Chapter 3
Lola
“You already look a tad better,” Marcus said, handing me a beer. I didn’t bother giving more than a grunt as I took the bottle from his hand and pushed myself deeper into the couch. “So, you never updated me about the chip situation. Was there one in Dimitri’s uniform?”
I nodded. “There was, but it was broken. Not sure if it was before they gave it to him or if he broke it when he fought outside.”
Marcus’ eyes narrowed as he sat next to me.
“Both are unlikely. The uniform chips are embedded in some sort of tempered glass. Not as strong as the crystal that resists the toxicity of our blood, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone who managed to break it.
And even less if he was wearing it…I mean, the hit should’ve been strong enough to break his hip bone or something. ”
Dimitri didn’t look hurt—which was surprising with the amount of blood he’d been covered with. But none of it was his, and we might have been Immortal and healed quickly, but a mending broken hip would have made him limp for a few days.
“Well, when I took it out from where it was sewed in, the glass was nothing more than dust and little shards, and the metallic thing inside was crushed.”
Marcus released a long sigh before bringing the bottle to his lips for a long swig. “Not gonna lie, I was hoping the chip was there and functioning.”
“Why?”
“Because we could have tracked it.”
Would I have even left it there if it wasn’t broken? Knowing Dimitri wouldn’t want to?
“I’m not sure how it could have shattered,” he mused. “Maybe you’re right and it somehow was broken before. But it seems a bit odd that he was given what was probably the only non-functioning one.”
He looked like he gave it a lot of thought, sipping at his bottle leisurely.
“Can I ask you something?” I scratched at the paper label partially covering the green glass distractedly. Marcus nodded. “You’ve always been a bit sensitive when I brought up the prison and strange disappearances. Did you lose someone?”
His throat bobbed but he gave me another slight nod. “Two people, yes. They were taken three years ago during an assignment, and we never heard from them again.”
He paused, and I didn’t urge him to continue, somehow knowing that he wasn’t done but that it was difficult for him to talk about it.
“I—We were together. I mean, they were together at first, a binded pair. Ever since we met, there has been this weird attraction between them and me, and I somehow found my way into their heart. The three of us lived together for two years before they…disappeared.”
Old memories danced in his eyes. Losing people you cared about always hurt, no matter the circumstances. I couldn’t imagine the pain he went through the past few years, not having the slightest idea if they were even alive…
“I’m so sorry,” I said, placing my free hand on his forearm. “You must have felt so hopeful that Arc was finally going there to retrieve the prisoners and my freaking out makes it all worse.”
He shrugged. “It’s hard to keep hoping after all this time. But yeah…” The silence stretched. Aymeric was in bed, and the girls were out, leaving only the two of us. “It’s painful to hope for so long.”
He placed the bottle between his knees and untied his hair only to tie it again, like a nervous habit.
“Anyway, let’s talk about something else.”
“I’m sorry I asked, I know it’s painful to lose people you care for.”
A small forced smile stretched his lips. “Have you lost someone too?”
A dry scoff escaped my throat. “Of course I have. I’m old, remember?”
“I mean, you have Dimitri. And now Arc and Carter, no matter how rocky of a start you had with them. Have you ever loved someone else and lost them?”
My mouth opened and closed a few times. Was I ready to tell anyone about it? Dimitri was the only one to know. Was I willing to risk the story leaking out to Carter—and Arc when he’d be back?
“You know I’m not that much of a gossip, I can keep things to myself,” Marcus said, like my worries were visible on my face.
I exhaled a long breath, throwing my head back against the soft cushions of the backrest. He did share something painful with me…it was only fair I evened out the playing field.
“I told you Arc said we were a group of six, right?” He nodded. “Which means that, with Dimitri, Carter and Arc, it leaves two other mates that are still unaccounted for.”
“Which is strange, because being alive for a millennium and a half, what’s to say that the other two are even still alive?” he remarked.
“Fate can be cruel.” I shrugged. “It’s common for Immortals to never even find their mates, because Earthwalkers have shorter lifespans. Sometimes, your mate won’t be born for another few centuries, or millennia.”
“That’s reassuring, thanks,” he grumbled.
