He allowed his words to sink in before continuing. “Option number two—you sign the damn contract we’ve all already agreed on, and we move peacefully forward with your wealth and my sanity intact.”
Ebersole jerked back, and his face reddened. “Y-you can’t talk to me this way! How dare you threaten me! I won’t stand for being talked down to by a child! You’ll regret this!”
Stephan let out a harsh laugh. “You keep telling yourself that. As I have no intention of spending another moment here listening to your idiocy, I’m heading out.” He stood and smoothed down his jacket.
“Oh, and be aware, I don’t make idle threats. If you need proof, I suggest taking a look at what happened to Sando Corp.”
Ignoring Ebersole’s babblings and protests, he turned to Ivan. His irritation washed away. “I apologize, Mr. Alessandrin, for any inconvenience this may have caused. Not to mention the impropriety of my emotional display.”
Ivan chuckled. “As I mentioned before, call me Ivan. And you have nothing to apologize for.” The man curled his lips in disgust as his gaze flinted over to Ebersole. The twit was now on his phone, ranting to what Stephan could only assume was his lawyer.
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“We both know who is at fault, not to mention you maintained more control than I would, considering the situation. However, I wouldn’t mind meeting privately at a later date to discuss some design changes for the resort, as I have a few. Lunch maybe?”
“As long as it’s on a weekend.” Stephan beamed.
“Ah, yes, I forgot about your obligations as a student.” Ivan rubbed his chin. “A weekend it is then.”
* * * *
Shelves packed with books of all shapes and sizes were built into the walls of the multileveled library, stretching all the way to the high, vaulted ceilings. On every level, there were desks, tables, chairs, and couches placed about.
Despite the expansive collection of books, the one lying on the desk in front of Jayden hadn’t come from it. It had been bought just recently, as surprise, he couldn’t read any of the books on the shelves.
Sighing, Jayden scowled down at the schoolbook. Ugh, how long would he have to deal with this? Well…immortal schooling spanned from ages four to twenty-five. There was elementary school, middle school, high school, and secondary education, which meant he’d…oh God, years. It would go on for years! Stephan himself was only in secondary education—even if he did own and was running a variety of companies.
Jayden wrinkled his brow—was Stephan planning to go to a university? Did he even need to?
Whatever. At his level, Jayden had at least ten to fifteen fucking more years of this torturous hell.
Reading and writing were the top contenders in what was causing his misery. Jayden hadn’t learned a damn thing so far. Though…the fact that he’d gone through six tutors already probably hadn’t helped.
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Jayden, of course, had nothing to do with them fleeing. It wasn’t like he threatened them. No, no, he would never do something like that. Jayden snickered.
His new tutor, Mr. Kaze, clucked his tongue.
Hey look, the man had finally figured out he wasn’t paying attention. And it had only taken him, what, thirty minutes to notice?
Jayden wanted to stab him, but he wouldn’t. Maybe…
He rolled his eyes. Damn these homicidal tendencies, he thought sarcastically. Tutor number seven would not be lasting long.
Slowly, Jayden turned his head and made eye contact. While his face was blank, he knew the effect his eyes had on people.
The corners of his lips twitched as the man cleared his throat nervously. Gee, wonder what he’s thinking. Jayden dropped the shield he had fought hard to build—a shield that, unfortunately, only worked when there were few around.
“Young man, you need to pay attention.” The words were barely audible over the man’s inner thoughts.
Thoughts that were louder than normal. Liam had warned him of the initial side effects of strengthening your mental walls but said it would lessen over time.
“The kid’s a freak—not to mention an idiot. How the hell did he end up staying with Stephan Everwood? I wouldn’t have even taken the job if Mr. Everwood wasn’t such a fine piece of ass…”
Jayden narrowed his eyes, a look that had Mr. Kaze scrunching his eyebrows.
“What now? I should have listened to the rumors about him. God, his eyes are creepy. It’s like staring into death. Now, Stephan’s eyes, I would love to see them staring up at me in fear.”
He tensed, his heart speeding up as the man’s thoughts darkened.
“I just need to get Stephan alone, maybe tell him we need to discuss Jayden’s progress…but the man’s always so professional…I’ll just slip him something, tie him down, and—”
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The world before him flashed red as rage heated his veins.
Without thoughts of the possible consequences, Jayden shot up, grabbed him, and slammed him onto the desk.
Mr. Kaze’s head collided against it. The wood cracked at the weight of the assault. As drops of blood dripped onto the splintered surface, Jayden took control and wrapped his hands around the man’s neck.
Baring his fangs, Jayden hissed. “I should kill you.” Shuddering, he let out a chilling laugh. “Do you feel it? Do you feel me inside?
Can’t move, can you?”
Pulling back a bit, Jayden allowed the man to speak—just a taste of freedom.
Mr. Kaze gasped. “L-let. M-me. Go.”
“Hmm, why should I? It’s only a matter of time before you hurt someone. Killing you now will save me the trouble of having to track you down later.”
