by Sonia Harper
"Thank you," Gregory nodded, then smiled at Adelyn before walking away.
"I'll be back," Adelyn said as she suddenly remembered the beer. She turned around and headed to the kitchen. A small knot grew in her stomach at the thought of going near the basement again, but she pushed away her unease and opened the kitchen door without hesitation.
There was no point in being afraid of Cain anymore. Being afraid wasn't going to change anything. She just needed to be cautious...and possibly ask Derion if a taser would be a good investment.
Nodding to herself, she opened the fridge door and reached inside to grab the last remaining six-packs of beer bottles. She threw one of them under her arm and let the other dangle from her fingertips. Closing the fridge with her hip, she quickly made her way out of the kitchen, throwing a wary glance at the closed pantry door as she did so.
Opening the door with some difficulty, she walked down the hallway. As she approached the main entryway, she heard Pytho thanking someone. As she turned the corner, she barely caught a glimpse of a man outside before Pytho shut the door.
She froze. "Was that-?" She trailed off, holding up the hand that held the beer and pointing to the door.
Pytho frowned, his hands filled with various take-out boxes and bags. "Was that what?" He asked, walking away from the door and into the sitting room.
She thought her eyes had deceived her, but as she followed him into the sitting room, she glanced through the thin window next to the door and caught a glance of the delivery man as he was getting back into his car.
"It is!" She exclaimed, staring through the window. "That's Erik!" She grinned as she watched Kate's boyfriend drive away in a silver luxury car.
"Who?" Pytho asked, confused. He kicked at the coffee table until it was situated in the middle of the room before placing his heavy load onto it. Derion also had his hands filled with take-out containers, and he gladly deposited them onto the table.
"Erik. He's my friend's boyfriend," she walked into the room and placed the drinks on the floor next to the table. "He's the one that told me about this job."
"Oh, yeah," Pytho reached into a box and pulled out a few slices of pizza, throwing it onto a paper plate. "That's his name. I just call him 'delivery boy'," he grinned and threw a pile of breadsticks and wings on top of his plate. "I met him at a restaurant one night when I was checking out the town. Seemed like the type of guy we could use to handle errands in town."
"What type is that?" She asked, accepting a paper plate from Derion and opening boxes to see what was inside them.
"The kind that will do anything and keep his mouth shut about it as long as we pay him the right amount of money," Pytho replied dryly, grabbing a slice of pizza and wolfing it down as he pulled a chair closer to the table.
She laughed, picking up a box of noodles and scooping some out onto her plate. "Yeah, that sounds exactly like Erik," she grinned as she picked up a few more containers and examined their contents. "Unfortunately."
Derion fell into step with her, and before she knew it, they were both opening boxes and showing the contents to one another. There were so many boxes of food. It would take her ages to go through them all.
"Finally, vegetables," Derion breathed as he grabbed a take out container that she had opened. "I thought I was never going to find anything to eat."
"Are you kidding me?" She asked, incredulous. "We have enough food here to feed four large families."
"Derion requires a selective diet," Donovan's voice cut into the room as he entered it swiftly, a tablet balanced in one arm. He placed it on a side table next to an armchair and took a seat next to it, picking up a plate as he glanced over at the screen.
"He's a vegetarian," Pytho's voice was muffled in between bites.
"That's the word," Donovan nodded distractedly, picking up a styrofoam box with a steak and baked potato in it.
"You are?" She turned around to look at him as she sank down onto the couch.
"I don't care for the taste of meat," he explained as he picked up a box with steamed rice in it. "Especially here," he wrinkled his nose.
"I don't know what you're talking about," Pytho shook his head and bit into a buffalo wing. "It's glorious."
"You wouldn't, would you?" Donovan frowned at the little plastic knife he was given before tossing it back onto the table. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folding knife. "You've never tried our food."
"Don't have to," Pytho reached over and opened another pizza box. Adelyn was stunned to see his plate already empty. She had barely taken four bites off of her plate. "I'm pretty satisfied with what I've got," he grinned and pulled out three more slices.
