Chapter 22
Chapter twenty-two
Roxi and I lie in bed for a bit longer before our bladders scream at us to get up.
We each take our turns in the bathroom before crawling back into bed.
It’s so comfortable that all I want to do is fall back asleep, but Roxi’s stomach rumbles, so I get up and look around for a laptop—we all know Adrestia has to have at least one.
I’ve never actually looked around the penthouse.
The first time I was here was when Adrestia literally ran into me.
You know the rest of what happened that night.
Then, when we got here last night, I was so focused on taking care of Roxi that I didn’t pay much attention to my surroundings.
This morning, I’m trying to be a lot more cognizant of everything.
I enter the hall from Adrestia’s room, looking both ways so I can decide where to start first. Down the hall to my right, everything is dark, and all I see at the end of the hall is the door to the guest bedroom.
To my left, the sun shines brightly through Adrestia’s million and one windows, illuminating a small portion of the living room.
I head down that way, passing a few other doors that lead to a half-bath, a linen closet, and a laundry room that has no business being anywhere near as big as it is.
The last doorway I come to doesn’t actually have a door on it, so I step in, and my eyes widen.
The first thing I notice is bookcases lining an entire wall, filled to the brim with books of all kinds.
I’m instantly drawn to it, admiring the spines of books ranging in age from those that are almost falling apart to those that are glossy and unmarred.
This is something I never would’ve seen in the nest. The elders dictated every single aspect of our education, down to the books we read and the supplies we used.
When I come to the old wooden desk, I smile.
It’s one that has the rolltop lid over it and several drawers with metal handles.
My fingers skim over the well-polished wood before they find purchase on the metal handle at the opening.
I barely bump into it, and it opens, causing me to jump back a little.
I certainly didn’t expect it to be automatic, given its antique look.
As it lifts, my eyes land on the exact thing I was looking for: a laptop. I don’t even wait for the lid to open all the way before I’m unplugging the laptop and snatching it to scurry back to Roxi. I’ve been away for long enough that I’m sure she’s starving by now.
Walking down the hall, I say, “Sorry, Rox. I got distracted. You should see all the books Adrestia has in her study. Or is it called an office? I have no clue. But I did find her laptop!”
Her laughter filters down the hall toward me. “I think you need to get laid more often. You’re so much happier when you do.”
I laugh as I walk through the doorway. “Honestly, I think most people are happier when they get laid.”
She rolls her eyes, and I throw the laptop on the bed just before I tackle her. Her shriek pierces my ears as I land on her, both of us still very naked, but I love the feel of her skin against mine. I bury my face in her neck, peppering it with kisses, and she squeals.
“Vae, stop! I’m hungryyyyy,” she whines.
“I have something you can eat.”
She shoves me. “That satisfies another type of hunger, not this one.”
I sigh. “Fine.”
“Thank you. After we order food, we’re buying clothes. And I’m not buying cheap shit, either. Addie did say money wasn’t an issue, after all.”
Roxi orders food from three different places.
Three different places. She said she couldn’t choose what sounded best, so she just ordered it all.
As we all know, I’ve never lived like this—having loads of money to spend on whatever I want.
I’m trying very hard to look at everything through a different lens, but it’s difficult for me.
While we wait, we move on to shopping for clothes. She knows all the places to order from and asks for my input, especially when it comes to clothes for me, which I appreciate. In the end, just buying clothes for the two of us, we spent well over five thousand dollars.
“Did we really need to spend that much?” I ask.
“Of course we did! We deserve the best out there. Plus, we needed all of our clothes to get here sooner rather than later, right?”
I shake my head and shrug. “I mean, I guess?”
She smacks my arm. “No, no. Not ‘I guess’. You need to know because you deserve everything you could ever want. Sometimes you need to work for it, but that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve it any less. I’m going to teach you some confidence.”
I roll my eyes. “Good luck with that.”
Her eyes level on me when the doorbell rings. The sound takes a second to register, and once it does, her eyes light up. I melt into a puddle on the bed, deciding I want to see that look on her face constantly. How I’m going to achieve that is beyond me.
