Page 30 of A Harmony of Procellarum

“No. You’ve done enough for us over the years, Raiden. You were an amazing leader and someone I look up to. Victor does too. He’s just been clouded with rage. Relax, I promise to make this right.” I hold out my hand for the keys to my car, knowing he must’ve driven us back.

With a heavy exhale, he grabs them from his pocket and places them in my palm. “Be careful and call me.”

I take in the features of his face and take note of all the changes that have happened since Tempest came into his life. His eyes are no longer dull with apathy, they shine with relief and patience. I squeeze his shoulder and turn, etching his face into my mind to hold on to forever. He’s sacrificed so much to keep us alive over the years and I will forever be grateful.

Chapter ten

Torrent

Hiscarpullsupand I hand my bag off to the guard at my side. Only one this time, as if Luciphia feels the scales have tipped and the balance is in her favor. I can’t run because she would hurt him and keep me alive to witness it.

“I’ll be back,” I tell the guard, who looks over our car to Squall’s.

“Take your time,” he answers as he slips into the driver’s seat. This particular guard I’ve noticed is a bit more slack with me. He doesn’t hover and I appreciate it enough not to give him a hard time in return.

I cross the street, knowing Squall is watching me approach, and suddenly my heart pounds inside my rib cage. Something close to guilt washes over me as I think about what I did to the woman he loves this morning and how I can still smell her on my fingers.

He rolls down the window, thinking I will come to speak to him impersonally, maybe shoo him away, but that’s not my intention as I head around the vehicle to the passenger side. The guilt I’m feeling washes away as the demon inside of me laughs at the disheveled appearance of the man I care about. He looks like he hasn’t slept in days, and this thing inside of me finds it funny that I was just enjoying myself with the very reason why he’s heartbroken.

It’s a pity, really.

“What are you doing here? Coming to get round two with the stripper?” I ask as I get in and shut the door.

“Are you able to get her out?” He has a desperation in his voice, one I recognize as his savior complex. “I will drive the three of us far away from them, from Luciphia, and—”

“And what?” I turn to look at him in the seat. “Will the three of us live happily ever after?”

“Do you hate her that much? Why? Because I’ve slept with her? Torrent, we’ve slept with many girls together and apart. What is the difference?” If he actually thinks I will buy this explanation, that Tiny is nothing more than a girl he’s sleeping with, I will stab him in the fucking eye. The tension drains out of him as I continue to stare at him, the look on my face telling him I’m at the end of my patience. “Fine, she’s important to me, but does she deserve this?”

“It’s not my fucking call,” I lie to him, as if it wasn’t me who asked for Tiny in payment for my good behavior. I lie as well as I breathe, and it’s become second nature for me.

He leans across the center console and looks me in the eye before saying, “I love you. I hope you know that. I hope you’ve always known that. For as long as I can remember, you were the most important person to me. Tiny being in the picture doesn’t change how I feel about you.” His breath carries the scent of forty-year-old whiskey, telling me he’s been spending time with my brother, who is not in Dominica as he was told to be.

“So you’ve said, Squall.” I pull up the collar of my trench as I ready to open the door, but his fingers grip the beard on my chin to pull me into him, his eyes wet with weak tears.

“That night in the home when I chose you over Shereen? I want you to know I would do it again in a heartbeat. I would even choose you over myself. I will always choose you.” Then his mouth crashes into mine and I become putty to the only person capable of molding me.

My mouth opens under his, and even though we’re in this cheap rental without tinted windows, I don’t care who’s watching. Our tongues battle as his hand releases my beard to run down my neck and over my chest. I instantly compare the kiss to the one I had with Tiny earlier. He’s rough to her soft, demanding to her submissive. And while the thoughts of them both rage through my head, my cock aches as it presses against my zipper. It’s been a while since I’ve had Squall, and with little thought, I rip my mouth from his and say, “Los Angeles. Meet me in Los Angeles.”

“Magistrate Christie,” he breathes. “You’re going after her?”

“Then you know where to find me. Get the stripper off your mind and prove to me you’d always choose me.” I leave him with that as I open the car door and step back out onto the street. My lips are throbbing with the aftershocks of his kiss, and my cock is pressing insistently on my fly, begging for the one thing I could never say no to.

The house is still as the night sky settles and the stars twinkle overhead. The windows are dark; the curtains drawn and shut tight. I look over my shoulder to see the blacked-out sedan idling up the street, waiting to provide me with my quick getaway, but it’s the small, red Mazda on the side of the street that gives me pause. Even from here, I can see the illumination of the streetlight reflecting off his near-white beard and I swear I can see the worry in his crystal blue eyes. Squall showed up, proving that he would indeed choose me over all others. I look away with a huff as I walk up the short driveway, not bothering with stealth tonight. Christie knows I’m coming and she knows a fight would do her no good. If Luciphia wants her dead, there’s nowhere she could hide to avoid the death sentence.

If she’s smart, she’ll take it without much of a fight.

The large, double front doors gleam in the moonlight, the black shellac shining with a high gloss as I reach for the handle and smile when I find it unlocked. Yes, she’s aware of what this is. I step in the foyer and drop my hood to gaze around the pure opulence of the place. Its grandeur reminds me of Dominica, and I suddenly feel homesick for Eddy and the island of myths and volcanoes.

My boots echo off the tiled floor as I continue forward toward the kitchen. I can see from here the counters are sparkling clean and the large back patio door is showcasing the clear night sky.

“I knew you would come for me, Vanquisher.” As soon as I step into the kitchen, I see her slight form leaning against the island, a glass of wine in her hand and a near-empty bottle beside her. “Let me just finish this bottle and then I will be ready for the sacrifice. Could I make a request?” I incline my head toward her, willing to listen to her last words. “Could you do it in here? The blood will easily clean off the surfaces and my children can keep the home.”

I give her a single nod and lean on the counter, watching as she takes a sip from the glass. I could rush her, but what’s the point? I am death incarnate, and while I’m wearing this mask, she knows there’s no getting out of this situation.

Her red hair looks like burned copper under the dim fluorescent light of her under cabinet fixtures. Her skin is pale, almost translucent, and the dark circles under her eyes show her lack of sleep.

“I have an eleven-year-old and a fifteen-year-old,” she begins, and I huff as I push off the counter. It’s a shame. I thought she had accepted her fate, but here she is trying to tug on my non-existent heartstrings. I grab the glass from her hand and set it on the table with a shake of my head. “I shouldn’t have said that, but do you blame me for trying?”

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