"The food here does have a slightly different taste to it," Donovan admitted before taking a bite of his steak. "It's not bad, but it's not the same."
"Damn right it's not the same."
Adelyn glanced up as Gideon stormed into the room, his attention focused solely on the food in front of them. He looked exhausted as well but certainly didn't carry himself that way. He had a chest holster over a plain shirt, though it was completely empty. She glanced down at his waist and saw that he had one gun strapped to his hip on a belt holster.
"Where the hell is my steak?" He snapped, opening boxes and shoving them away in disgust until he finally found the box he was looking for.
"Hey!" Pytho protested and shot forward as a pizza box nearly slid right off the table.
Gideon reached down and grabbed one of the cases of beer before finally noticing that Adelyn was staring at him. "What?" He asked angrily, arms open wide in an aggressive stance.
She shook her head quickly and took another bite of her food, averting her eyes to her plate.
"Calm down, Gideon," Pytho snapped, reaching down and grabbing a single beer bottle out of the remaining case. "She wasn't doing anything."
"She was staring," He snarled and jabbed a finger in her direction.
"I'd stare as well," Derion replied, eyebrow raised. "You look like shit. Have a pleasant wake-up call?" He gave Gideon a thin smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.
"Fuck you," Gideon snapped, sitting down on a chair near the open archway to the hallway. He opened a bottle of beer and downed it immediately. "I need a goddamn smoke," he grunted as he reached down into his pocket and pulled out a pack of cigarettes. "It's the only thing these fucking humans do right other than their weapons." He took a lighter out of his other pocket and lit up.
Gideon's eyes narrowed when he saw that Adelyn was now watching him as he took a long drag. "How the fuck is she still alive?" He asked Donovan angrily. "I thought my boy would have taken care of this little problem already."
"He came close," Donovan muttered, still glancing at the tablet screen as he continued to eat.
Gideon snorted, then picked up his steak with one hand and bit into it, tearing off a bite with his teeth. "Where the fuck is he, anyway?" He flicked his cigarette ash directly onto the magnificent Aubusson rug.
"Behind you."
Adelyn nearly choked on her food as Cain's voice came from the hallway. Everyone in the room immediately stood up and turned to the archway as Cain stepped into the room and stood next to Gideon. His eyes went around the room, pausing to stare at each of the daemons in the room, slowly drinking in the room at his leisure. He looked a lot calmer than she had ever seen him before.
She held her breath as his silver eyes slid past Derion and bore into her for what seemed like minutes before lowering to the coffee table in front of her. His lip curled in disgust as he examined the food on the table.
"My lor-," Donovan began.
"Do you really want to finish that sentence?" Cain's deep voice came out in a calm, deadly whisper. His eyes never strayed from the food on the coffee table.
"Only you could sneak up on me," Gideon raised a hand and clapped Cain on the back of the shoulder, grinning. Adelyn frowned at the unnatural sight of a grin on Gideon's face. Clearly, Cain was the only one around here that he actuall
y liked and looked up to. "I'm proud to stand and fight with you," he recited as he gripped Cain's shoulder once before dropping his hand.
Cain's lip curled once more, but he gave a barely distinguishable nod. He turned and glared at the beer bottles at Gideon's feet.
"Would you like something to eat?" Donovan asked, already walking over to the table to prepare a plate for him.
"No," Cain replied, staring at Pytho's empty plate for several moments. He seemed to suddenly realize that everyone in the room was standing and staring at him. "Sit," He snapped angrily as if it were absurd for them even to be standing in the first place.
Everyone collectively sank back down into their seats. Adelyn looked down at her plate and felt her appetite waning. Why was he here in the room, and why wasn't anybody bothered by this? Sure, he seemed a lot calmer than she had ever seen him before, but even they admitted that he could snap at any moment.
She peered up and watched as he slowly walked over to the tablet next to Donovan and looked down at the screen. Maybe it was normal for him to walk around the Manor when he had himself under control?
