Octavian's Undoing (Sons of Judgment) (24 page)

His grin was a little more amused now. “My dreams of you are a little different as well.”

She should have been annoyed by the small spark of delight that leapt into her chest. “You dream of me?”

He leaned in closer and dropped his voice as though whispering a secret. “Every night, Green-eyes.”

Her heart jumped like an excited puppy in her chest before she reminded it that now was so not the time. The guy wasn’t even human. She wasn’t sure of the rules, but she assumed he was off limits.

“You still haven’t told me what any of this has to do with me.”

Octavian splayed his fingers, palm up in a gesture of helplessness and uncertainty. “I honestly have no idea, Riley. I don’t know how you found your way here or how you’re the one…”

“The one for what?”

His eyes were dark and hungry with a desire that burned her to her toes. “For me.”

Robbed of all her senses, it took Riley a much longer time to respond, and when she did, it was breathy and pathetic. “What do you mean?”

“The day we swore our allegiance, we were given the three laws called the Black Laws. Never harm a human. Never touch a human. Never mark a human. It is because of those laws that no human can find this place. It is shielded from detection. Only Demons can locate the gates.”

“What gates?” she asked.

Kyaerin answered. “Liam and I are the gatekeepers to Hell. By the treaty, we are by law obligated to allow a certain number of demons to roam the mortal world. This diner is a holding ground of sorts for those on the waiting list. But the gate is only available after sunset. Kind of like boarding the red eye and waiting at the airport until your flight is called.”

Beginning to understand, Riley
ah’d
. “That’s why this place is so dead during the days, but full of really creepy people at night.” She turned back to Octavian. “So those
people
aren’t really people, huh?”

He shook his head. “They’re demons.”

“Demons look like humans?” That was so not a reassuring thought.

“You’re only able see them as human because your brain is trained to mislead your eyes. It’s the glamour.”

“Seriously?” She thought of the way the customer’s faces changed when she would look at them from the corner of her eyes and the drinks they ordered and a shudder passed through her. “Oh my God… demons!” She shook herself, not allowing the hysteric swell of giggles to take over.
I am so screwed!
“Okay, but what about me? As far as I know, I haven’t sold my soul.”

Octavian rocked his head from side to side. “That’s the million dollar question. It’s only happened once before and it turned out the boy was part demon. But you should never have made it this far.”

“I think it’s because she’s your mate,” Reggie said, speaking up after what felt like eons of silence. “It makes sense that she would find you no matter where you are. You are linked to her on a level that is beyond all worlds.”

Riley looked to Octavian. “What?”

But Octavian was staring off into some other world she couldn’t see. His gaze was fixed on a point just above her head as he mulled over this new bit of information.

“That actually makes sense,” he said at last.

Flushed with pleasure, Reggie plowed on. “Then you basically handed her your address when you dropped your wallet.”

Gideon punched Reggie in the shoulder. “Look at you! Been drinking out of the toilet again haven’t you? What did I tell you…
oomph
!”

Reggie returned a fist into Gideon’s side, making the blond grunt and double over. “I’m smarter than you, boy. Own that.”

Ignoring them, Riley focused on Octavian once more. “Is that why you were so furious with me for finding it?”

His soft gray eyes traced her face in loving strokes. “I was shocked as hell to see you here,
you,
a human…
my
human in a place that could get you killed. I didn’t want you to be where you are right now. I was trying to protect you.” He looked down. “You should have listened to me.”

“I needed the job,” she whispered. “I still do.”

Doorway to Hell or not, there was no way she’d find another job that paid her half as much as she got paid right now for that number of hours.

“So how is this place even here if people don’t know it exists? I mean, you have electricity and you must have a lease… or something.” She had no idea where she was going with this, but she was pretty damn certain the all seeing eye of the government should have known about this place. “Is this place legal?”

“There is a whole organization behind what we do. We have our own government and people that work as humans do to provide for the things we need. Should a human ever find their way here, they would see a clearing and nothing else,” Kyaerin said.

“Okay and this government knows you traffic demons?”

“We don’t traffic demons,” Magnus muttered.

“The demons submit an application of entry that is reviewed by us and then we judge whether they should be allowed or not. If they break their agreement, we hunt them down and bring them back.”

It was so insane that she wanted to laugh. “So you guys are like the Underworld immigration, bounty hunters and the demon police all roll into one?”
Don’t start giggling, don’t start giggling!
She’d never freaking stop, but she couldn’t help it. What exactly were the mandatory requirements for a demon to vacation on earth?

She had this absurd image of demons all filed in lines waiting to get blood work and tetanus shots done and their passports stamped. Random screenings and cavity searches anyone? Man she wasn’t even going to go there. So not ready for that visual.

“We’re what’s keeping humans from being extinct,” Magnus bit out. “We keep the really dangerous demons from coming through and stripping you of your pretty flesh.”

“Magnus!” Octavian growled.

“This is insane!” his brother shot back. “Make her forget and save us all this headache.”

