Page 54 of Property of Mako
“Enough, you two!” Killswitch boomed. “You’re goddamn brothers. Act like it!”
Pretending to be gruff after being properly chastised, I fell back in my seat and scowled.
Yeah, my gut already told me the bastard wearing the treasurer’s patch was about to hang himself.
Chapter 25
Bloodlines
Lyra
Two days later, Lily and I were sitting outside the clubhouse, the late afternoon sun dipping low, throwing golden light across the stretch of grass behind the fence. The neighbor’s horses grazed lazily off to one side, their calm presence easing the knot in my chest. For the first time since I’d been dragged into Calix’s world, I almost felt… safe.
Then the air shifted.
Calix had told me we would be safe behind the building as long as we didn’t leave the enclosed compound. There were two prospects standing guard just in case.
The armed security fence that circled the property hummed faintly, its wards shimmering just beneath the surface. But in a swirl of smoke and shadows, a tall figure simply stepped through as if the barrier were tissue paper.
Haidyn.
The horses galloped away, neighing nervously. My stomach dropped. Lily stiffened beside me. When I glanced toward the prospects, I was stunned to see them both standing there as if they were frozen in a block of ice.
“Well,” he drawled, brushing a speck of ash off his immaculate coat. “I must say, the Kings’ security is adorable. Fences. Guns. Charms. Like a toy fort children might build.” His smile was wolfish and sharp enough to cut glass. Then he chuckled darkly. “But they don’t stop me.”
I stood, pulling Lily slightly behind me, even though I knew it was useless. “What do you want?”
His eyes slid over me, hot and knowing, before settling on Lily with a faint smirk. “Relax. If I wanted either of you gone, you’d already be ashes on the wind. I came to deliver a message.”
Lily swallowed hard. “To us?”
“To him.” Haidyn’s gaze locked on me again. “But I like the poetry of letting you carry it.” He stepped closer, his presence curling around me like the smoke that peeked and swirled over his shoulders, intimate and suffocating all at once. “Tell my dear Calix this: debts always come due. His will cost him something precious. Something he won’t want to give. And when it’s time, he won’t have a choice.”
My throat tightened. “What does that mean?”
He chuckled low, almost pityingly, as he patted my cheek like I was a small child. I jerked away from his cold touch, but instead of punishing me, like I was sure he could’ve, he slyly smiled. “You’ll see. But for now, be a good little messenger.” He tilted his head, eyes gleaming. “And watch out for monsters… Oh! And maybe remind him that I’ve been far more generous than he deserves.”
Then, with a snap of shadow, he was gone.
The wards around the fence still hummed, as useless as ever.
Suddenly not feeling as safe as Calix had said we would be, I stood there, trembling, Lily clutching my arm.
“Is everything okay?” the prospect I thought they called Thing One asked as he observed us with a confused frown. They obviously didn’t see a thing and had no clue they had been like suspended puppets.
“No, we’re fine. Just emotional,” I fibbed with a forced tilt of my lips. “I think we’ll go inside now.”
He glanced around uneasily but didn’t challenge me.
Though I wasn’t sure that we were any safer inside. Hell, I wondered if we were safe anywhere.
Except when Calix came looking for us later, I told him everything. Every word. Every look.
His face darkened, his jaw hardening like stone.
And for the first time, I wondered if the monsters Haidyn was warning about weren’t the Covenant—but what Calix might become when that debt was called.
“Stay inside. I’m sorry you had to deal with this,” he apologized as he kissed my forehead reverently. “Haidyn won’t hurt you. He just likes to fuck with people’s heads.”