“Won’t,” the man croaked.
“Yeah, see. I would believe you, but I’m in your head,” Jayden purred. “The only thing holding you back is that you haven’t found the one. Your perfect victim.”
Kaze began to whimper and plead.
For the first time, Jayden found himself struggling against what his urges wanted him to do. The man hadn’t hurt anyone—yet. Killing him would go against what little morals he had. All of his “victims”
had been guilty. Kaze’s crimes were only thoughts, but he could feel the man’s dark urges rising. The bastard wanted to rape and kill.
Could Jayden really wait until the man hurt someone? It was only a matter of time. Did morals hold any worth if they allowed an innocent to die?
His grip around Kaze’s neck tightened—Jayden should kill him.
Why the hell was he even debating it? The man needed to die. He needed…
“Fuck!” Jayden growled, jerking away.
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Kaze slid like a rag doll to the floor. Wisely, he said nothing.
Pointing, Jayden roared, “I should kill you!” His chest heaved and his hands clenched and unclenched as he glared. “I should kill you…”
Jayden murmured weakly this time.
Why couldn’t he? Why? Dammit! Jayden pinched the bridge of his nose, he felt almost dizzy as his rage began to dissipate. Blanking his expression, Jayden pulled away from the simmering hatred inside him.
“I should kill you, but…I won’t.” He crouched down and got in Kaze’s face. “Know this, you hurt anyone, and your life is over. I will find you. And I will kill you. Painfully.”
After straightening up, Jayden rolled his shoulders and cracked his neck. “Oh, and stay the fuck away from Stephan. You come anywhere near him, whether you touch him or not, you die.” Releasing his hold over Kaze, he hissed, “Now get out.”
* * * *
Waiting outside the library doors would most likely prove to be an eventful endeavor. Liam wasn’t one to pry, however…
He rolled his eyes at the outright lie—okay, he was. But his reasons were always honorable. Well, at the very least Liam had always had a reason for doing so.
Cons
idering Jayden’s flair for inflicting pain, Liam felt it was very reasonable for him to spy on the boy during his lessons. Not to mention, he had to clean up the messes the young man made.
Liam smirked—for some reason, being threatened made people cranky.
The doors of the library were slammed open by a very terrified and frantic tutor. Before the fleeing man got far, Liam seized him by the arm.
Well, this was new. Jayden had actually drawn blood. Why?
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The man was in such a panic that Liam was able to easily slip inside his mind. He tsked in disgust at what he found.
The part of him that slept deep inside, he called to it. Closing his eyes, he ignored Kaze’s whimpers and struggles as warmth spread through him.
He shivered. The darkness inside him was stretching out, pushing forward, filling him. As if he were welcoming home a beloved friend, Liam embraced it.
His eyes opened lazily. He knew the blue in them had drowned away in a sea of inky black, he had felt the change.
Liam slowly licked his lips. “Well, well. It seems we have a lot to discuss, Mr. Kaze,” he drawled.
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Chapter Five
Stephan plopped down on the living room couch in exasperation.
His head throbbed as he eyed Jayden and Liam. Jayden was sitting across from him looking completely bored. Directly to the teen’s left, Stephan’s godfather was half sitting, half leaning against the arm of the couch.
Already irritated by the meeting, he’d come home to find that yet again, Jayden had chased away his language tutor.
Tutor number…six? Seven? Whatever. At this point, it was getting ridiculous.
The issue was obvious. Jayden had read things from them he hadn’t liked. Stephan pursed his lips—though it was entirely possible that some had just run away in fear.
Ridiculous, really. Jayden was adorable, but he was just so grumpy. Stephan shook his head at his wandering thoughts—Jayden’s cuteness was not important right now. Vetting. He needed to focus on vetting.
Stephan nibbled on his bottom lip. How was he supposed to know if they were cowards or terrible people? He couldn’t read anyone.
Stephan was a blood elf, not a vampire. The only thing he had in common with a vampire was that he drank blood. And even then, blood elves only needed blood once a week instead of every day.
Liam! He could let Liam do it. The man was a vampire. He could at the very least read them so there wouldn’t be any surprises. Though, vetting that way would probably just shrink his options—not that he had many now.
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Stephan grimaced—he had officially gone from tutors vying for his attention and employment to them hiding from him. Stephan had become a fucking pariah.
“Not that I don’t like watching you nod and mumble to yourself, as your mumbling is pretty entertaining, but shouldn’t you be scolding me or something?” Jayden asked dryly.
Heat spread across his face. “What happened this time?”
“I broke a desk.”
“It can be replaced,” Liam rumbled.
“What? The desk…that doesn’t matter right now! The tutor! What happened with the tutor?”
“Difference of opinion,” Jayden stated.
Stephan wrinkled his nose. “What does…explain?”
“I believed he deserved to bleed. He didn’t.”
The comment was relatively tame considering whom he was talking to. But it made Stephan wonder what the teen really wanted to say.
