26. Seth
Chapter twenty-six
Seth
We had another connection but the fact remained that we were without a definite location for where Erebus hid away his human captives. If he kept them at the abandoned warehouse where he trapped Erin, that’d be too obvious, too easy. He was far too calculating.
It was infuriating.
Derik sat crossed legged on a pile of pillows with Erin’s laptop propped open on his lap. He let out a frustrated groan as he waded through the factory’s history.
His jaw twitched. “Where else could they be keeping them? Those tunnels we ran through used to be mine shafts from what I’m finding. Way back when Riverside was first founded. Then when it was bought out, they were declared maintenance tunnels. Apparently, they were pretty shitty if they were still pure dirt. Can you imagine having to worm through those as a maintenance guy? Fuck that. No wonder the factories went out of business.”
Erin and Libby were on opposite sides of my couch researching on their phones, adamantly ignoring us while we groveled.
We’re at another standstill. One ah-ha moment and now we’re stuck again.
“You do realize, you can use my laptop instead of Erin’s right?” I cocked my brow.
“I could, but then I couldn’t snoop on these fanfic sites. Aren’t you a frisky chick, Snow?”
Erin dropped her phone and dove for Derik from the couch, tackling him and knocking her laptop out of his lap. “Stop it, you asshole!” She squealed. Her cheeks were pink as she scrambled for her computer. Derik grabbed her, tickling her. Erin laughed, begging him to stop. She rolled onto her stomach, attempting to escape and he sat on top of her. Pinning her down. Erin let out an, “Oof.”
I smirked.
Well. She won’t be moving for a hot minute.
Libby snorted from the couch while Josh briefly looked up from his own screen. His expression devoid of emotion beyond a slight twitch of his lip; a faint light glinted in his eyes as they swept across the squabble.
Erin grunted. “Fine! I give up, just get off of me, you brute!” Derik wiggled on Erin’s back and she groaned, giving up.
“Oh man, Seth, I’m really digging your new chair. Pretty comfortable. I could chill here all day.”
“Fuck off,” Erin grumbled. “Can you at least budge so I can use my arms to scroll through my phone? You’re a pain in the ass.” Derik lifted his ass, barely giving her space to yank her arms out, before plopping back down, causing her to let out another huff of air. Libby kicked Erin’s phone across the floor to her, stifling another chuckle.
I cracked a smile as mine and Libby’s eyes met; green and speckled like the blades of grass caressed by dew droplets in the morning sun.
My eyebrows furrowed, confused by the thought. I looked to Erin, begrudgingly scrolling through the browser on her phone, stuck under Derik’s frame. A warmth cradled me seeing her goofing around and slowly opening up around them, even if that meant she was pinned under Derik at the moment.
I shook my head and went back to my laptop, searching for any information on other buildings that had been left to ruin in the area, as that seemed a prime base of operations for the Demons. Somewhere in which humans wouldn’t go snooping around.
Avoid any suspicion. Not that it really mattered.
Most of them hid themselves unless they were hunting for prey.
Whether they were hungry, bored, or in need of…release.
I growled at the thought.
The next few hours were quiet as we threw ourselves into our browsers and newspapers. Searching for anything to find a potential lead on where Erebus could be hiding the humans. Every minute we spent searching, and not finding them, made my skin crawl.
Erin tapped away on her phone. Libby switched to various newspaper articles she’d printed, spanning the last decade, long before the factories shut down. Josh stepped out onto the front stoop and made a few calls. Derik had slumped down, moving to where he was then using Erin as a pillow instead of a seat, his head resting on the middle of her back. A slight pang of jealousy ran a clawed finger through the inside of my stomach at the sight of the two of them.
It would never happen.
Enemies to lovers, my ass.
My leg bounced as I swallowed the sour tang of the little green monster. I scrolled through the search engine on my screen, clicking page after page, for any tip-off. Nothing. I rolled my shoulders, neck and arms tingling. Setting my laptop onto the coffee table, I stood and reached for Libby, pulling her from her phone and off of the couch.
“I don’t know about you guys, but I need a damn break. Who’s up for some sparring?”
Libby bounced, delicately landing on the tips of her toes before padding the small distance to Derik and yanking him up from the floor. She twirled, her hand still cupping his as she led him to the sparring mat next to the lifting equipment.
I bent down, elbows propped on my knees. “Need some help, Snow?” She groaned, pushing herself onto her knees.
She slid her hand in mine, and I pulled her up with me as I stood. Erin arched her back, stretching her arms above her head before swooping them back down to her ankles, getting the kinks out of her back. Erin may have been in sweats, but her physique was still noticeably beautiful. Her arms toned, her legs strong and defined by all the strength training we’ve done together. Her curves peaked through the fabric of her clothes; sweatpants hugged her hips while her sweatshirt dipped inward at her waist. Even covered in dried Demon gunk, she was breath-taking.
