Page 18 of Fated

“There was also a protection keeping us out of your house, and we were running out of time, so Ash used his compulsion on your neighbor, Mrs. Andrews.” He paused as if recalling something. “What a delightful lady.”

He smiled to himself.

“Whatdid Ash make her do?” My voice cracked, barely above a whisper.

“Oh yeah, so Ash had her kill your mom and then make it look like you did it. The blood you woke up covered in, it wasn’t even your mom’s. Mrs. Andrews just popped a blood bag over you and led a trail to your mom’s door.” He chuckled. “The cops would have figured it out eventually, but we needed you out of that house with those bracelets off your hand as soon as possible. Ash gambled you weren’t one to refuse an officer.”

He shrugged, then smiled at me as if to say,anything else you want to know?

The pounding in my ears was deafening, and my vision, quite literally, turned red, channeling all my rage at Calyx. Never had I imagined it possible to feel hatred this intense—for Calyx, for Ash, for everything they had taken from me.

“You … You had my mother killed, just so I’d take off a piece of jewelry?”

My voice was breaking, copious tears streaming down my face.

Calyx shrugged, seeming genuinely surprised at my strong reaction.

Monsters. Ash and Calyx are fucking monsters.I wiped away the snot and tears running down my face, my body shuddering in a state between rage and grief.

“What does your king want with me? What was so important that my mother needed to die?”

“Look—the whole ‘we killed your mother’ thing—it’s nothing personal. I even kind of like you, but you’re a threat to our race, and the king wanted you brought to him before you could settle.” He stood up, walked over to the fridge, and pulled out a bottle of water.

I stared at him in disbelief. “You’re implying you’re not human?”

That stupid fucking grin was back.

He took a couple of steps toward me before suddenly, something massive and black flashed through my field of vision. I jerked back instinctively, my breath catching in my throat, drinking in the sight before me. Jutting out from Calyx’s back was a pair of colossal membranous wings as black as night, stretching wide and casting vast shadows over the room.

My hand shot to my mouth. I was horrified and awestruck.

The wings were the most terrible yet beautiful things I had ever seen, each glistening wing larger than my entire body, exuding a power almost tangible in the air.

And in that moment, my entire world shifted on its axis, never to be the same.

“Does this look human to you?” Calyx asked, his grin widening. Before I could respond, the wings vanished as swiftly as they had appeared.

The door opened, and Ash walked through it.

I detested the part of myself that was forced to feel relieved at his return. I glared at him with pure, undiluted hatred as tears streamed down my face. He raised an eyebrow in return.

“You’re a fucking monster!” I spat at him right before two gorgeous women walked in behind him. Calyx—seemingly forgetting everything that had just happened—offered the women a giant grin. He walked over to the first woman, a dark-haired beauty with warm golden skin and almond-shaped eyes. Her short, sparkly blue dress hugged her curves and plunged low to accentuate her generous cleavage. He took her hand, pulling her to his lap on the arm of the couch as she giggled, oblivious to the tension in the room.

The second woman looked unsure. She was equally beautiful, with long blonde hair, fair skin, and soft delicate features. Unlikethe first, she wore a modest, simple black dress stopping just above her knees. She glanced at me with a shy smile, suddenly making me extremely uncomfortable. I tried to ignore the cold, unforgiving way with which Ash was glaring at me.

I stood up abruptly. “I’m going to bed.”

Before I could take a single step, Ash’s expression darkened, a wicked grin creeping across his face. I tried to swallow down my fear, knowing nothing good could come from that look.

“Areya dear, meet Krissy and Sophie.” He gestured to the women. Hesitantly, I gave them a small, forced smile as Ash stepped closer to the blonde—Krissy—and ran a finger down the side of her face, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. “Krissy has brought you something nice to wear.” He smirked. Krissy’s body visibly stiffened. “Krissy, give Areya your dress.”

Krissy’s eyes widened as she stumbled over her words. “Actually,” she began, her voice shaky, “I really have to get going.”

Ash cut her off as he spoke with a chilling authority.

“Krissy, Take off your dress and hand it to Areya.”

Krissy’s eyes widened in terror, but she didn’t hesitate, gingerly stepping out of the dress. Only wearing a black laced bra and matching underwear, she walked over to where I stood, holding the dress out to me with a trembling hand.

---