Chapter 39 #2
I blinked, feeling suddenly self-conscious about the change.
The iris of my right eye, once purely blue like the left, now had a streak of molten gold cutting through it—as if someone had taken a brush dipped in sunlight and painted a single stroke across the blue.
Dawn had called it beautiful. I called it terrifying.
“I didn’t lose anything that matters,” Cipher said quietly. “Not compared to what I could have lost.”
I leaned forward and pressed my lips to his. His hand came up to tangle in my hair, holding me close as he deepened the kiss, his mouth warm and insistent against mine.
When we finally broke apart, his eyes had darkened.
“Do you think the doctor would allow me to have sex?” he asked, his voice dropping to that low, seductive tone that never failed to send a shiver down my spine. “Surely that wouldn’t break any rules.”
I laughed, glancing pointedly at the various monitors he was connected to. “I think it might set off some of the alarms they’ve got you hooked up to,” I said, running my finger along one of the wires attached to his chest. “Besides, you can go home tomorrow. The doctor said so this morning.”
“Tomorrow,” he repeated. His hand found mine, fingers intertwining as he tugged me closer. “So does that mean we can have sex tomorrow? Or are you going to make me ‘rest’?” He said the last word with such disdain that I couldn’t help but smile.
I didn’t answer, just shifted carefully until I was lying beside him, my head resting against his shoulder. He pressed a kiss to the top of my head as I settled against him, his arm wrapping around me.
“Have you heard anything more about Helios?” Cipher asked.
I shook my head slightly. “Nothing we didn’t already know.”
What I didn’t say was that Havoc had decided to handle the situation in his own way.
The official record would show that Helios had been compromised by an unknown entity, not Halcyon since there was no way to prove it was him, and was receiving treatment at a secure Alliance facility.
The murders would be attributed to this “unknown influence.”
Havoc wouldn’t let Halcyon’s corruption destroy Helios’s life or reputation. He’d been adamant about that when we’d discussed it.
“The boy deserves a second chance,” Havoc had said. “He was a victim in this, not a willing participant.”
I’d watched as Havoc had paced, energy crackling around him in agitation. “I’m still going to mentor him personally when he recovers. He’ll need guidance to process what happened, to understand it wasn’t his fault.”
What had surprised me most was Havoc’s next statement, delivered with absolute certainty: “Helios will be my successor one day. I knew it the second I chose him.”
The conviction in his voice had been startling. Havoc rarely spoke about legacy or the future, yet he seemed certain about Helios’s place in it.
I hadn’t argued. If anyone could help Helios recover from Halcyon’s influence and the trauma of being used as a weapon, it was Havoc.
“Any word on our favorite fucking asshole?” Cipher asked, his eyes narrowing slightly.
I sighed. “Nothing new. Just that Valor is already in talks with the League about switching sides.” I shrugged one shoulder.
Cipher’s mouth twitched. “I’m sure the League will appreciate his unique approach to villainy.”
“I have no idea how Alliance PR is going to spin this,” I said, feeling a headache forming behind my eyes at the mere thought. “Probably some nonsense about him going undercover or having a temporary breakdown from the stress of heroism.”
The memory of Valor’s face twisted in rage as he’d grabbed me made my stomach clench. His fingers had left bruises on my arm that were only now fading to yellow-green smudges.
“Can we not talk about him?” I asked. “I’d rather focus on literally anything else.”
“Of course. What did you and Dawn talk about while you were out?” Cipher asked, his fingers playing with a strand of my hair.
At least I hadn’t fallen asleep before Dawn and I had had a chance to do some catching up. I didn’t want Cipher to know that I’d literally fallen asleep sitting up.
“Wedding plans, mostly,” I replied, smiling at the memory of Dawn’s excitement. “She and Hunter have already decided on cake flavors, strawberry and vanilla. She was showing me pictures of different designs.”
Cipher made a face, his nose wrinkling slightly. “Strawberry and vanilla? Amateur choices.”
“Not everyone has your refined palate,” I teased.
“Clearly. Everyone knows lemon is the superior cake option.”
I laughed at his cake snobbery. “I actually like strawberry cake,” I admitted.
Cipher’s expression shifted to one of exaggerated horror. “You’re a heathen,” he declared, pulling back slightly to look at me properly. “I can’t believe I love someone with such terrible taste in baked goods.”
“Says the man who thinks lemon is the pinnacle of cake innovation,” I countered, poking his side gently.