“Well, I don’t want to forget,” Riley snapped back. “God!” She shoved her fingers back through her hair. “You can’t just go up into my head and mess with things. Hell, I have a right to know that demons could creep into my bedroom and eat my eyeballs or whatever. I mean, what’s stopping them from following me home? Do I need to start stocking up on crucifixes or something? Holy water? Will I start making the bed float and vomit pea soup? A girl needs to know this stuff.”

Gideon smacked Reggie on the arm. “I love that movie.”

No one paid him any attention.

“They won’t follow you home,” Liam said soothingly. “That’s why Octavian walks you every night. His scent is a warning that you are under our protection.”

“Also the demons we grant access to are forbidden from harming humans,” Kyaerin added. “They must swear a blood oath before they are allowed through. Those that possess and kill humans are the ones humans conjure into this world. The ones that we can’t control.”

At least that was some reassurance. Nevertheless, it simplified nothing. “All I wanted was a job,” Riley moaned. “How did this happen?”

“You still have your job if you want it,” Kyaerin murmured. “We don’t want to lose you, Riley.”

Riley swallowed hard. “I’m still not fully convinced I haven’t lost my damn mind. Can I have a few days to think this over?”

Octavian nodded slowly. “Take as long as you need.” He got to his feet. “I’ll walk you to your car.”

Just like that.

Riley rose, glancing over to the table a short distance away. No one tried to stop her as she crossed the room after Octavian. She paused at the door and turned back. They were still watching her. Not sure what to say, she slipped out into the frigid air. Octavian let the door close behind her.

“You’re going to just let me go?” She knew it was a stupid question to ask when there was still a chance he could change his mind.

“You’re not my prisoner, Riley.” They reached her car. He turned to face her. “I want you to come back, but only if you want to. I know I’m being selfish. I know I should tell you to leave and never look back, but… I need you.”

“For what?”

He offered her a small, desolate smile. “For me. I need you for me.”

She looked down. “There’s a chance I might not come back. This whole thing is insane? I’m not equipped to handle this much cray-cray.”

He nodded. “I do.” He sighed. “Maybe it’s for the best that you don’t. I couldn’t stand it if something happened to you because I couldn’t let you go.”

“So you don’t hate me?”

She glanced up as he reached around her and yanked open her door. His gray eyes greedily raked over her face, again and again, tracing it like he couldn’t seem to stop, like he wanted to memorize every inch of it in case he never saw it again.

“Never.”

Riley felt a knot in her gut, felt it tighten as she took a step back from him. Her heart hammered, hurting with every slam against her ribs. She bit her lip, drawing back the tears with pain. It worked for a second before she looked into his eyes and felt her own well up.

No, no, no, no! You can’t break down now. You need to leave. You’re doing the right thing.
But it felt horribly wrong. It felt like she was making the biggest mistake of her life.

“Goodbye, Octavian.”

He inclined his head, eyes never leaving hers. “Goodbye, Green-eyes.”

She threw herself into the seat, slammed the door behind her before she could second guess what she was doing, before she could throw herself at him and beg him not to let her leave. Instead, she pushed the car into drive and didn’t stop, didn’t look back, not once until she was home and only then did she let her walls crumble.

The alarm clock read a little after three when Riley bolted awake, her right arm burning. The fingers on her left hand were slick and sticky when she reached for the chain on the lamp. Dim light spilled through the room, illuminating the smear of red staining her fingers and packed under her nails.

With a gasp, she leapt out of bed and hurried to the washroom. She left a sweep of blood across the wall as she fumbled for the light switch. She took no notice, too busy washing the gashes on her right arm where she’d torn the band aids off — again — in her sleep.

“Why is this happening?” she whimpered, tears curtaining the swirl of red rinsing down the sink.

The irritation was always in the same place, a round area just beneath the inside of her elbow. The skin around it was inflamed, the veins a startling blue against the white and red. Long claw marks ran haphazardly around where the skin had been peeled away by her nails.

Not for the first time, she rolled up the sleeve on her left arm, searching the skin for signs of infection, but there was nothing. She checked her legs, her back and stomach, but her right arm was the only place infected.

Without a choice, she went to the doctors the next morning. The doctor, a tall man with an enormous belly, round head and lizard eyes, told her she had eczema. He gave her a prescription for cream and sent her on her way.

The next night, she woke up to find her sheets soaked in blood. A steady river was oozing from the deep gash she’d given herself in her sleep. She cleaned it up, crying softly the whole time, and stayed awake for the rest of the night. There was nothing else for it. She only scratched in her sleep, so it stood to reason that if she didn’t sleep, she wouldn’t scratch.

“You look exhausted,” her father pointed out on the fifth morning.

“I’m fine,” she muttered, her hand shaking only slightly while she poured coffee into the biggest mug they owned.

“I haven’t seen you go into work in the last few days. Everything all right?” This was all said around the cigarette he was trying to lit with the gold Zippo he’d gone ahead and bought with the money in her purse — without even asking her.

“Fine.”

He blew a plume of smoke into the already heavy overcast clinging to the ceiling. “You know you can talk to me if—”