A quick glance around the room confirmed her suspicions. Pytho had already gone back to eating, though he kept glancing at Cain as he ate. Derion was taking small bites of food while watching Cain warily. Gideon was already on his fourth beer, and he was down to the last few bites of his steak by the look of the scrap in his hand.
Donovan was the only one watching Cain with a look of open trepidation of his face.
"What is this?" Cain asked, his voice slightly muffled because his back was facing her.
"It's a security system we had installed today," Donovan replied, pointing to the screen. "It shows different outside views of the Manor so that we can watch the external perimeter from a single screen."
"I don't like it," Cain dismissed the screen entirely by turning around and walking behind Derion's chair, making his way over to the new window that faced the front of the Manor.
"It's just a secondary precaution," Donovan explained. "Those windows are new. Bulletproof," he added.
Cain just nodded, dragging a finger across the glass as he passed it. His head came around, and he stared at Adelyn as he rounded the couch that she sat on and disappeared from her view, walking behind it. Swallowing, she looked down at her plate and pushed around the food with her plastic fork, trying not to think about the fact that she couldn't see what he was doing behind her.
The hairs raised along the back of her neck as she felt something approach behind her. Jerking her head to the side as something flashed past her cheek, she held her breath as Cain's arm grabbed the plastic fork out of her grasp and stabbed a piece of broccoli. He lifted it up above her head, and she glanced up to see that he was examining it with a disgusted look on his face.
"What is this?" He demanded to know, eyes flashing to Pytho immediately.
"Broccoli," Pytho swallowed the food he had in his mouth to answer him.
Cain frowned and lifted the fork closer to his face, sniffing the vegetable in front of him before releasing the fork entirely with a look of disgust.
Adelyn had to jerk her body back to avoid being hit with the food. Some of the sauce that the broccoli had been sitting in splashed across her cheek as it fell past. The fork rolled down the front of her shirt, leaving a trail of sauce down to her lap. Annoyed, she reached down and placed the fork, and the broccoli, back down on her plate, searching for a napkin.
Derion was already holding one out for her. Thanking him quietly, she leaned down and wiped the sauce off her shirt, catching Cain's movement out of the corner of her eye as she did so. He rounded the couch and stepped in between it and the chair that Pytho was sitting in. He stopped and looked down at Pytho as the younger daemon picked up a taco and started eating it.
Adelyn wet her napkin with her tongue to try and get the rest of the sauce off of her shirt. Sighing and realizing that it was never going to come clean, she balled up the napkin up and placed it in her lap. She picked up the fork and resumed eating, determined not to let Cain interrupt her from her dinner again.
She jerked back as something touched her cheek, sliding up to her temple. She blinked in surprise and glanced up to see that Cain had reached down and scooped up some sauce that had splashed on her face with his finger. She blinked as she realized he was staring at her with eerily sharp silver orbs. He continued to hold her gaze as he lifted his finger and gave a tiny lick to the tip, tasting the sauce.
"Disgusting," he finally spoke. He angrily wiped his hand across his pants before glaring at the rest of the food on her plate.
"You should try the steak," Gideon grunted as he reached forward to grab another container.
"No," Cain snapped, he turned around to glare at Gideon. "I didn't come here to join the dinner party," he practically snarled as he walked back to his original spot next to Gideon's chair.
His eyes narrowed as he looked out the window into the nearly blackened sky. "Why haven't they come back with more reinforcements? They know we're here."
"Maybe they weren't expecting to lose fifteen of their own last night," Gideon snorted as he polished off his sixth beer. "Fuckers constantly underestimate us."
"Maybe they can only attack at night," Donovan offered, setting down his empty styrofoam container. "It seems to be a pattern."
"Well, shit," Pytho blinked down at his empty plate. "If that's the case, I hope they wait until I no longer feel like a stuffed sausage."
"Nobody forced you to eat that much," Derion balanced his empty plate on top of a few take-out containers.