She tosses the laptop onto the bed, and hurries to climb off. On her way out, she grabs a shirt from the top of Adrestia’s laundry, yanking it on. I let out a small laugh again and fall against the bed.
What did I do to get here? Whose good graces did I get into? I’ve found three women who want me, three women who make me feel like I belong with them. It seems too good to be true.
That peace is ruined when the front door opens and a man says, ‘Oh, fuck’.
Then Roxi screams, and I’m flying out of bed, already shifting into my harpy form before my feet have the chance to hit the ground.
I reach the living room just in time to see a man stepping past another that’s turned to stone.
He throws a bag over Roxi’s head and starts to drag her toward the elevator.
The idiot doesn’t make it far before I’m grabbing him by the throat with one hand while I rip into his chest cavity with the other, tearing his heart out in one swift movement.
He lets go of Roxi—who falls to the floor—and then disintegrates to ash in my hands.
“What the fuck,” I mutter before shifting back and turning my attention to Roxi.
She’s managed to rip the bag off her head and pushed herself against a wall. Tears stream down her face as she rocks back and forth. I clamber up to her, cupping her face in my hands.
“Did you know him?” I ask quietly.
She nods. “H-he was o-one of my g-guards.”
“Fucking bastard. Do you know what he was?”
“A v-vampire. It’s why he turned to ash when you ripped out his heart.”
“Did you know the other man?”
She shakes her head. “It looked like he had a bag in his hand, so I think he was delivering something.”
“Shit. We need to get you inside before anyone else shows up. May I carry you?” I ask, needing her permission. She’s been manhandled again by some asshole who thought he could do what he wanted with her.
All she does is nod before I lift her in my arms and rush past the man who’s been turned to stone. When I get to the bedroom, I lay her on the bed and kiss her forehead before pulling on the first shirt I see so I can deal with the man in the hall.
I start off by grabbing the bag from his hand—well, actually, I have to literally rip it from his grasp—so I can take it inside.
Taking care of the man himself turns out to be harder than I anticipated, though.
He’s nearly a foot taller than me, and now he weighs several hundred pounds since he’s stone.
Even in my harpy form, he’s hard for me to manage.
I finally have the man halfway through the door when the elevator dings. Muttering out a quick, ‘Son of a bitch,’ I shove past the man and hurry into the penthouse so I can return to my human form.
A woman’s voice yells out, “Hello? I have a delivery here.”
I rush back down the hall, still only wearing Adrestia’s shirt, but fully in my human form. “I’m so sorry. One of my friends sent me a statue of himself as a gag gift, and I can’t seem to get it through the damn doorway. You can leave the stuff right by the door, and I’ll grab it shortly. Thanks!”
A bag rustles as it’s placed by the door. “Umm, okay,” a woman says, skepticism filling her tone, before scurrying back down the hall.
When the elevator dings again, I slip past the statued man to make sure no one else has come up. Roxi ordered from three different places, and only two have delivered thus far. Since the elevator is around the corner, I wait for a moment.
It’s a good thing I do because a young man who’s probably about as tall as I am hurries around the corner carrying a massive box, nearly tripping over his own two feet.
He spots me, and I can sense his heartbeat quickening.
Then I spot the growing bulge in his pants.
I internally groan, but flash him a fake smile.
“I, uh, I’m sorry I’m late,” he says, his voice much deeper than I expected.
I give a small laugh and hold out my hands to take the box from him. “Not to worry. Someone else just delivered something, so I was already standing out here. My girlfriend is starving, so she ordered from a few different places.”
His pupils dilate, I’m sure, thinking about the fact I have a girlfriend—although I’m not even sure if that’s what you’d call us. It’s most men’s wet dream to watch two girls give each other pleasure. If only he knew there’s actually four of us; he’d have a heyday with that.
As he puts the box in my hands, his brush against mine, a rush of energy passes through me. I take a step back, running directly into the statued man. All feeling leaves my body, and I crumple to the floor.
The last thing I hear before I lose consciousness is the man whispering, “I’m sorry it had to happen this way.”