Page 99 of His Coveted Obsession

“Y-you killed him?”

“I did. Ever since the death of my parents, I’ve been surrounded by criminals. Malik, Sully, Dante, Maverick, Khai, Easton… They were all forced into a world they didn’t want to be in. Sully is one of the few who truly embraces who he is, but he’s also a psychopath.”

All I could focus on was Easton. “Yeah, his parents were really bad, he said.”

“Did Easton tell you how? Or what happened?”

I shook my head. “He just said they hurt him and were dead. That he was glad of it. Sid… why are you here?”

He tilted his head, nodded, and smiled. “Two things. I need to make sure you don’t turn us in. It’s vital we retain our anonymity, for obvious reasons. If anyone who wants us dead knows of your connection to us, they’ll eliminate you. It’s also foryourprotection. I don’t want to threaten you, but if it’s between you and us, well…”

“I-I figured. I swear, I won’t tell anyone. You all saved Annie and me. No way would I hurt you like that. Plus, I love Easton. I couldn’t do that to him, either. He’ll always protect me.”

“With his life, it seems. And that brings me to the second reason I’m here. We talked a little about how Easton is last time, but I don’t think you understand the full scope.”

I swallowed the growing lump in my throat and bounced my knee. “There’s more than being neurodivergent and… what he does for a living, isn’t there?”

“Yes. It’s not my story to tell, but he has antisocial personality disorder. He hasn’t been clinically diagnosed, but all the… signs are there.”

“That’s sociopathy? I learned that in my psychology class. That’s what he has? God… poor Easton.”

Sid suddenly laughed. “Well, yes, poor because he was made that way. But I’m not sure he feels bad about who and what he is. For him, he just is, and he likes who he is. Easton doesn’t care because he can’t. It’s not his being on the spectrum that inhibits his empathy. Neurodivergent people are quite capable of empathy, and some even have heightened empathy. It’s his ASPD that keeps him from that.”

“I… This leaves me more to think about.”

“It does. If you choose to stay with him, life won’t be easy. Easton can be… difficult sometimes. You have to know how to redirect him and get him to focus. Most of the time, he’s steady and centered. But there are times he can fly off the handle without a moment’s notice.”

God, I studied the behavior, but I hadn’t even recognized it in Easton.

“It’s not Easton’s fault.”

“Of course not,” I said.

“Regardless, Easton is really taken with you. He listens to you because he trusts you. You give him all that he craves, and he’s been very lonely for a long time. You’ve filled his void and have made him happy. He’ll literally do anything for you.”

My eyes watered, not only because of the news I’d just received, but because Sid was telling me how Easton still felt about me, and the guilt gnawed at me for needing to be alone to thinkabout things. Despite it all, I was still a little afraid of him, and a little bit more so, since I learned he had ASPD.

“I’m concerned that if you end things, he won’t…”

“He won’t just let me go,” I finished for him.

“Yes. I reiterate what I said before. He cannot love you back.”

“But I still love him, Sid. So much. He’s amazing in so many ways. And I disagree that he can’t love me back. He does… in his own way. I was reminded of that last night.”

Sid tilted his head and smirked curiously. “How so?”

“Strangely, it was from watching Sully and Malik. When you told he was a psychopath, the memory just clicked for me. Last night, after Sully was wounded, Malik had scolded him, but it soon turned to affection. I saw it in their eyes. Sully loves him, too… that sweet kiss he gave Malik. I am sure he also expressed it in his own way. Easton is everything. One thing about him that he’ll never do is lie to me. I’ve talked about this before, but I will always know where I stand with him. He knows how much I crave that and gives it to me. His taking care of me and meeting my needs is his love language. He doesn’t have to. He chooses to.”

“He does it to keep you to meet his own needs.”

“I understand that. But this goes back to the same argument I’ve made. Love is about give and take. He meets my needs, and I meet his. I don’t need declarations of love, flowers, or date nights. I love what he gives me and how he gives it to me. It’s more than those superficial things. At the end of it, he does it to keep me. In other words, hewantsme.”

“Fair enough.”

“But I’m not going to lie. All that death scared me. I’m also struggling with killing someone… like a lot. I never want to go through that again. I guess therapy is out of the question, huh?”

Sid shrugged. “It’s not the best idea, but I empathize with you. I really do. Let me talk to Malik. Perhaps we can find someone we trust to speak with you and Annie. Luca needed help at the time, and we never gave it to him for the same reasons, but he also never asked for it, seemingly content with what Dante offered.”

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