Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 123065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
She walks around it briefly but I can tell she’s trying not to snoop, or maybe she doesn’t want me to see how perceptive she is.
I clear my throat. “I’ll give you the code later, for now you should rest, it’s going to be a busy night at Styx, it’s the perfect time to train.”
“Oh,” She clasps her hands in front of her. “Right. Just let me know what time to come down. Is what I’m wearing okay?”
She would look stunning in nothing at all.
My entire body jerks away appalled. It’s just the effect of not seeing the sun.
It’s nothing more.
Years ago, I would have already told her everything. But now, the temptation to play with her a little longer just became more tempting. She is, after all, my final victory.
“Be down by seven.” I close the door to his room and hand her the card with her own key code on it. “And dress the way you normally would when serving customers at a high-end bar.” I lean in and a bit too much and whisper. “Look nice.”
I hope the immortals are watching.
Let them entertain themselves one last time before I come back and take my throne. Besides tonight—I can almost guarantee—we’re going to have visitors.
After all, the moon never lies, and neither, sadly, does the weather.
Let the fucking game not just begin—but end.
CHAPTER 4
CLEO
“Myths which are believed in, tend to become true.” —George Orwell
My room is enormous and modern, black framed windows overlook the rocky beach with a perfect view of the Olympic Mountain range. I hope to God Jake is camping at some hot spring and not really out there isolated in the glacier ridden peaks. Shaking off my fear, I focus on my room.
I do a small twirl. All the bedding is pristine white, matching the curtains in complete defiance of the dark wooden features everywhere else.
What started as a chill only grew as I unpacked and got ready for the evening.
Literally no matter how many clothes I have on or how close I stand to the fireplace, it’s impossible, it’s like the sun fell out of the sky or something. I even laid down in the bed before training and tried throwing blankets over myself. It’s not like I have windows open or anything.
My teeth chatter as I change into a fresh set of clothes, a pair of faux loose leather pants and a black low cut t-shirt. I don’t know why I pick it, especially since I’m freezing my ass off. I grab a pair of cute Converse and call it a night. My hair’s already a mess so I pull it into a tight bun, then I add some lip gloss.
I don’t bring my phone since that would be rude, and who would I call anyway? Jake, again? The reminder makes my stomach sink. Everyone seems to think he’s fine and just on a random adventure but all I have is missed calls, a weird voicemail about finding something, and nothing since then. He should have waited for me at the very least before starting his solo adventure.
When I find him I might actually kill him.
I adjust my bracelet on my wrist and momentarily touch the half sun amulet, wishing something electrical would happen, or that it would speak to me. I don’t believe in magic or fate, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to believe; it just means my belief is dead now that everything’s been taken from me. My hands brush the silver. Nothing happens. The only time it ever has was when Jake and I put the sun pieces together. A sliver of orange light emitted from it then, but it freaked us out so bad we stopped immediately and when we told our mom, we got grounded for nearly breaking the bracelets.
I sigh and walk out of the bedroom and click the door shut, then walk by Jake’s room. When Cyrus let me in, I noticed all of his things were still there down to his textbooks and some of his clothes. It smelled like him. And the smell brings back my renewed hope. He’ll be back. I just need to enjoy my time here while I can. I just need to wait for his return.
I also need to focus first on getting through tonight without faceplanting into the food from exhaustion. Maybe more answers will come. I walk down the hallway and then down the stairs to the first floor.
By the time I make it into the loud bar, I’m officially five minutes late. I look around and frown. The dull roar of the room isn’t too crazy, but what catche my attention is the nice table with a black linen table cloth surrounded by men in suits. It was out of place.
I almost trip on the bottom step when several seats are pushed out all at once. There’s a man with ash-colored hair and dark eyes staring at me from the head of the table opposite Cyrus, and there’s another sullen-looking guy who seems to be about my age—the one guy who refuses to stand—with bright red hair, crystal-blue eyes, and what might be a permanent scowl.