confidence I don’t feel.

“Now or never,” I tell him as we reach the door. Constantine opens the heavy wood door and motions for me to enter. He is close behind, probably ready to catch me if I fall.

When my eyes scan the room, I want to leave. Instead, I straighten my spine and pull my shoulders back, acting like a confident woman, even though I feel like the scared little 13-year-old who got dragged out of her home by the large man sitting at the end of the table. My eyes take in Marcus, whose golden eyes narrow, yet his lips curl into a smile.‘Gotcha’.’ His voice enters my mind, and I am even more terrified of how this meeting will go.

A stunning woman with long, wavy blonde hair sits beside Marcus. Her face visibly pales when she looks at me. Marcus reaches down when he sees my eyes on her. A wince appears on her face; one that you would have missed if you weren’t watching for it. Looking at her, I can’t feel anything for the woman. I spent all that time thinking about her and her actions in my metal cell. Now, I could almost laugh as I realized that Dr. Vic might have set me free from wanting this woman in my life. Her regret hits me in my chest, but I don’t let it affect me. She doesn’t deserve my pity, and I can’t find it myself to care about her. My mother might not be a complete monster, but she is as guilty as Marcus.She had to expect there was a large chance I wasn’t Marcus’s kid. Yet did nothing to protect me, an innocent 13-year-old girl.

Constantine stiffens when he sees her, but nothing else. “Dean Campbell. Simon.” Constantine nods to the two men in the center of the table. Dean Campbell has salt and pepper hair with a matching goatee. He looks tired as he sees us enter, his hands steeple. Our seats were across from Marcus and my mother, and we made it there without incident. Constantine nods his head to my mother as he sits down. “Kiera.” Marcus looks like he is about to say something. Constantine sits ridged, and I feel his anger vibrate off of him. I haven’t thought about how hard this might be for him. Much like a rubberband snapping, he slaps the top of the table. He claps his hands as he stands, motioning to Marcus. “Well, I tried! I came in here wanting to be reasonable and make some progress. But the man is impossible! Just look at his smug fucking face!” He slaps the table once again and takes a breath. He leans forward onto the table and glares at Marcus. His voice comes off calm, but a little condescending.“Seriously, Marcus, is this whole thing necessary? Are you so bored that you need to harass a teenage girl?”

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