Page 22 of Fated to Monsters

“Now that, that wouldn’t surprise me.” I weave my fingers through hers and walk the length of the room by her side.

Oh what I would do to make this our every day. The problems we face are that of arrogant men who don’t know how to share their feelings and nothing of wars and revenge and running for our lives.

I want that with her. A human life. Or at the very least, a human-adjacent life here, where the air is fresh and we can stop looking over our shoulders in fear of what’s coming next. That’s what I will fight for because it’s what we all deserve.

And although I don’t want to break my promise to her, it’s going to be difficult to not confront Bo and make him pay for the hurt he’s caused her.

7

Wren

“Glad to see you’re back on your feet,” Sydney tells Dash when we file into the large kitchen. “I was worried we’d have a mess to clean up for a minute there.”

Dash forces a smile. “Just keeping everyone on their toes.”

We settle into two empty chairs at the end of the table where everyone else is sitting. Well, everyone aside from Bo. No, Bo chooses to scarf down his food while standing in the farthest corner of the room like the rest of us might give him the plague if he comes too close.

Whatever.

“Here, give me your plate.” Wes takes the shiny white dish in front of me and scoops some food onto it, along with a hunk of bread. “Pass that over to Dash.” He hands it to me, and I’m wafted by the heavenly aroma as it crosses in front of me and over to Dash.

“Damn, that smells amazing.” My stomach growls and reminds me that eating more should move up on the list of priorities.

During our stint in Rockbridge, there was no telling when our next meal would be. Not to mention, whether it would be edible. Usually, it was some sort of greyish sludge that could have been borderline toxic waste. Sometimes there would be a cup with a small amount of water, and rarely, a moldy piece of what resembled bread. We were only there for a short period, and yet the experience isn't something I wish to ever go through again.

My gaze darts across the table to land on Jade, who spent, from my understanding, years in that horrid place. How is it possible she survived that long on scraps of nearly nothing? But when I see Everest push his plate toward her, I realize the answer to that question.

He was the light in the darkness that kept her going. Her lifeline when all hope was lost.

And he was more than likely a huge catalyst in not just her survival, but ours, too.

I thought I was the only hunter who fought against our kind, but maybe Everest and I aren’t the only ones who see the errors of our ways.

“There’s cheese on this.” Wes picks up the piece of bread on my plate and points to a gooey substance on top. “And this.” He latches onto a peculiar tube and pops the top. “You can sprinkle on the pasta.”

“It’s called parmesan cheese,” Sydney says from down the table. “Try it.”

I reluctantly take the thing from Wes and sprinkle some on top of the pile of food on my plate. Taking the fork from beside my plate, I swirl some of the pasta and shove it into my mouth. My eyes instinctually close and a moan escapes me. "This is," I say with a mouthful. "So fucking good.”

Wes grins and sets the bread back onto my plate, but I snatch it up and bite off a chunk, chewing it with the pasta.

I practically drown the noodles with more cheese and mumble through each bite.

“I didn’t have any breakfast foods stocked in the house.” Sydney walks over to the large refrigerator, which is apparently powered by electricity, not magic.

To me, they're one and the same.

An entire home with running water and lights and heating, that sounds magical.

“Is this notbreakfast?” I pat my mouth with my napkin and reach for the glass of water in front of me. “Because I could eat this for every meal.”

Sydney chuckles. “Usually humans eat eggs or meat, pastries, pancakes, fruit, things like that, for breakfast. With coffee or juice.”

“I could go for some ale.” I point to the tray of bread in the middle of the table and whisper to Wes, “Can I have another?”

“Ale? Hmm.” Sydney continues browsing the contents of his fridge. “I have this spiked cider.” He pulls out a bottle and brings it over to me. “Deghan got a six-pack the last time he visited.”

“Deghan?” I take the thing from him. “Will they mind if I have this?”

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