Chapter 18
"Well, so how are things?" Simone asked, sliding her arms over my shoulders to caress me and lay herself along my back.
I looked up from my breakfast, mid-chew, squinting at her and trying to figure out if we were just pretending last night hadn't happened. I was also curious if it was going to happen again.
On the best of days, my women were a mystery.
"I think things are going to be just fine," I said under my breath.
"Hopefully. I should probably make it a point to go check on Venthra.
Our plan to weaken the Demon Lord is progressing nicely.
We're killing a number of demons in the area, and hopefully, we'll draw out one of his fragments in the process. "
The morning had been quiet, and I found myself surprised that Merlin and Circe had slept in so late.
"Aren't you slowing your own growth a little too much?" Simone asked, narrowing her eyes.
I tapped my chin, genuinely giving her question some thought. "The demons themselves are helping me grow, although more linearly."
"I'm just saying, you shouldn't be quite so nice to this Eve character." Simone tapped her lips and slipped around me to land in my lap.
"We just need to keep her on our side until we finish. I promise you, there's nothing there. Besides, I didn't think you were the type to get jealous." I sensed a touch of jealousy, which was an odd one from Simone.
"Not jealous," Simone said sharply. "But if she pushes too hard, she could ruin it for all of us," she added, aghast.
I found myself rolling my eyes. I could not understand how that would be a concern, but of course, Simone blinked at me as if her response had been perfectly normal.
"Fair enough," I said, holding up my hands before returning to breakfast. It was good, and I'd missed eating with my women.
While I took my next bite, Gloria walked out of her suite nursing a cup of coffee. When she spotted me, she narrowed her eyes and smirked. "I heard there were multiple Mul Branova trying to use inscriptions to enhance their hearing last night."
I put my head in my hands. "Did they hear anything?"
Gloria sipped her coffee. "If it carried half as well as it seemed to, then they heard a lot." She smirked and found the seat next to me. Even this early in the morning, the mob princess was dressed sharply. The Rapture and collapse of civilization had not hurt her fashion sense in the slightest.
I shook my head. "Wonderful. I'll have to work on some inscriptions around our rooms. I thought it was all fairly soundproof, but it seems it needs more work."
"A lot of work, if I might say so. Though I think your ladies disabled what you’d already done." Gloria added another hearty sip, as if it wasn't a big deal. "You were talking strategy?" she asked, moving the conversation along.
"Simone thinks I'm giving up too much to Eve and her sect," I answered.
Gloria paused, tapping her cup before draining it. "You said she's a narcissist. So she won't give up much. And she isn't personally threatened yet. She's strong enough that the Demon Lord isn't going to come for her directly, at least not yet."
I nodded along with her assessment. "And as much as I wish it weren't so, we do need her for what we're doing. If we excluded her, or worse, got rid of her, we're not leaving allies behind to fill the gap."
"I mean, ultimately this is the same as territory expansion. It’s the same for drugs, real estate, or ancient kingdoms." Gloria shrugged.
"You go in, you find the players, and you figure out which ones could become yours and which need to be removed.
Then you either remove them or leave them behind to manage things in your stead.
" She mulled over her own words and nodded that she’d communicated it effectively.
"Personally, I don't think Eve is a reliable ally for us in the region. "
"And thus, you would suggest what?" I asked.
"Well, first and most important is determining what we want out of the region," she said, with a pointed glance in my direction. "Whether it be any particular resources…?"
I shook my head. "While they exist, I don't necessarily think the resources are anything too important. More than that, it's denial of the region for the Demon Lord."
Both of them had a funny look on their faces.
I ignored it, shifting my attention back to the cup in my hands.
"Besides, if we get rid of Eve, what are our options?
I went to see the tribes…" I grimaced. "They're pitifully weak.
And I suspect the city is a nest of demons.
" I waved a hand before either of them could jump on it. "Venthra's working on it."
"Alone?" Simone asked.
"Alone," I confirmed with a nod.
Simone's frown deepened. "You should check on her," she said, with a meaningful lift of her brow.
I paused, watching her for a long moment. "Maybe," I said after a heartbeat.
"I suppose that will have to do." Simone sniffed and glanced at Gloria for her reaction, which so far was very muted. With her purple hair pulled back into a fancy bun and her clothes immaculate, she looked like a bitchy office boss waiting for something to impress her.
"Don't rush him, Simone," Gloria cautioned. We all knew that restraint was not my Saintess's strong suit.
"Yes, of course, Gloria. Restraint," Simone said with a smile, sipping her orange juice and making herself at home in my lap as she pulled her plate close and began to eat as if I made an acceptable chair.
Not that it mattered. My thoughts were more important than the last vestiges of the meal.
"You could at least try and pretend you're going to be more cautious," Gloria chided.
"There's no fun in that, though." Simone pouted. "Besides, that would be lying."
"Isn't it still lying when you say you will but we all know you won't?" I asked.
"No, because you know I don't actually mean it. But I say it in such a way that you understand you're not going to get another answer," Simone told us.
I blinked and looked at Gloria for help. In a weird way, it made a lot of sense, but I didn’t know what to do about it.
She shrugged. "She's your woman, not mine."
"But we're a family," I tried, raising an eyebrow. "And as the center of the family—"
"Good luck," Gloria said, patting me on the shoulder.
I turned back to Simone, who was just a giant bundle of smiles, grinning at me and fluttering her eyelashes as if she could do no wrong.
"You're lucky I love you," I murmured and kissed her temple, feeling one of her hidden horns brush against me.
