Page 4 of Kings of Lust
Without saying another word, Ferris turned his back on me and glanced through the window, leaving me in cold stillness to reflect on my foolish innocence.
‘Ferris is right, Mouse. What would we get out of this? What would we risk everything for?’
‘As much as I would like that a noble answer would satisfy any of you, I realize that it won’t be the case, so I was thinking about a much more important prize for when the final line is drawn in the sand. I was thinking about Echo City. Or at least its leadership. I realize that there is little chance that this will resolve itself just by decent talking. I believe that it will involve getting a few people removed from their positions. And when the vacant seats will be ready....’
‘We will take them,’ the thought certainly sounded tempting enough in Brax’s mind whose hunger was always reaching for the top. Top power. Top authority. ‘I am a man of ambitions. And I do want the city.’
Something was finally going my way.
‘But you know what else I want, Bea?’
Or not...
‘I want to befuckingalive when that happens, and what you’re asking of me leaves little chance of that!’ his roar shook the room, getting even Ferris to turn and look his way, as the wolf Brax was showing off his fangs.
Still, I couldn’t leave things like that. I just couldn’t give up. ‘What kind of life would we live if we don’t try. Did you think of the alternative? What happens if we stand by knowing what we know and do nothing? Or what if we change our mind when it’s too late?’
‘She’s right.’ Out of all people standing in the room, the approval came from the one I least expected- Cole. ‘How could we ever safely stay in our luxurious homes, knowing we did nothing?’Again with that damn ironic tone.
Shit... I should have seen that coming.
‘I took you for a lot of things, but never for a coward, Cole.’ it was time for a dose of reverse psychology since reasoning with them had few chances of ever working.
‘What the fuck did you say to me!?’ In an instant he had paced the length of the room, replacing the oxygen in my lungs with his undeniable presence. The cobalt pools in his eyes flashed with anger as if preparing to tear me apart while his hand caught me by the throat, clenching so hard I could barely breathe.
Maybe I went a little too far, bruising an ego that had already reached heightening levels, but I had to try my best to somehow get through to him. To all of them.
This time,mycourage was the one leaving me to hang in a thin line between life and death, while the other two kings impassively stood their ground and just watched as I was struggling to escape Cole’s wrath. They were all the same. No differences displayed, making me realize that by arranging our get-together I may have just reunited the pack.
‘Cole,’ I let out a faded cry as I felt my feet being raised from the ground, supporting my bodyweight only on my toes.
‘Stop,’ a hand laid over his, holding it in place, though not signaling him to release me. It was Ferris, sneaking behind me like the night ghouls, entrapping my body between him and Cole’s hand, savoring every second of my torture.
‘We have courage, but we’re no fools.’ Out of the blue, Brax appeared in front of me, grunting the words as a stormy expression was raising on his face.
I was fucking terrified of what was going to happen next, entrapped like a rat by a mesmerizing cage of muscles and intoxicating perfumes. My senses were running wild, on the verge of an anxiety attack, and simultaneously an instant away from having my body melting into the ground.
I hated them for spinning like hungered wolves around me, feasting on my stumbled breaths, filled with the adrenaline of my distress. There was something more weighing down on me. The testosterone level was so high that undoubtedly amazed me. They were all Alphas in their own worlds, and still, here, they were keeping a hierarchy with one another.
That exact display of strength was blanking my brain, making me forget even about the hand that was locked on my neck, though not for long as Brax’s voice broke through to Cole ‘Release her.’
‘You’re taking all the fucking fun out of this,’ Cole muttered, loosening the grip he had on my throat and dropping my feet back on the ground.
‘That’s because we’re not here to play games,’ the melody of Ferris’s voice came from behind me, reminding me that my body was still glued to his.
‘I was just thinking of combining work and play,’ the King of EMA cackled, releasing me completely and tucking his hands into his pockets as if he was preparing to sit and listen to some speech. And that he was since Ferris took a step to somewhere on my left, pinning his knuckles on the dining table’s countertop until a fine cracking sound was released under his weight.
‘I was certainly not expecting this when I came here today. But life is full of surprises, isn’t it?’ He took a moment in which he turned to glance at us.At each one of us, weighing the events along with my proposal. ‘I believe I am to know that best,’ he answered his own question, allowing tiny fragments of that overwhelming sorrow to engulf him again.
No other voice was to be heard, even though I had a feeling that everyone in the room knew where that dark pain cames from.
Everyone except me!
‘I’ve heard you, Bea. We all did, even though each one of us answered in his specific way. I know all of us thought about the rebellions more than a few times, and how this will impact our lives. Even if some of us find it harder than others to admit it.’ This time, he was the one lighting himself a cigarette, crossing his feet, and leaning his back on the table to support himself against it. ‘I do believe that I will probably be the least affected by this Revolution, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t take everything into consideration. Including everyone standing here in the room today. That’s why I suggest that we wait and carefully put everything in a balance. The current risks, the sacrifices, and therewards.’
When he saidrewards, he looked directly at me, giving me the feeling that the keys to the city held little importance to him, at least compared with everything else he was expecting toreceive.
‘I’d say all of us meet here in three days,’ he continued. ‘Let us all think about what there’s to be done and decide if a plan would ever see the light of day, or everything will remain buried in this room. That is if you both agree, of course.’
