Page 70 of Blood and War
Kellan nearly kicked down the front door, only managing to stop himself inches before his boot hit the hard wood. Forgoing for a different approach. Less openings, the easier it would be to defend. Having your enemy waltz in the front door would be frowned upon. Laughed at even.
Realizing he knew no other way than to break his way through, Will stepped in. “Allow me.” He smirked, pulling a long, needle-like blade free from a hidden sheath. Demitria hated that he was the one who stepped up. She sneered at him.
Will knelt before the door and inserted the blade into the delicate lock. Listening, then twisting. Shaking it ever so slightly. The audible click came a second later. He’d gotten them inside. It still didn’t change her feelings about him.
Giving the two of them a grin, Will flung the front door open and motioned them inside. “After you, your highnesses.”
She could hit him. Hit him so hard she’d render him useless. Gods, she hated him with every bone in her body. His attitude, his personality… everything. Everything about the man just made her mad, and his twin was no different.
“Not worth it.” Kellan muttered, as if reading her thoughts, and guided her inside before she could do anything stupid.
Inside the massive house was drab. Frames and vases broken to pieces lay along the floor. Carpets stained with gods knew what, curtains torn and shredded, and tile flooring cracked and broken in more than one spot throughout. It had been lived in, probably by multiple people on numerous occasions. It was a miracle it was empty now. But it was a place to stay nonetheless, and Demitria was grateful to just have a roof over her head and to not be sleeping in a cave again.
She walked with Kellan, inspecting room after room. Each one trashed beyond repair. Hardly any furniture remained intact. There was no food in the kitchens, but she hadn’t expected there to be any really. Jace and Cory had offered to go hunt for it, claiming to have spotted signs of rabbits on the property. She nodded, letting them leave with the promise of their return. Between the angels and the Horsemen, she was confident they’d be protected on all fronts. At least for tonight.
It took an hour for the others to settle in and pick rooms for the night. The Horsemen staggered themselves around the house. For protection, they’d claimed. The angels did the same. Demitria lost track of just how many rooms the house contained. Too many, really. More than anyone should have ever coveted.
Demitria took up residence toward the back of the building. Surprisingly cared for, as far as cleanliness went. She still didn’t trust the blankets that were on the bed, and a piece of her ached at the one she’d lost to the flames back in Solis. But the mattress? Gods, she’d take the gamble to sleep on a mattress again. The back of the room opened up to a tall, glass door that led outdoors. She promised herself to explore outside once she was more settled. See what the estate really had to offer. In another life, she could have been happy there. Content, to spend her days on a property like this. There was more than enoughroom to farm whatever she wanted, and she swore a greenhouse lay at the back of the property. There seemed to be plenty of edible grass for Atlas, and she’d never have to worry about him ever again. She’d repair the iron fence somehow, make it safe for those that chose to join her. Jace. Cory. Kellan.
In another life.
She didn’t get that luxury. Didn’t get to live her days, happy and carefree. Not with him. Not when they were so different. Worlds away.
A knock on the door pulled her from thoughts of what would never be.
“Nice place.” Jace let himself inside, letting his weary body flop down onto the soft mattress. “Managed to catch a few rabbits. One of the angels said they’d prepare them for everybody.” He patted beside himself, beckoning her over. With a smile, she obliged. Jace shuffled over the remaining foot, and she curled into him. The familiar smell of mint wafting through her nose as her eyes closed.
“I miss this.” She sighed, not moving away as he threw an arm around her. “When everything was easy. Before everything happened.”
“I don’t miss the responsibility,” He started, laughing for the first time in days. “But I agree. I miss spending time like this. I know we haven’t been traveling long, but I feel like I hardly get to spend time with you anymore.” Jace couldn’t be more right. She’d been so caught up with this gods damned war, and most importantly, Kellan. So caught up in her own emotions that it felt as if their friendship had been tossed aside. They’d always fallen back into that seamless rhythm again. It came easy, but the distance was different this time. Both of them knew it.