“It has been handled,” Liam added.
Eyes widening, Stephan sputtered, “W-what has been handled?”
One of the man’s eyebrows lifted, and a small smile appeared.
“Everything.”
“That doesn’t tell me shit!”
He grunted in disgust when Liam just grinned—the man had no intention of telling him anything, and prying information out of his godfather was impossible.
Sighing, Stephan leaned back and crossed his arms. “Jayden, your education is important. You need to stop chasing away people just because you don’t like them.”
“I’ll work on being less scary.”
Stephan tried to muster up anger at the reply—he failed. The words had sounded so sincere that he found the corners of his mouth twitching.
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Part of him, even if it was a bit twisted, found it funny. Looking down, he clenched his hands as he fought to keep a smile off his face.
He couldn’t laugh. He wouldn’t laugh. Laughing would say Jayden’s actions were okay. They weren’t. Stephan had to set an example.
Breathing in deeply through his nose, he pushed his humor away.
“Jayden, you do know this needs to stop, don’t you?”
“Yes.”
“Okay, then please, please try harder. I’ve already been hung up on multiple times, and tutors are starting to flee my presence thanks to all the rumors.”
A snicker had him glaring at Liam—the man’s eyes were twinkling.
“And what is so funny?” he ground out.
“Nothing, nothing at all.” His godfather’s voice was full of mirth.
Jayden grudgingly murmured, “I’ll try.”
“That’s all I ask. I’ll look for a new tutor tomorrow.” Tucking back a few strands of his wayward hair, he asked, “Have you eaten?”
“Yes.”
“Good, good. Anything else you want to tell me?”
“No…can I go to my room now?”
“Of course.”
As Jayden left, disappearing down the hallway, Liam sat down across from him. “How was the meeting?”
Stephan perked up. “If I answer, will you tell me what happened?”
“No.”
“Figured. It was frustrating…I may have threatened to crush one of my business partners,” he stated innocently.
“Edwin Ebersole?”
“Yes.” Stephan proceeded to tell him what the man had done.
“Can you believe he actually expected me to agree to use his construction company for all future developments? And his demand for forty percent equity, hah.”
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“Never liked the man. He’s always been an arrogant, greedy idiot.
Though in his youth he was able to fool many to think otherwise.
Now…not so much,” Liam mused.
“I don’t like being messed with. If Edwin persists in his demands, I will destroy him.”
Liam chuckled. “The fool is blind to the cold businessman under that cute exterior.”
“I’m not cute!”
“Sorry, sorry. I meant adorable.”
“Liam!” he protested.
A smile continued to dance on the man’s lips. “I’m so proud.”
“I learned everything from you.”
With exaggerated movements, his godfather ran one of his hands through his hair. “I know,” Liam drawled haughtily. “I’m an amazing teacher.”
Stephan started to giggle. His giggle turned into a full-blown laugh when Liam joined in.
As their laughter subsided, Stephan sighed happily. “So, how is everything going here? Is Jayden improving?”
“I believe he is, at least in terms of his mental shields. As for the other subjects, he is struggling, but I’m sure everything will run smoother once he finally stops chasing his tutors away.”
Stephan slouched. “Am I just fooling myself, Liam? Is anything I’m doing really helping? I know he’ll never be ‘normal,’ whatever normal is…but I…I just…” Stephan bit his lip and blinked rapidly when his eyes started to water.
Stephan wanted Jayden to have a chance at a normal life—even if he wasn’t normal. The young man deserved to be happy. Stephan just didn’t know how to make that happen. There had to be something he could do. His heart ached at the thought of leaving Jayden
alone. The very idea brought tears to his eyes.
Liam stood and drew him up into a hug. “Stephan, it’s going to take time. It’s not going to be an easy fix, sweetie. Jayden is not
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normal, nor will he ever be. The young man is broken. And while I believe he’ll get better…” The man hesitated. “Some things can’t be fixed.”
Stephan grunted in response and buried his face in the man’s shirt.
Inhaling, he took in his scent. Rainfall, that’s what his godfather smelled like. It was a scent that Stephan now associated with home—
Liam had become both his father and friend after his parents’ deaths.
The only person whose touch brought him comfort instead of fear.
His godfather rubbed his back. “I may have been skeptical at first, but despite being a bit homicidal and bloodthirsty, he’s not a bad kid.”
“I just want to help…”
Liam’s next words were soft yet clear. “Your parents would be so proud of you, Stephan.”
Burrowing closer, Stephan soaked in the comfort the man was offering him.
* * * *
Sneaking out was easy—especially when no one turned on the alarm system.
The neighborhood around him was quiet, nice and quaint.
Perfectly mowed lawns, white picket fences, and flower boxes were everywhere. It was the perfect scene of normalcy. One would have a hard time imagining that a monster lived around here.
Jayden knew better though, monsters were everywhere.
He pulled forward the information he had stolen earlier, and the man’s house flashed in his mind. Jayden peered around, then grinned wickedly when he found it.
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