“Because it is,” he insisted with that stubborn certainty that was so quintessentially Cipher. “The perfect balance of sweet and tart. It’s scientifically superior.”
I rolled my eyes but couldn’t stop smiling.
I shifted slightly, getting more comfortable against his side. “Dawn and I talked about the apartment too,” I said.
“Oh?”
“She and Hunter want to move in together. Sooner rather than later. Start living their life together.”
“I suppose that makes sense,” Cipher said.
“And I’ve decided to move back to the Tower.” I looked up from beneath my lashes to watch his face carefully for his reaction. “The apartment is perfect for Dawn. It’s close to all her favorite places and the museum. And it’s not terrible for Hunter’s work either.”
Cipher’s eyebrows rose slightly. “You’re giving up your place?”
I nodded. “If Dawn moves out, I’d have three bedrooms all to myself. I don’t need that much space.” I shrugged against him. “It makes more sense for Dawn to keep it. Besides, I’ve always had a room at the Tower. It’s not like I’d be homeless.”
“You really want to move back to the Tower?” Cipher asked, his voice carefully neutral.
I sighed, leaning my head back against his shoulder.
“It’s not that I want to, exactly. But I didn’t really understand how bad it was when Dawn said the housing market was terrible.
She wasn’t kidding. I’ve been looking at listings, and anything decent is either absurdly expensive or gets snatched up before I can even think about scheduling a viewing. ”
Cipher remained silent, his fingers still absently playing with my hair.
“I’ll just move back to the Tower until something comes available,” I continued, trying to sound more optimistic than I felt. “It’s not like my room there isn’t comfortable. And the security is unbeatable as long as it’s not you trying to break in.”
Cipher was quiet for so long that I wondered if he’d fallen asleep. I tilted my head to look at him and found him staring at the ceiling, his brow furrowed in thought.
Finally, he took a deep breath. “You’re moving in with me.”
I froze, uncertain if I’d heard him correctly.
“What?”
“You’re moving in with me,” he repeated, turning to meet my gaze directly. “I’m not letting you go back to the Tower. You spent your entire life in that place answering to the Alliance. I am not letting you walk back into a cage.”
“I...” I started, then stopped, unsure what to say.
“You can take your time getting used to the idea, but it’s happening,” he said, watching me carefully.
I shook my head, trying to gather my thoughts. “I just... I don’t want you making this decision because I mentioned my housing situation. You’re already dealing with so much.” I gestured vaguely toward his bandaged arm. “I’ll be fine at the Tower. Really.”
Cipher looked at me with genuine confusion. “Annie, I’m not doing this because I feel obligated or because I pity you. I’m doing this because you’re mine now, and I want you with me.” His directness left no room for argument, yet there was an undercurrent of vulnerability beneath the command.
His fingers found mine, intertwining them. “And if you don’t like the penthouse, I’ve been looking at properties just off the bay. Something on the water.”
I stared at Cipher, trying to process what he was saying. “You’re looking at houses? When did this happen?”
“When I realized I wanted to wake up next to you every morning.” He said it so matter-of-factly.
“But your penthouse—”
“Is mine and lifeless,” he interrupted. “I want something better for you.”
I swallowed, my throat suddenly dry. “Cipher, I—”
“I want to give you a home on the bay,” he continued, his gaze intense.
“Somewhere with a private beach. Where you can walk barefoot in the sand whenever you want. I want to make a sanctuary for you so secure you’ll never have to look over your shoulder again.
The world stays out, and you get to do whatever the hell you want inside. ”
“You’ve really thought about this.”
“I have. I want mornings with you. Coffee on the deck while the sun rises. Watching you get ready for work, knowing you’ll come back to me at night.”
I was speechless. The image his words conjured, a home together, waking up to the sight of sunlight sparkling on the bay, falling asleep to the distant sound of waves, was so unexpectedly perfect it hurt.
“It would also be closer to the Tower than my penthouse,” Cipher added, his thumb tracing circles on the back of my hand. “Or your current apartment, for that matter.”
I blinked, realizing he was right. A place on the bay would put us almost equidistant between where the Tower stood and where the Labyrinth was hidden. Of course he would have thought of that.
“That would make my commute easier,” I admitted, trying to sound practical while my mind was already racing ahead, imagining what it would be like to live with him.
It sounded... perfect. Terrifying, but perfect.
“I never pictured you as the beachfront property type,” I said, trying to wrap my head around this new vision of our future.