Page 38 of Seth
Seth didn’t move, eyes following his every gesture. The silence oppressed the room and thickened the air. Once again, Gustavo wanted to hear Seth’s soft rustle, to feel the goosebumps racing down his body.Say something. Talk to me.
Seth didn’t utter a word. Even his usually fluid movements were somehow stiffened as if he wasn’t comfortable in his own body.
“You know, after the hassle you caused,” Gustavo tilted his head as a pang of malice stung his heart and pushed the provoking words out of his mouth, “I thought I should show my appreciation.”
As Gustavo took a step toward Seth, he became aware of the small air exhalations washing over his face, the soft echoes of his steps, the chill air, and his own sharp breathing. Seth was weaponless, still Gustavo couldn’t get rid of the thought thatthis is how people must feel on the verge of dying.
Adrenaline made blood drum in his temples. The faint scent of myrrh reached him as he extended the cardboard box to Seth.
Showing no sign of distress, as if resigned, Seth accepted the gift. Their fingers brushed, causing Gustavo’s heart to leap to his throat.
Beware of Greeks bearing gifts.The thought stirred at the back of Seth’s mind as a bitterness filled his mouth. The box crumpled under his grip, because all his attention concentrated on the content.
Velvet, deep red roses surrounded a bluish, delicate arm. The curl of the thin fingers resembled a lotus flower, every digit like a petal.
Anger stormed through his chest as he recognized a small mole on the inner side of the ring finger. The room blurred as a lump formed in his throat. With his free hand, he reached to Justin’s hand and linked their fingers.
I promised you that no one would ever hurt you again. I guess I didn’t deliver.The black tip of SkyBlade resurrected in his memory as he fondled the pale palm.
“I said I’d give him back, didn’t I?” Seth’s cheek twitched at Gustavo’s voice. The tranquil intonation chaffed his nerves. “So sorry that I can’t return the whole set yet, but I grew attached to his cold attitude. Anyway, I thought you would appreciate this part the most. Now you have his heart and his hand. You can even propose.”
Seth crumpled the corner of the box in his fist.
“How dare you? Who do you think you are to maim his body?” Seth whispered as he rested the paper box with the severed arm onto the plastic chair with great care, then faced the man. His throat closed, preventing him from speaking again. Cheek jerking, he tried to fill his lungs with the air to contain his emotions, but his lungs spurt it back in sharp, short exhales.This is all your fault… Everything went to hell because of you. You were curious, you fool? Now enjoy the front seat.
Seth grabbed his pants from the table, tore the belt out of the loops. Under his glare, the vivid curiosity faded from Gustavo’s eyes, and his expression hardened.
“I see my gift didn’t please you. Apologies.”
“You think it’s funny?” Seth mouthed. He turned his back to the man, once again glanced at the pale arm. Slender and thin, it didn’t have a single dark spot, meaning Justin’s body was well cared for, probably kept frozen. The clean-cut stump made him wonder if it was hacked off with an ax.
His blood boiled. Adrenaline invaded every corner of his body, making him feel alert, awake.
His fingers found the buckle of the belt, turned a tiny dial in the middle. Two punch daggers sprang out from both sides of the buckle into his hands. The steel burned his fingers, but he didn’t move, hoping Gustavo would come closer and give him a better chance to finish up in one strike.
Gustavo swallowed.As he watched the slender fingers caress the dead flesh, he experienced an uncomfortable feeling he didn’t want to acknowledge. In a way, it was similar to losing an auction and watching an opponent leave with the desired prize—a possessive, ugly feeling of jealousy.
To distract himself, he turned to Diego but only received a blank expression in return. His focus gravitated back to Seth and the tattoo now clearly visible in the warm, electric light. Starting below Seth’s nape, a blue, complex ankh stretched down his spine to the middle of his back; the image of a Was-staff stuck over its vertical bar. No scars here either.
Gustavo frowned. The urge to pluck out his phone and take a few pictures tingled in his fingertips. He drifted closer.
The beast stood unmoving, but his head bowed lower.
Did I upset him?The thought bothered in a weird, perverted way. A part of him wanted to see this man cry, kneel, and beg. To watch him break down to the point where Seth would no longer fight him, but accept him, admit his supremacy, allow the touch.Diego can’t be right. I’m not bullying him, am I? I can’t be into him. I’m just curious, but fuck, I would really like to see him cry now. I bet his skin flushes beautifully.
He was about to put his palm on Seth’s shoulder when the man spun. A blade swished through the air a mere inch from his eye.
“You annoying fly…” Seth rustled. Eyes hard and dry, a corner of his mouth curled up in a horrifying smirk. “I should have killed you sooner.”
The other blade sliced through the fabric of Gustavo’s jacket, across his chest. Gustavo jumped away, mesmerized and alarmed at once. With two punch daggers squeezed in his fists, teeth bared, and his back curled in a powerful stance, Seth once again slipped in the skin of the deathly, magnificent beast.
How fucking gorgeous.Gustavo retreated. He had never seen Seth fight, didn’t know his speed or technique, so rushing into the combat unarmed looked like a stupid idea. At that instant, he regretted leaving his gun behind.
Unblinking eyes fixed on him as Seth flexed his shoulders and charged with another attack. Strike by strike the blades shredded the air. Precise, powerful slashes aimed to kill, not scare. If Gustavo wasn’t in top shape, he wouldn’t be able to keep up with Seth’s speed.
Once again, Gustavo lifted his palms in a pacifying gesture, retreating to the wall. His breathing ragged and sharp, heart drummed in his temples, and his shirt clung to his back. Opposite him, Loco looked unfazed, composed, committed. Not a single drop of sweat beaded on his skin.
“Calm down a bit? Please, put the paper knives away; you might accidentally hurt yourself.” Gustavo threw his body aside, avoiding a knife stabbing toward his eye. The metal clanged against the wall, and the plaster came off and littered the wooden floor.
