Page 31 of Thanatos' Craving

“Does my answer displease you?” he asked.

“It's just weird.”

Athena snickered behind him. She covered her mouth and took her robe and walked to the mouth of the cave. “Goodbye, Juniper. Take care of him.”

Hold up, she can’t leave me here with tall, dark, and broody!

“I heard that.” Thanatos sighed.

Damn it.

“Sorry! I can’t stop it sometimes!” I pressed my finger to my forehead and tapped it three times.

A cold, hard bone wrapped around my wrist and gently pulled it away.

“Don’t do that,” he grumbled. “Do not damage what I try to repair.” His body hovered over my five-foot-eleven frame. He seriously engulfed me and made me feel so tiny.

I swallowed, letting the chilling touch run down my arm and down my spine. Why did it feel so electrifying, making me feel alive rather than feel the harsh coldness of death?

He cleared his throat, letting go and backing away. “Why do you find it weird that I use my mind?”

“Yeah! That!” I pointed at him. “It's just weird that your mind told you to do something. People usually say their heart tells them to do something. Your mind is logical, your heart is not. So are you telling me you logically saved me? You didn’t follow your heart? Some part of you deep inside said, ‘you need to save this mortal!’” I kneeled, bringing my arms up like I’m holding the world in my arms, being completely over dramatic.

Beastie huffed, his maw widening, showing off razor-sharp teeth, and he pranced around me, waving his cat-like tail. I could see the smile, the playfulness in his movements, but Thanatos? He was stone cold–well, bone cold, I suppose. I couldn’t get a read on him.

Could he laugh, smile? What a terrible way to live!

I hadn’t felt more alive since—ever. Could be because of that tea, though.

I waited longer for a response, and when it didn’t come, I stood back to my full height and put my hands on my hips. “Well, why did you save me, God of Death?”

“Logically, yes, I saved you for a purpose. Your intel will help me shut down Fuzzy Bunnies and other strip clubs just like it. I’ll be able to succeed in Lord Hades and his Queen’s mission to take out sex trafficking efforts on earth.”

The butterflies that once fluttered in my stomach that made me feel special all but died.

As noble as it sounded, as great as it was that gods wanted to take out the trafficking and help humans, tiny humans that are in trouble every day, I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. It was a stupid thing to think anyway, right? A god liking a human for who they are, that was just silly.

Gods, that was a stupid way to think. I probably had that tingly feeling because he was what he was. A god.

He probably gave everyone the tingles when they touch him.

“I guess you thought with your mind, then.” I tried to hide my disappointment. “You saved me, and I thank you and I’ll do my best to help you with the information you want and help you with your lack of emotion problem Athena said you have.”

That was a little jabby jab there but take that.

Thanatos stood there quietly, his face hidden beneath his hood. I could sense the weight of his thoughts, the heaviness of his burden, as if he carried the weight of the entire world on his shoulders. The silence stretched between us, and I couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy for him.

Never feeling happiness? That sucks.

Finally, he spoke in a voice so low that it sent shivers down my spine. “It is true,” he admitted, his words laden with melancholy. “I lack emotions. My duty as the God of Death has stripped me of such luxuries. I wish to feel them, even though muted.”

My heart sank at his words. To be devoid of emotions was a fate I wouldn’t wish upon anyone. It was a curse, a prison from which there seemed to be no escape. I stepped closer to him and closed the distance between us.

“But you are more than just your duty,” I whispered, reaching out to touch his arm.

I didn’t get the zing I felt earlier with his boned hand, but the urge to touch him, to feel something from him, was irresistible. I let my fingers linger on his arm, hoping to evoke some kind of response, some flicker of emotion that would break through hisstoic facade. But he remained unmoved, his eyes hidden beneath the shadow of his hood.

“I envy you, yet I don’t,” he blurted, his voice filled with bitterness. “To feel emotions, to experience joy and happiness... It is a luxury that I lost long ago.”

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