Chapter Fourteen

Draco

The truth was finally coming out. After my visit to what I assumed was one of many Ten Club offices around the world, I learned they were very powerful people—both in the traditional and the otherworldly sense—who wholeheartedly believed my destiny was to unite Ten Club and the Seers.

How?

I wasn't entirely certain, but Lori believed my lineage had everything to do with it. I was the son of the only living Seer, Jeni Arnold, and of King, a man who'd dedicated his existence to collecting power—wealth, mind control, and immortality, just to name a few. The Spiros family, a loyal army of servants, were compelled to serve him and maintain his businesses and assets or do whatever he needed. There was more to King, so much more, but I didn't have all day to sit with Lori to review King's four millennia of power trophies. Though, it might be worth returning to her at some point.

My father, King, had once owned an arsenal of rare and dangerous artifacts and housed them in that empty warehouse. Lori had tried multiple times to learn where the items went after King died but had little luck. If I could find them, they might come in handy.

In the meantime, I had read through the file they kept on me, and it was enough to make me understand I had to move quickly. My awakening was the trigger for Ten Club to begin their final takeover, and it was a sign to the Seers that their time to rise again was here.

I looked at Piper, who still baffled me. I sensed nothing dark inside her. She had no powers, from what I ascertained, but I had zero doubt that she and I were meant to share this path. I'd dreamed of her and that house months before finally tracking her down. What were the odds that she lived in a home my father once owned and that she'd been raised a Spiros? It was more than a coincidence, which meant I would not let her leave my side until I figured out her role.

"I don't trust you," she said as she sat at the kitchen table, and I hovered over her. Strange how being near her quieted my mind and allowed me to think more clearly. That was, when I wasn't busy having thoughts of fucking her.

Play nice, Draco. You need her. Or so I suspected. And above all, do not let her distract you. She was beautiful in a way I'd never seen before. And yes, I had slept with a few women since waking up—wanted to know what the real thing was like—and I had seen plenty of pretty faces, too. But Piper was oblivious to her beauty or did not care one way or another about it. To Piper, it was more important to live a life she was proud of.

So while I found her body and face attractive, those were not what made her different. And a pain in the ass.

My eyes narrowed, knowing I had to choose my words carefully if she was going to come willingly. She'd just said she didn't trust me.

"Give me a chance to change that," I said.

"How?" Piper asked.

Good question. Perhaps a show of faith would change her mind. "I give you my word I will not hide anything from you going forward. In fact, I will make you remember what I took from you."

She frowned, confused.

"I can make people forget things," I added.

"People like me?"

"Yes. And now I want you to remember," I commanded.

"Remember what?"

Why the hell hadn't that worked?

"Draco!" a voice roared from the front of the house. "Show yourself!"

It was King. He was back.

I looked at Piper. "Don't think with your gut or your heart—they will only deceive you like they did with Leo. Use logic. Use the facts you're so fond of. King is everything unholy, and if you have doubts about that, then why is he back from the dead after crossing over? How did he live for thousands of years? He is the devil, a master of manipulation. And he created Ten Club."

She stared back, contemplating my words.

If King is the devil, then what does that make Draco?she wondered to herself.

"Draco! Face me," King called out.

If my father believed for one second that I was about to scurry off like a coward, he wasn't as intelligent as the legends said. I fully planned to confront him and make him pay for what he'd done to me.

"I'm in here, Father," I barked out. "Come face the monster you created."

Piper

Monster?I wasn't sure if Draco really saw himself that way, but it wasn't my problem. My issue was getting the hell out of here. Draco terrified me. So did King. People were not supposed to come back from the dead, let alone live thousands of years.

I got to my feet, ready to sprint out the back door and keep on running. I could return for my car keys, purse, and other essentials later.

Before I could make it two steps, King appeared in the kitchen, still wearing that sleek black suit. Draco froze and stared like he was seeing a ghost. Maybe because he actually was, which was why I froze, too.

This was the king of Minoa? The one I read about when I was twelve and who sparked my love of ancient Greek culture? His presence filled the room with an energy that made the air buzz and crackle, and he carried himself like a king—a man you should obey, bow down to, and fear like your life depended on it.

I watched the two men, who had the same frames and heights, stare each other down. I expected them to go at it, but they didn't.

What were they doing?

My mind flooded with a sick, primal fascination. I hadn't realized it before, probably because I'd been terrified when I met King, but he and Draco could be brothers. Nearly identical. They both had that thick dark hair, icy pale eyes, and faces that triggered something deep inside with their too-perfect features. Not like a model or gorgeous actor. Nothing like that. If I had to put my finger on it, I'd say they were not of this modern world. Men from a different time, a different place. Different species from us humans.

History was filled with tales of gods, beasts, and mythical creatures, especially when it came to the Greeks. Perhaps not all legends were fiction.

"Father." Draco flexed his fist. "You come to ensure I die like your other children? How kind."

What children? How did they die?

King's eyes flickered bitterly. "The violence of my past spawned your very life. This, of course, is the reason I am here. My existence was unholy, which means yours is, too. You are a cancer that needs to die."

I didn't feel any sort of affinity for Draco—a dark fascination, yes—but it was brutally cold to tell your child they're a cancer.

My eyes whipped to Draco, wondering two things: (A) how would he react? (B) why the hell hadn't I left yet?

"Wrong." Draco stepped forward, going toe-to-toe with King. "For thousands of years, you've demonstrated there is no limit to the depraved things you'll do to get what you want, including creating Ten Club and enslaving Seers to do your bidding. You are the one who's cursed." Draco pressed a finger to his chest. "My future is mine alone, and I'll decide how my life plays out. It has nothing to do with you or the circumstances of my birth."

"When you have lived as long as I, you come to understand that you decide nothing. Fate has her own plans."

Draco's eyes flickered. "Well, if our destinies are fixed, then there is no harm in telling you to fuck off. Let me live my life in peace. If fate comes for me, it does."

King lowered his gaze to the floor. "I am sorry, Draco, but I cannot do that. Ending my own flesh and blood is the only way to set things right."

Draco chuckled. "Only one problem with that, Dad. You cannot kill me. You're not powerful enough." Draco leapt for King, knocking him to the ground.

Oh shit.

Draco wrapped his hands around King's neck, and I watched as colors exploded all around them. Greens, reds, and blues. King tried to hit back, but his arms fell limp to the ground.

Draco tightened his grip around King's throat, a feral look in his eyes.

"Draco, no." I went over and squeezed his shoulder. "Stop!" I yelled, not even sure why I was getting involved. If two evil gods wanted to fight to the death, I wouldn't be able to stop them.

Draco turned his head to look at me, as if snapping out of a violent daze. In that moment, King launched Draco into the air. He flew past me, slamming into the refrigerator. Draco slid to the floor, moaning in pain.

King got to his feet and jumped on top, strangling Draco. He was trying to crush his neck.

I gasped in horror, covering my mouth. "Stop. Please stop."

King was just like Draco, completely unaware of me, lost in a feral deathmatch.

In that moment, I realized that I had to choose. I could help Draco, or I could stand here and let King kill the son he believed would end us all.