Simone bobbed her head in agreement. "I am truly fortunate," she said, without an ounce of sarcasm, her tone deathly serious.
"And how am I ever supposed to be mad at that?" I said.
"You aren't. That's the point," Simone said with a grin, and I wrapped myself around her in a big hug full of love until she was completely enveloped by my body.
"You are trouble."
"The best kind," she insisted and kissed me back.
"Please, it is too early for all that mushiness, you two," Gloria said without any real heat.
"We have to start early when he still has energy," Simone said quickly. "I hope the others didn't drain him of everything."
"I got a few hours of sleep," I said offhandedly, and both women narrowed their eyes towards me. Simone was clearly doing some measure of math in her head and paused to consider what I'd said.
"A few hours," she repeated, hesitating, then dismissed whatever she had been thinking with a wave of her hand. "Well, I suppose it doesn't matter."
Gloria hid her curiosity behind another sip of her drink. I couldn't hide my smirk as I watched Simone run several rounds of lewd math in her head. She had left after a certain point, and I could see some regret creeping in.
There was a reason Merlin and Circe were still asleep.
"Anyway…back to the topic at hand," I interrupted before Simone could get too far along. "I'll think about your suggestions on how we deal with Eve. I think the first step should be to go check on Venthra and see if we can't start removing the demon threat from multiple angles."
Both women nodded in understanding. "That would be best," Gloria agreed.
"That way you need Eve less, and perhaps you can find someone in the city who would be far, far better.
But if you don't, you should think about what I said.
" Gloria then added, "Eve is useful while she is, but once she's not, she becomes a liability.
And that risk is heightened if you aren't going to tame her. "
Simone shook her head, and for a brief moment, I had to question just how bad I must have made Eve out to be if even Simone didn't want to add her to the family.
***
I barely got a chance to do more than check in and make sure everyone was still alive before I returned to the First Garden with Merlin.
Eve had been waiting for me, and she turned with a bright smile, sniffing in my direction.
"I showered plenty, if you had any doubt," I promised.
"No doubt," Eve said, with a small tone of mischief. Her ruby red lips ticked up into the kind of smile you couldn’t trust.
I glanced around the room and decided to simply ignore whatever she was thinking. Eve looked at me like I was a piece of meat cooked to perfection.
"I hope my people behaved themselves," I said, making small talk, wanting to avoid the topic she most likely wanted to discuss. That way she had to come to me with whatever she wanted rather than let myself broach the topic. A small but useful display of power.
"I do enjoy Nyx. She is such a dear," Eve said, smiling. "As for Almeria, there's certainly nothing wrong with the woman. I simply haven't gotten a chance to know her, and that won’t likely change unless I become a sword."
"I remain ready for my lord and no other," Almeria stated without looking up from honing her blade.
"Of course. I would never order around someone else's soldiers," Eve said, holding her hands up to be the picture of innocence, though she couldn't quite pull it off. Perhaps it was the salacious edge that clung to her expression.
"And the demons?" I asked.
"Not a peep," Eve reported quickly. "Why, I don't know. Don't care really. I'm just happy to be free of their burden for a time."
I rubbed my chin. "How about we go into the city and see what we can find there?" I offered slowly, thinking of Gloria and Simone pushing me to check up on Venthra.
"The city is worthless, but I can understand you being thorough," Eve said. "That's where those who could never find a place in the world have now decided to congregate. For those of us with power, it's nothing but a place where hangers-on will cling to you incessantly."
"Wow, you're really selling it," I deadpanned.
Eve shook her head. "You'll see. Go, look for yourself. The place is worthless. There might be demons there, I suppose. But the reality is that, even if there are, it doesn't matter, because there's no one there worth protecting."
I wrinkled my nose at that statement but kept quiet. Eve and I clearly had very different definitions in that particular regard, and I wasn't about to make a big deal of it and risk our relationship. I would make my own assessment, and she must have seen that on my face.
"Fine, waste your time," Eve said, sitting back and lounging on a nearby chair. "You'll see soon enough. Are you going to keep one of your people here or perhaps give me a way to contact you?" She paused, holding out her hand.
I dropped a rockie-talkie into her palm. "The range is decent but has its limits."
She rolled it in her hand, squinting at it for a second. She was probably checking the system menu. After reading, a pleasant smile drifted across her features. "Oh, this is nice," she said, holding it up. "I don't suppose you have enough of these to sell?"
"Unfortunately, we don't," I answered quickly.
She pouted. "Shame. I would have really liked to see what it could do if we had enough of them." She grasped it tightly. "I suppose I'll have to make do with just the one. But do think of me if you have more."
"We have a number," I explained, "just simply not enough to give away so freely."
"Ah," she said, a slight smile coming to her lips. "So there is a chance to bargain for more."
I wanted to shut that train of thought down immediately, but a very subtle shake of Almeria's head made me pause long enough to dismiss the idea. I shifted my attention fully back to Eve before I gave away that I'd been looking elsewhere.
"That's to call for help if demons become an issue.
We should be back in a day or so, once we've had a chance to visit the city and make sure it can be cleansed of demons.
All of this effort is worthless if we don't uproot their influence in the area.
They'll simply reestablish themselves the second we leave. "
"But if they don't come back, then how am I supposed to call my handsome exterminator for another visit?" She chuckled, and I deadpanned at her.
"Unfortunately, I like to do things right the first time," I said, which nearly caused her to roll her eyes. She caught herself, though, and held it in.
"Of course."