Gideon snorted. "I remember having that kind of an appetite when I was still growing," he stood up and leaned down to pat Pytho's stomach heartily in appreciation, though it looked more like a punch.
Pytho grunted in response, holding a hand over his stomach and glaring up at Gideon. "Get that disgusting smoke away from me," Pytho demanded.
Gideon took a deep puff and blew smoke directly in Pytho's face.
"Gideon," Derion warned. "Leave him alone."
"Shut it!" Pytho snapped at Derion, surprising Adelyn with his sudden anger. "I don't need anybody to defend me. Believe me, I can handle this asshole all on my own," he glared up at Gideon, daring him to make another move.
"You want to see that meal in reverse?" Gideon snarled, leaning his hands on the arms of Pytho's chair. "Because I could make it happen, kid!"
"Sit," Cain breathed, his eyes still fixated on the window.
Gideon slowly pulled himself upright before clenching a fist in front of Pytho's face and walking back to his seat. He sprawled out in the armchair and took another long drag of his cigarette, still glaring at Pytho as he exhaled in his direction spitefully.
"What are we waiting for?" Derion asked after a long five minutes had stretched without any conversation. Adelyn shifted uncomfortably on the couch, placing her paper plate on the floor.
"They're going to attack again," Cain finally spoke, his eyes narrowing at the window as he carefully and slowly made his way across the room. He came to a stop next to the couch, peering out into the darkness.
"Should we be preparing?" Pytho asked hesitantly, eyebrows raised in confusion as he looked around the room.
"I'm ready," Gideon stuck the cigarette between his lips to pull his gun out of its holster and switch the safety off.
"Are we sure they're going to attack tonight?" Derion asked softly, leaning forward and resting his elbows against his knees. He gently rubbed his hands together and raised his eyebrows as he awaited a response.
Adelyn leaned back into the sofa cushions and looked over at Cain. When he didn't respond, she glanced back at Derion.
"Should I move away from this window?" She asked, pointing to the window behind the couch, suddenly nervous that an attack was imminent.
Derion shook his head but said nothing. Instead, he refocused his attention on Cain.
"We have something they want," Cain finally spoke, slowly dragging his
gaze away from the window and settling on Adelyn.
She frowned in confusion. "What?" She felt herself asking out loud, not daring to back away from his stare.
"You think they want her for information?" Donovan finally spoke up from the back of the room.
Adelyn's frown deepened as the bottom of her stomach fell out. "What?" She asked again, feeling her heart pound against her ribcage. What was he suggesting?
"They're going to try and take her?" She saw Pytho lean forward in his chair out of the corner of her eye.
"No," Cain turned around to glance at Pytho before walking back to his original spot next to Gideon's chair. "We're going to give her to them."
The entire room exploded in protests, but Adelyn could have sworn she heard Gideon laugh happily before he was reminded that giving her over to the guardians would be giving them an advantage.
"Are you crazy?" Gideon yelled angrily.
"They'll kill her!" Pytho exclaimed at the same time, jumping up from his chair and knocking over the empty beer bottle at his feet.
Donovan shook his head, tablet forgotten as he sighed into his hands.
"She knows about the gate," Derion added softly, his head turning to follow as Cain started to pace around the room.
"Fuck, you told her where it was?" Gideon jumped out of his chair and towered over Derion.
"Of course not," Derion snapped. "She knows about it, though, and I'm fairly certain she heard Cain give the order for Donovan to guard the gate last night. She's not an idiot; she saw that Donovan stayed in the basement."
"She doesn't know how to access it," Donovan's voice was muffled behind his hands. He lifted his head up and sighed. "So even if they did get a hold of her, she still wouldn't be able to give that information away."
"And once they realize that, they'll kill her!" Pytho added angrily.
"Are you all finished?" Cain's unexpected outburst made everybody jump and throw their hands out for the nearest weapon. Donovan, the closest, grabbed the folding knife he had used on his steak and held it out slightly, ready to attack if Cain moved in his direction.
