Page 11 of Legendary

I held the beer bottle so tight that I could almost hear it start to crack.Reese bumped his shoulder into mine. I rapidly blinked a few times, pulling myself out of my angry thoughts, not even realizing he had gotten up from the couch and stood up next to me. I looked over at him and watched as his eyes bounced from my face down to the bottle currently in a chokehold.

“Are you sure you’re okay? Where did you just go?” Reese whispered, inclining his head towards me.

“What are you talking about?”

He looked at me like I had just asked the world’s dumbest question. “You just zoned out two minutes ago, Nick. You should be happy I’m the only one that noticed.”

“I’m fine. Can you literally stop asking me if I’m okay?” I rolled my shoulders and softened my grip on my beer.

My best friend reached down and snatched the bottle from my hand. I didn’t have time to grab it back before he was water-falling the remaining contents into his mouth. “Whatever you want, but I won’t have you breaking poor innocent bottles because you won’t talk to someone about your shit.” He wiped his mouth, giving me a cheeky smile.

Daya’s small gasp and choked voice had both of us looking over to where Dani had obviously finished her retelling of the events. My father was at her side immediately, cradling her in his arms. She let him hold her and her shoulders relaxed a bit.

She tucked a piece of her hair behind her ear, swallowing. “A demon, angel baby? You don’t mean that Layla…” She stopped talking as she covered her mouth. Alex shot her head up and immediately reached out to grab her mother’s hand. “She really was the start to this whole thing. I really didn’t want to believe it.”

“Whose Layla?” I asked no one in particular.

Dani looked over at me, her lips pressed together tightly. The minute she heard Daya clear her throat she shot her eyes back over to her.

Daya squeezed her daughters’ hand and let go, patting the tears away from underneath her eyes and straightened her shoulders. “Layla is my cousin. She was killed in that grand fight that Isaac Zuriel started all those years ago.” I could hear Alex tapping the end of her pencil nervously against the sketch pad, as if she was anxious about what was going to be said.

“What does your cousin have to do with any of this?” I pressed.

My father kissed her temple, as if he was telling her it was okay to let it out, whatever it was she seemed to be harboring. Something that clearly by the look on Dani’s face, she knew about.

“That baby that Markus spoke about. The halfling child. That was my cousin’s baby.” She took a breath as if that small amount of information took all her energy out.

“Mom, you don’t have to…” Alex started, but Daya shook her head, appearing to be okay with explaining what she could.

Reese rubbed the side of his head with his index and middle finger. “Wait, wait. Your cousin had a baby with a demon, which Lilith killed, therefore starting that entire war. Jonah’s father going nuts, Markus losing his girlfriend, all of it?”

Daya nodded.

“And you knew?” I asked this directly to Dani, who cut her gaze to me.

“It’s not my story to tell.” She shrugged.

“Why would Lilith even do that? It doesn’t make sense.”

Elise hummed around her spoonful of ice cream. “Of course, it does, you fucking idiot.”

I clenched my teeth together as every head in the room swiveled around to look at her.

My father raised his dark eyebrows at her. “Care to explain.”

Elise licked her spoon, stuffing it into the now empty pint of ice cream. “Sure. Anything for you, Mr. Cassial.” She winked over at him, and I noticed him trying to hold in a chuckle. Daya looked as if she didn’t know whether to be protective of my father or just laugh.

Elise sighed heavily before she let her tongue loose and started rambling about how hybrids were super powerful, that they could be lethal if not given proper nurturing and attention. She explained to us that Lilith had told her that creating a hybrid would be better suited than having stolen one.

“I didn’t know what she meant by any of it, but I didn’t ask much more than that. It honestly fucking baffles me because Lilith never really dirties her own hands like that. I just continued babysitting this ungrateful little shit over here.” She nodded over to Dani.

Dani’s eyes turned into slits as she seethed on the couch. She swung her head towards Elise. “You really want to have this conversation now? Would you like another fight? Perhaps this time I can actually run this through your fucking face.” Dani brought her hand out and manifested her dagger in her hand. The sleek blade looked shiny and untouched. It glinted in the sunlight coming from the window. Each point of the razor slits wafting with darkness, and it nestled around her as if it was happy to be back where it belonged.

Dani was nearly halfway to jumping over the couch when I rushed over to her and grabbed her by the waist, causing her to land on the couch cushion with a soft thud. Her mass of curls settled around her shoulders, while random curls landed in her face. She let out a breath, blowing those curls out of her line of sight. The dagger was lying delicately next to her and she reached for it, letting it disappear once it fit in her grasp.

She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, clearly irritatedwith my meddling. If she wanted to fight like they did in Oculus, they sure as hell wouldn’t be doing it in my house. I looked over at my father whose deep brown eyes were narrowed. It was like he wasn’t seeing that I just de-escalated a potential natural disaster, it was more like he was seeing me standing over a girl that I tried not to mention because the sound of her name made my chest hurt.

And my dick.

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