Chapter Eleven

Valentin

W ith my mind still reeling from having to face my father, Maur's revelations about the ravens and the curse, which is allegedly not a curse at all but a lie, I keep quiet and try to focus on the road.

Maur doesn't have much to say either as she fidgets with her nails in the passenger seat next to me. Atlas and Riot are chatty enough for the both of us in the back, going on about the Spring Equinox Festival and how we're going to get new Nocturnus recruits.

Winter is almost over, which means classes start on Monday. While most normal people get invigorated by the prospect of spring, my soul belongs to winter. To the dying trees, the frozen ground, and the cold rain. It resonates deep within me.

I have mixed feelings about going back to Tenebrose. I'll have my uncle to contend with, coupled with the burden of helping Riot rebuild Nocturnus. And we'll all have to deal with the fallout from the night of the ball. The whispers were growing up until the last day before winter break. The students were told that Zeke's death was a tragic accident, but I'm sure they all suspect foul play. The whole school is fucking scared of us.

The rumor mill will only get worse once we return with Maur, her body marked up with Nocturnus sigils. No one will dare say anything, but they will gawk and gossip and make up shit to fill in the blanks of their delusional fantasies. That's how it's always been in our world. We are the elite, the privileged, and therefore, subjected to all forms of adoration and mockery.

I catch Maureen watching me out of the corner of my eye. I grip the wheel and step on the gas. Her close proximity sends my pulse racing. She alone can make both my blood boil and my cock hard at the same time. Her gaze is electric. It makes me uneasy and yet turns me on.

She's always expecting something. Wanting something . Even if it's just a look of reassurance. Sometimes, I think I can give her everything. But mostly I know I'll just disappoint her with my apathy.

"What are you thinking about?" she murmurs.

"Nothing."

I keep my eyes on the road. The past few weeks have been fucking draining. I don't want to think about the ways we've degraded her. The things I've done to her, and she's done to me. If I don't shut down for a while, I'll unravel and literally become a slave to my every fucking sexual whim with her.

It's not a horrible idea, but the more we touch, the deeper I fall. The more I crave. And that never ends well. Erebus family rule number one: If you fall in love, you might as well cut off your balls and hand them over.

"It doesn't look like nothing, Val. You're cracking the leather on the steering wheel." She covers my hand with hers and I tense. Introverted me isn't pleasant to be around. She has no idea the extent of my self-loathing and deprecation.

She sighs. "Okay, I'll leave you alone."

The second she slides her hand away from mine, the guilt claws at me like a hungry beast. I shouldn't feel this way. I haven't even known her for that long. But those honey-colored eyes always seem to strip me bare. And I fucking hate it.

I nod. "Excellent."

Atlas snickers from the back seat, suddenly more interested in us than Riot's diatribe on Nocturnus politics. "Do I detect a little mood swing, Val?"

"Fuck you," I snap.

He laughs. "Point and case."

"Back off, Atlas." Maur whips around to my defense. "He's been driving all night while listening to you two chatterboxes the whole time."

Why is she fucking defending me after I just bit her head off? She's just as toxic as the rest of us. "Stay out of it, Maur."

She rolls her eyes. "Whatever."

Riot stretches his arm out, curling it around her from behind so he's hugging her and the front seat. "Relax, baby. We're all on edge."

She practically purrs at the sound of his voice in her ear, almost coming from just the weight of his arm across her heaving chest. She closes her eyes and sinks back. "Mmm."

Atlas laughs again. "He's right, Maur. Val's always like this after he sees his father."

Fuck.

The engine roars as I step on the gas. Beads of sweat form on my forehead. I need to get the fuck out of this car. Away from everyone so I can fucking think without this feral ache between my legs distracting me.

With each sigil, it gets harder and harder to drown them out. Our bond grows deeper with each one. Fuck, I was obsessed with her before her first sigil. Now she has four. Even her scent consumes all the air inside the car, filling up our lungs with its potency.

I unzip my jacket and roll down all the windows, locking them in place so they can't roll them back up.

I ignore their pleas and grumbles as I drive faster. I don't dare look over at Maureen who is cursing up a storm. Out of the corner of my eye, I see her dark brown stands blowing ferociously around her head. Goosebumps pebble her skin.

Spring may be on the way, but it's still cold as fuck. I can't help but smirk as I get off on torturing them. I push the pedal all the way to the floor and close my eyes. The sigil on the back of my neck flares to life, taking over.

Three ravens flap alongside the car hysterically as they lose the battle for sight. I take over, using their eyes to guide me. Their squawking is lost in the wind, lost over Maureen screaming at me to open my eyes.

"He's got this. Calm down," Atlas yells.

She's in a state of panic as she tugs on my sleeve. "What the actual fuck are you trying to do, get us killed?"

One of them yanks her away from me. "He's using the ravens, Maur," Riot shouts.

"But there's a cliff up there," she screams. "We're going too fast to take the turn."

"Then we'll go over. Consider it a shortcut," I snarl while gritting my teeth.

We call it Devil's Yard. It's a hairpin turn that's seen a lot of blood. I've driven it a hundred times with my eyes open. But I have no intention of taking it today.

"You'll need all of us, Val," Riot calls out over the howling wind.

Atlas puts his hand on my shoulder. "Fucking hell. Let's fucking go. I'm so hard right now."

"Are you all fucking crazy?" Maureen cries. "Let me out right fucking now."