“My point is, Dimitri and I kinda lied to Arc when he told us he knew we were supposed to be a group of six. Or at least, we kept something to ourselves.”
He shook his head, sighing softly. “Oh no, Lola…”
“There’s only one that’s unaccounted for,” I said before he could add anything and his jaw dropped.
“One,” he repeated and I nodded. “One. Wait—how come you didn’t say anything about it? Why would you hide the fact that you actually know who another of your mates is?”
“Because I left him behind.” His eyes widened in horror and he opened his mouth to talk but I rushed to interrupt him. “He thinks I’m dead, and it’s safer this way.”
What was obviously surprise turned to straight out confusion. Could I blame him? No, not really.
“Wait—demons can’t die. How did you manage to—”
“There was a hunter,” I explained. “He found me when I was living with my—Blake. My mate’s name was Blake.
” I took out the little ring hanging on the chain around my neck and fumbled with it in a nervous habit.
“He was—is an Earthwalker. We lived together in London and even got married in the early two thousands. Dimitri lived with us for a while, it was all…perfect.”
I paused, Blake’s face popping in my mind, like it did at least once a day since I fled.
His smile as he came back home from his human job every night and ran straight to hug me like I was the most precious thing on earth.
The slight shaking of his hand when he reached for me in our bed after waking up from a nightmare at night.
“We were happy,” I resumed, my voice wavering.
“But that hunter found me one day. He snuck into our house and threatened me, giving me two options; killing us both or allowing him to live but I had to flee, and he’d tell him he killed me.
” His eyes softened. Maybe because he felt pity for the choice I’ve been forced to make or of his own experience with a demon hunter.
“I didn’t bother to grab my things as I was supposed to be dead anyway, and called Dimitri.
I don’t remember where he was at that time, but he picked me up in two hours, helped me flee London and made sure to check on Blake regularly ever since. ”
Marcus stayed silent for a while, taking the information in. So I decided to share more, because he felt like the first true friend I had in my whole life.
“I also lost my twin brother,” I confessed. “When I sold my soul to save my father after I was the one to kill him, I made the demon erase me from my village’s memory. When I went back after a few months to discreetly check on everyone, my brother was nowhere to be seen, and no one recognized me.”
I only wished I’d included Amyntas in the lot. Maybe he wouldn’t have hunted me down…He did give up rather quickly though, and I often wondered what made him stop after only a couple of years. I could only hope he’d found a way to undo the Maiden’s mark…
“I didn’t care that no one remembered me,” I continued. “Except for Aghen. In his own, kinda messed up way, he helped me escape from the tight situation I was stuck in, and I never got to see him again after I killed my father.”
It was pointless to mention that he sort of caused everything that unraveled after this cursed night.
That, if it weren’t for him blabbing to our parents, our father wouldn’t have died.
I wouldn’t have sold my soul and lost such an important piece of myself.
I’d spent a lot of time resenting him, to the point of exhaustion.
Now, I just missed the brother I’d known before everything went to shit.
Wished it had gone down differently…If I could meet with Aghen again?
I wasn’t sure if I’d feel angry at him for causing this mess or ashamed of him seeing what I’d become without my soul.
Fifteen hundred years had left me too much time to ponder this, and yet I was still confused and lost on how I grew to feel about him.
But, I guess it didn’t matter anymore. Aghen had forgotten about me—if he hadn’t, he would have found me. Being an Immortal meant I’d outlived any members of my family. It was no use wishing and mourning things that could have happened differently.
Marcus finished his beer in one last swig before placing the bottle back on the table with a clunk.
I blinked, chasing the thoughts away. “Now you know more about me than anyone living in this camp.”
“I’m sorry you lost so much. But after living for so long, I guess it should be expected.”
I shrugged. “You lost two people. So I told you about the two most important people that I lost too. Now we’re even.”
One of his eyebrows arched. “I didn’t know it was a transaction.”
“It’s not. But I guess I trust you more than most people in this camp, so now you get to hear me trauma dump on you.”
A grin spread on his lips, illuminating his face and lightening the heavy atmosphere of the room.
“Oh, are we officially friends now?”
I nodded. “Yes, dumbass. You’re stuck with me.”