Wait.
Has she been covered in it this whole ass time?
I glared at Josh.
What the hell happened when she was with him?
She righted herself, standing up. I quickly averted my eyes to Derik and Libby dancing around each other, waiting to see who would strike first. Libby flinched. Derik shot his arm out, anticipating catching and locking her arm. She smirked and took in his movement, swinging her leg behind his and pulling it out from under him. Derik realized his mistake and reached to grab her. Libby dodged and spun around him, her fist slammed into his shoulder blades, sending Derik sprawling on the floor, face first. She pranced backwards a step and blew nonexistent dust from her nails. “Awe, Ricky, you went easy on me. How sweet.”
I stifled a laugh. The prickling irritation towards Josh eased.
I’ll find out soon enough. Erin will tell me.
Erin snorted, looking to me for an explanation. “Ricky?”
I quirked a smile. “He hates that nickname. It’s a sure-fire thing to get under his skin and get him riled up when his head isn’t fully in the game. Or when he’s going easy during sparring.” Erin’s eyes twinkled, filled with mischief.
She batted her lashes up at me. “So, who do I get to spar with?” Blood rushed south and I imagined the two of us going head to head. Her landing underneath me, chest heaving, sweat glistening on her forehead. Her cheeks flushed; lips formed into a perfect pout as I bend down to kiss her, her chest pressed against mine.
I shifted, thankful as all hell for the invention of compression boxers. And that I had a long enough T-shirt on. I cleared my throat, realizing Erin was still waiting on a response.
“You get either me or Josh. Take your pick,” I rasped.
Erin clicked her tongue, briefly mulling it over. “I think I’ll take you on. I’ve had enough of working with Josh for the day.”
I raised an eyebrow at her. “What work did the two of you do together today? I thought he was just tagging along, playing chauffeur.”
Erin side eyed me, locking her jaw before saying, “Nothing too important.”
“And just so you know, Rin, I didn’t put him up to it. I swear.” I searched for any hints of what conspired between the two of them. She gave nothing away.
What’s she hiding?
No. She’ll probably tell me later, when it’s just the two of us.
“Okay.” Her lips pursed. She strode to the mat, watching Derik take Libby down with a final blow. I had a feeling she’d let him win that round.
Derik held his hand out to Libby and yanked her off her back. They both wore a thick coat of sweat. “Nice effort, Lib,” he flashed a grin that most of the ladies went wild for. “But next time, don’t spare my ego.” She blushed and feigned innocence. They walked off the mat, aiming for the fridge to grab a few water bottles.
“After you, Rin.” I made a show of swooping my arm towards the mat, causing Erin to roll her eyes and her smile returned, even if it didn’t fully reach her eyes. Instead they lit with a flame, determined to do everything in her power to hand my muscular ass right to me. I kicked off my shoes. “Ladies first.” The fire within her ignited further.
Erin darted forward, aiming for my abdomen. I clasped my hand around her wrist, stopping her in her tracks and spun her around. I pinned her against my chest before sliding my hand to her neck. “Fatality.” Her chest heaved and she drove her heel backward into my shin, I cursed under my breath but held her firm. She needed to learn how to get out of it.
You need to be able to keep yourself safe, Rin.
Erin wiggled under my strength, attempting to drive the top of her head into my chin—failing. She shoved her elbows back, pointing to my ribs. I swiped her legs from beneath her and she fell. The wind knocked out of her.
She glared up at me. “Again.”
We got into position and fought. Over and over again. Her frustration increased with each lost round. An hour later, Erin plopped down onto the mat, waving her discarded sweatshirt in the air in defeat. We were both slicked in sweat. She’d stripped down to her sports bra and sweatpants and I’d tossed my shirt to the floor. Libby and Derik watched onward from the island while Josh played spectator from the couch. Each analyzed her every move.
“Okay. I give up. Holy fuck.” Erin gasped in between labored breaths.
Libby brought us a couple of waters and I tossed one down to Erin, splayed across the mat with one arm sticking out to the side and legs sprawled. Wisps of her hair curled at her neck before fanning out around her. Her loose bun had fallen halfway through the sparring session.
I sat down next to her, arm resting on my knees. “You have the strength. And the drive. But your movements are trash, Snow.”
“Yeah, well you try fighting a super-powered half-human for the second time ever. Eat shit,” she said between breaths, her eyes squeezed shut.
I chuckled and took a sip from my water bottle. “Suck it up, Snowgirl. You got a lot to learn.”