Page 18 of Odium

“You told him that you had a question for him, but you hit him instead of asking it.” I giggle. “I don’t think he’s going to be giving you any answers now.”

“I asked him five times.” He quirks a brow, “He answered-” He motions to the crimson spray across the ceiling and wall. “-in blood.”

“Oh.” I lift the toast from my plate and scoop some egg on top with my fork then get up from my chair and walk over to him. “Bite?”

“I think you’re going to need a new pan.” He examines the skillet, dropping it into the garbage can, and then opens his mouth, biting off half of the slice in one bite. He chews slowly and then swallows, adding, “We’ll go into town in a few days and get whatever you need. Can you make do with what’s left until then?”

“You’re going to takemeshopping?” I squeal.

“Any reason I shouldn’t? I know you, Carwen. I’ve watched you and waited patiently for you to come to me for this very reason. I didn’t want a wife I had to break until she gave up and accepted that she had to stay with me. I love your spirit and your loyalty. When I chase you, I want to know that you are starving for me to catch up and pin you to the ground underneath me. I need to know that you are just as ravenous for us as I am. I could have taken you years ago, but I didn’t want a captive. I have studied you from the shadows for longer than I would like to admit, waiting on you to grow into what I hoped you would… and you did. You poisoned and trapped Alastor, embraced every ounce of pain he inflicted on you, tracked me down in a place you barely knew, and you’ve killed without flinching… you’re mine. You became mine the moment you came after me, and there’s no going back. So, yeah, you can come with me because you won’t try to escape. Even if you wanted to, we both know that I would kill you before I let you slip away now.”

“I’m yours.” I grin and then look down at Haden’s blood seeping out onto the kitchen floor. “What are we going to do with this one?”

“We can dump him in the cellar with the others. I’ll grab the cart,” Leiv turns and walks to the back door, puts his hand on the knob, and turns it before glancing back at me with a smirk. “Their unworthy corpses can rot down there. They don’t deserve a place in our home. Let’s go.”

Epilogue

I carefully slidefrom the bed, out of the bedroom I now share with Leiv, and then slip down the stairs and out the back door. I sprint across the yard, past the creek, and through the meadow, hiding among the blackest shadows from the dark, starless night sky until I reach the cellar at the edge of the thick tree line of our family’s property.

“Can you hear me in there?” I drop to my knees and hiss through the wooden slats of the hatch, careful not to rattle the large steel padlock my husband drilled into the timber to ensure no one came or went from this musty old hole in the ground without his knowledge or permission, and I grin when I hear a few muffled grunts from the darkness below.

“I’ll take that as a yes,” I whisper. “I have the bestest news.”

I wait for an acknowledgment from within, knowing I’ll never hear actual words from him again. Since the last time I was caught out here, Leiv forced me to slice out our prisoner’s tongue as a punishment to us both before fucking me unconscious on the bloody dirt below.

“I’m waiting.” I roll my eyes but nearly squeal with joy at the single answering push against the door. “I’m pregnant with twins!”

He grunts in reply, and I giggle softly, placing my hand against my small bump.

I jump when I hear the back door of our house slam open against the siding and hop to my feet.

“Gotta run! The Wild Ones and I will see you soon.” I blow a kiss at the door, knowing that, although he can’t see it, he can still feel our love, and I quickly turn away.

“Come and get me, Leiv!” I laugh loudly, breaking into a slow jog, careful not to trip and fall.

I’ll let him run after me for a bit, but not for too long.

We may enjoy the chase, but what I truly love…

is when he makes me scream.

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