“It was like that before we got here.”Before he got here,she thought. Demitria didn’t have the heart to say it aloud. Knowing very well how her feelings with the Horsemen had affected theirrelationship. How she’d found herself instinctively stepping away from her best friend’s touch, when before she’d reveled in their closeness. Sought it out for years to ground her. Jace only nodded, agreeing. He wouldn’t voice the issue, or ratherhisissue with Kellan.
“Want to know what else I miss?” He asked, voice barely above a whisper.
“What?” His fingers softly trail down the smooth skin of her arm, and she moved it away.
“That damned roof.” Leaning back so she could look at him, her face straight for only a moment before she erupted with laughter.
“Even waking up in the rain?”
“Even waking up in the rain.” He grinned. They said nothing for a moment, but he sat up. Moving away from the bed. “Do you ever wonder if this is worth it?” Refusing to meet her gaze, his eyes fixated on a chair in the corner. Looking for something, anything of interest in the grain of the wood.
“Jace? What do you—” The bed groaned softly under her weight as she sat up. “What are you saying?”
“Exactly what it sounds like. Is everything withthemworth it? All of it.” Jace’s words were heavy, filled with a hatred she hadn’t been able to place.
Demitria hadn’t realized he held such a resentment toward the Horsemen. She hated how the conversation had turned so quickly. One minute, they were reminiscing about old times, now it was the Horsemen. Not openly admitting to it, but she knew he’d directed every word about Kellan. She hadn’t noticed the change in Jace. Always knew that he was weary of him, but the sudden hostility was something foreign to her. Something she was just beginning to see. The mistrust of the siblings was widely known, but this? When they—whenhehad done nothing wrong? Had never even laid a hand on him, or hurt him in anyway. Protecting her was the only thing Kellan had done since the moment the two had met, even when he’d been following orders. And if that was a crime? Jace would be guilty a thousand times over.
“Where is this coming from?” Closing the distance between them, she put herself between Jace and the chair he’d been so intently staring at. Forcing him to look at her. “How did all of this just come out of nowhere?” Her eyes narrowed, one hand resting on her hip as the other clenched into a tight fist. “Why does everything have to be so different with you?”
“You think I’m the one that’s different? That I’m the one who’s changed?” Taking a step toward her, the friends were barely more than a foot apart. “You might want to look in a mirror before you go around saying I’m the one that’s different.” Words laced with venom, he’d never before spoken to her like this. “It’s beings like them that killed our parents, Demitria.” The blow was low, and he knew it. Knew it had wounded her as she gaped at him in horror. “Yet you’re so keen to spend all your time, running around this damn world with them.”
“Hedidn’t kill our parents, Jace. The fucking demon rotting in that clearing, did. Kellan never raised a hand to any of us. If it wasn’t for him, I would not be standing here.” Side stepping away from him, she made for the door. Getting away was the one thing she had to do. To leave the damned room before anything else could break her heart. He was her family, the closest thing each other had left of it, but his words had stung. Like a poison working its way through her, numbing her to the bone.
The bedroom door slowly opened before her. She could hear Jace turn from the creak of the floorboards. Could practically hear the cringe as his face contorted into a look of pure disgust. “Impeccable fucking timing!” He spat the words, hands thrown skyward as he brushed past, shoulder connecting with her bodyas he stormed out the door. Shoving the Horseman in the process.
Kellan met her stare. It was strange, seeing the emotion his face held. Gentle, yet guilty. So soft as he looked on. Demitria knew he had heard the conversation with his innate sense of the world around him. Maybe not all, but the parts about his siblings and himself, she was sure. Whether he’d been standing at the door when it happened, or caught it as he’d neared, she didn’t know. Maybe he pitied her? Felt sorry for the series of unfortunate events that had seemingly turned into her life. But the bright light from the oil lamp seemed to magnify the expression in his azure eyes, portraying the sadness and guilt he felt. He was blaming himself for everything. For the falling out with her people, and her fight with Jace.
