Chapter 9 Hadrian #4
Julian takes the passenger seat and immediately reclines it like an old man, wincing dramatically.
“Pussy,” I mutter.
“Love you, too, brother,” he says without opening his eyes.
Lucifer slides into the middle row beside Maeve, making a show of leaving a respectful gap between them. She doesn’t move closer, but she doesn’t shrink away either.
Progress.
I climb into the backseat alone, stretching out just enough to keep an eye on Maeve’s reflection in the window.
Her fingers worry the hem of her sleeve, the motion small and rhythmic. She’s grounding herself, counting breaths, trying to stay in the moment.
I don’t know what horrific flashback she’s trying to fight off, but I hope she manages.
Torin starts the engine, and the hum vibrates through the car. We pull out into the night, the bright headlights slicing through the fog. The silence lasts maybe ten seconds before Lucifer breaks it.
“So,” he says, turning in his seat with that shit-eating grin. “First lockdown together in years. Brings a tear to my eye.”
“More like a migraine,” Julian mutters, flipping him off.
Luc grins wider. “Ah, come on, Jules, this is the moment we’ve been waiting for. The epic family reunion tour. It’s all coming together so perfectly.
“Hades brooding, Julian bleeding, Uncle Adrian micromanaging the apocalypse.
“All we’re missing is a banner and matching shirts… and, you know, the arrival of the rents.”
Now it’s me who flips him off—not that he bothers turning around to see it.
“I’d set mine on fire.”
“Course, you would. Probably while wearing it,” Julian says brightly. “Unless you meant our parents, and then, please don’t.”
“Don’t be a killjoy, Baby Cuz,” Lucifer contradicts. He looks at me through the rearview mirror, waggling his brows. “Please do, my favourite dark horse.”
I scoff and hate myself for it because I nearly miss Maeve’s snort. It’s so quiet but unmistakeable.
It feels like she hasn’t laughed in days, as if she’s never been happy in weeks.
Lucifer hears it, too and smiles bright.
“Don’t worry, pretty princess. Yours clearly aren’t invited, so it’s just ours who are going to get an early emigration to their graves.”
I groan, shaking my head. “Fucking hell, Luc, that’s enough of the crazy. I get it. You’re happy, but tonight’s been hell.”
“Tonight?” Torin says dryly. “From my understanding—”
“You understand nothing, kitty cat,” Lucifer says sharply. He looks at Maeve with a darling look in his eyes when she grimaces.
“Don’t worry, pretty princess. Next time, we’ll make sure the life-threatening panic attacks come with better sheets and luxurious seats”
She side-eyes him. “You’ll be lucky if you make it to next time.”
“That’s my girl,” he says with mock affection.
Julian cracks one eye open. “If you two could stop flirting while I’m trying not to vomit, that’d be great.”
“Try harder. Your breathing is disrupting my peace,” I say.
For a while, it’s almost… easy.
The city lights smear across the windows, yellow and white and bleeding red from taillights ahead. I’m surprised the roads are this busy, considering what’s going on.
Unless that’s why.
Maeve finally speaks, voice low but steady. “So, what actually happened? I heard bits, but I was out of it.”
“Unsurprising. Clearly, it was far too delicate for such an entitled girl,” Torin mutters.
We ignore him.
Lucifer exhales. “Judge Rowan Garrison. Scum in a robe.”
She freezes, and the colour drains from her face. The air in the car grows colder, and she shivers brutally.
“I know exactly the kind of man he is.”
Julian nods, quiet. “Apparently, someone broke him out.”
Her breath hitches. I lean forward, elbows on my knees. “You’ll be safe, starlet. We’ll make sure of it.”
She doesn’t look at me, but her voice softens. “If my stalker’s involved…”
“Then we’ll handle it,” I say. Too fast, too sharp, but it’s the only thing I know how to promise.
Luc leans back, stretching. “See, Maeve? You’ve got a full-service protection squad now. One brooding pegasus, one bleeding hero, and one devastatingly handsome imp.”
“Three idiots,” she corrects. “And Draven.”
“Semantics. Not like I can argue against Daddy D’s intelligence,” he says, grinning.
She rolls her eyes, but there’s a faint pink in her cheeks now. It’s enough to pull the knot in my chest a little looser.
By the time we reach the gates, the night has swallowed the compound behind us. The lights fade, and with them, the echo of everything that went wrong.
Torin flashes his ID, the barrier lifts, and the SUV glides onto the empty road.
None of us speak for a long time. The hum of the tires fills the silence until it almost feels like peace.
“I just want to sleep in my own bed,” Maeve says quietly.
Something in me twists. “Then that’s exactly what you’ll do,” I tell her. “We’ll make sure of it.”
Lucifer hums his agreement. “We don’t need to do anything tonight, princess.”
He kicks the seat in front of him, strong enough that I’m surprised Torin didn’t jerk the car.
“If anyone tries to stop you, I’ll happily introduce them to my charming personality,” Lucifer adds, raising his voice ever so slightly.
I think that’s the name of one of his arrows, not going to lie.
Julian snorts. “That’ll kill them faster than your blades ever could.”
Torin turns onto her street. My pulse turns feral.
The world can wait.
Maeve’s needs can’t.