I laugh and shake my head. "We won't make it without you."

She squeezes my thigh. "Then slow down, Val. You don't have to do this."

Riot rests his hand on my other shoulder. "Fuck it. Maur, focus. Envision us going over the cliff and landing safely on the ground below."

"What? No. It's not possible. We're gonna fucking die." She's shrieking now. The terror in her voice sends my adrenaline coursing through my veins. It's so palpable I can almost taste it.

"Do it, pretty girl. Help us get over that cliff," Atlas coos. "You're the dark queen on the chessboard, remember?"

The edge of the cliff nears, sending my pulse racing as fast as this car. "Time's running out. Everyone needs to focus."

"Oh, shit. Okay, okay." Maureen locks onto my wrist, and I feel her power surge instantly. It pumps into my veins and arteries like electric currents.

"Good girl," Riot encourages.

Atlas howls like a wolf as the four of us grip each other. I keep my eyes closed while my vision stays connected to the ravens.

"Ready?" I call out.

Maureen's scream gets lost in the wind as I punch it before anyone can respond.

My stomach flips as we fly off the ground. The car floats for a second before hurtling down faster than I anticipated.

The wind gets knocked out of me as we plummet.

"Focus, fuckers!" Atlas shouts.

A crackle of energy shifts through me, and we start floating again, cascading down at a slower pace.

"We're fucking doing it," Maureen breathes. "Holy shit, we're fucking doing it."

I release the ravens and open my eyes just as we pass the tops of the elm trees. My belly tingles as I take in the view. It's breathtaking. "Hold on," I whisper.

The ground is closer than it appears, and we hit it hard. "Fuck. Hold on," I cry out, louder this time.

The tires spin as I fight to regain control of the wheel. Dust and dirt fly in every direction as we hydroplane. I can't see if there's a tree in front of me, or a building, or even another cliff.

Maureen grabs my arm. "Find the path, Val."

I close my eyes and go back into the raven. There we go. I let off the gas and hold the wheel as steady as I can.

The dust starts to clear as I'm finally able to straighten the car.

I slam on the brakes and look around. We're in the forest just outside of Tenebrose. "Holy fuck."

Atlas sticks his hand out the window and pats the door. "Mary Shelley, you sly little minx."

"You named your car?" Maureen asks.

The rest of us burst out laughing.

"Yup." I slick my hair back with a sweaty palm.

"Why Mary Shelley and not Frankenstein?" Maureen arches an eyebrow, a smirk on her lips.

I catch my breath and finally turn to look at her fully. "Because it's not the monsters I'm afraid of… it's the ones who create them that terrify me the most. Those are the devils you don't want to fuck with."

Her cheeks flush. "What about when the monster finds its own power? When it stops being a slave?"

Fuck. My adrenaline is pumping, and all this talk of monsters makes me want to bend her over the hood of this car and fuck the breath out of her. "A monster with a mind of its own is no longer a beast but a king… or a queen in your case." I reach over and pick a leaf from her hair. "And that, pretty girl, is when you get to make them all fall at your feet."

"Anyone wanna talk about how we just fell from the sky?" Atlas hangs an arm around each of our seats. His blue-green eyes are ablaze with toxin and adrenaline.

Riot chuckles. "I gotta figure out how to do that on my bike."

Maureen punches each of us in the arm. "You're all fucking psycho, you know that right?"

We can't wipe the shit eating grins off our faces.

She giggles and shakes her head. "That was pretty fucking amazing."

I want to touch her and hold her in my arms, but I still need my own space. I need to distance myself from this obsession. If I start, I won't want to stop. "Let's get you back to the Nest. I'm sure Libra is burning a hole in the floor waiting for you."

She smiles and nods, but I can see the disappointment in her eyes. "Yeah, I need a break from you guys, anyway," she teases.

Riot's eyes darken. "I don't like you staying there without us, Maur. We should all be together."

Atlas nods in agreement. "Come stay with us, pretty girl."

Fuck.

Three weeks in the cabin was fucking ecstasy. It was a fantasy. And it was fucking torture. I can't even remember if I ate food or slept much. If she moves in with us… there will be no stopping my heart from completely attaching itself to hers. I'll be her monster, enslaved to her without logic or reason.

To my relief, she stands her ground. "Nope. I'm trying to be a normal college student, remember? Besides, Libra will light me on fire if I leave her alone all semester. Your cousin is very persuasive, Atlas."

"You mean bossy." They both laugh as I drive up to her dormitories.

She tosses her hair up into a high ponytail, and my cock twitches as I catch a glimpse of the sigil on her neck. The Erebus sigil. Mine .

"Remember, tomorrow night; party at Nocturnus House. I'll pick you up." Riot kisses her hard on the lips. I want to finger her while she kisses him. Fucking hell. I shift in my seat, my cock swelling.

Atlas grabs her chin and shoves his tongue in her mouth. I watch as her cheeks flush and her nipples pebble through her white tank top. "Mmm, you taste like the sweetest sin."

To my surprise she doesn't wait for me to kiss her as well. Instead, she hops out and closes the door behind her. As much as I want some space, the thought of not kissing her goodbye irritates me. It's fucking startling.

She leans back in, draping her body through the window frame. "See you later, Frankenstein."

This fucking girl.

"Sweet dreams, Mary Shelley."

She blows me a kiss, and I can't help but grin as she struts away.