Chapter Five

August

“Where do you think you’re going?”

I stopped and turned, flashing a smile at Mom. She stood at the top of the stairs with her arms crossed. “To visit Payne,” I lied. Payne was the first thing that came to mind since I saw his ugly mug hours ago.

Mom’s eyes crinkled at the edges. “The last three days as well?”

I groaned. “ Mom.”

“Why are you going to the Underworld?” she asked.

I scratched the back of my head. “I’m not.”

“August.” Mom narrowed her gaze. “Your father sees your potential. He will show you how to conjure your scythe and guide the dead in time. You don’t have to be in such a rush for a job that lasts an eternity.”

“I should have the ability already, like Sebastian and Barron,” I muttered.

“They didn’t get their scythe at fifteen,” Mom murmured.

“I’m not my brothers.”

The corner of Mom’s lip curved, and I kicked my foot out, hoping the scrape of my boots scuffing the floor would help me escape. “Then why are you so upset that they have something you don’t?” Her happiness evaporated when I revealed my glower. She realized what she said. Mom already knew the answer to her question. Greed wanted what everyone else had. It wanted anything from someone, my parents, tried to deny me. “August…”

“I’m heading out.” I walked toward the large double doors.

“There’s a reason your father won’t let you have them, August,” Mom mumbled like she didn’t want to tell me. “That’s the last thing we can give you. You think we don’t know we’ll lose you when there’s nothing left here for you to take?”

My heart tightened. For a second, I allowed myself to hate my sin before shoving the feeling aside. Her words rang true. I had a city to claim. Soon, there would be nothing for me in my parents’ castle. Oddly, the appeal of the city didn’t light up my curse.

Lifting my wrist, I inspected the hair tie. Mom didn’t know since I discovered it myself three days ago, but I had to save my family. I didn’t belong with them any longer. Without another word, I faded.

_______

While gazing upon the City of the Dead on a tree branch, waiting, I heard Odin’s loud mouth. “Do you think August came today?”

The five of them walked below me. Rolling her shoulders, Nova sighed, looked up, and mouthed, “ Boom .”

Nova would never take me by surprise like that again. I flipped in the air and landed on my feet in front of them. Reaching my hand out for Nova’s, I bowed slightly as my gaze swept over her. When she didn’t offer her hand, I smirked. “You’re positively lovely today, Nova.”

It was the wrong thing to say. She flinched and gripped the ugly dress. Squeezing the material in her hands, her brown orbs shined with her irritation. “Why do you keep coming back?”

“To see you,” I said unabashed, lowering my arm.

“Do you like Nova?” Sofia asked.

Nova’s chest puffed out before she grabbed Sofia’s hand. “Let’s go.”

Materializing a single rose, I held the flower out, then sent it floating after Nova. Sofia covered her mouth and snickered when Nova grabbed it as it hovered in front of her. “Does that answer your question, Sofia?” I asked.

“Gross,” Odin muttered.

Nova’s body went rigid before the flower burst into tiny pieces in her grip. That only made me grin wider. I expected her to destroy the rose. She flinched or stiffened anytime I showed interest in her. She seemed to hate it when my eyes wandered over her, but it was something I needed her to get used to. “How old are you, Boom?”

If Grim showed me how to access my powers further, I wouldn’t have to ask. I would have known her age and much more the first day I met her.

Glancing over her shoulder, Nova’s brows furrowed in the middle. “Why?”

“How old are you?” Odin interrupted.

“Fifteen,” I replied.

Odin’s brows raised. “You’re only two years older than Nova.”

Nova scowled.

Nova was thirteen. Although I was interested in sex, I hadn’t done it yet. I stole Sebastian’s girlfriend a few months back when he fell asleep and made out with her. He was so fucking pissed about it. Kissing was kind of lame. I expected something more. That was the thing about greed. I didn’t want the woman he brought to the castle, but I wanted to steal her from my brother. The moment she became mine, I had no interest. The heady sensation of my curse had moved onto the next thing.

Women gawked and batted their eyes at me once I hit puberty. Even older ones. As a Reaper, I grew fast, and I grew big. I reveled in the attention, knowing I could have any female I wanted at any time… that had satisfied my curse. Not anymore, it seemed. Earlier in the City of the Dead, a jeweler fluttered her lashes at me, and I couldn’t muster the energy to con her. My curse hadn’t gone crazy either. I realized I lacked the desire to keep up the facade, and that was new .

I had so many plans when I left the castle until Greed became fixated on Nova. Something was quiet inside me those days, besides my desire to make Nova my girl. Before her, I had never included people in my future. My fascination with her differed from everything else. The feelings she invoked from me were so powerful. Instead of obsessing over objects and places to make mine, I was visiting a bunch of kids.

So, my sole focus was showing Nova she would be mine. My curse urged me to steal everything, but I couldn’t steal what I desired from her. Making her my girl would take time. As an immortal, I had plenty of that. I’d been jerking off for a couple of years already and had no real rush for more. I could take care of myself a few more… Surely, she’d come around by then. Given Nova’s naivety, I doubted she knew about sex yet. We would discover it together. Warmth flooded my chest. Yeah, I liked that idea.

First, I had to convince Nova to leave with me. She was the one thing I knew I couldn’t take. While it was possible to kidnap someone, it was impossible to steal their affections.

Holding up my hand, I materialized a blanket and piled a variety of food on top. “Are you guys hungry?”

All five of their mouths dropped in sync. Nova closed hers first as the others rushed forward.

“What is this?” Sofia held up the strawberry milkshake as she plopped down on the blanket.

“Try this, Nova!” Finn shouted as he shoved a chicken nugget in his mouth. “It tastes like a chicken.”

“It is chicken,” I informed him, then held my palm out to Nova. “I’ll take my payment now.” Her nose crinkled, so I pointed toward her hair. With a frown, she watched me warily as she reached up and untied her hair. I reveled in the way her black curls slowly fell. Her locks were in a constant state of frizz, and she’d probably never had the luxury of hair products. She had to pull the kinks out before handing me the hair tie. With a grin, I put it on my wrist with the other, thinking of the future. I pictured myself conditioning her hair and figuring out how to tame those curls for her.

“You’re a strange boy, August,” Nova said, as she sat down between Sofia and Cloud. “Be careful. Don’t get any on your clothes.” I frowned at her odd command. There were things I couldn’t help but notice. They wore the same worn and stained attire every day. I noticed Nova tried to keep the kids and their clothes clean by taking them to the river. The knowledge that they washed in the creek still blew my mind. As my chest tightened uncomfortably, I squeezed my fists at my sides.

I should steal them after all. Nova would forgive me in time. She’d understand once I got her out of those strange woods and away from the one that had her so fearful. He had to live around there too, though I saw no sign of life besides those five.

But… Nova said that her powers were trapped . With every encounter, I saw hate in her gaze. She had mistaken me for someone searching for her. I wasn’t the only one after her, and that instilled a certain rage unlike anything I’d felt before inside me. I felt the anger burning through my veins. A possessiveness lurked inside me. She was mine. To show her my caregiving abilities, I’d free her. Taking care of someone was new to me, but Grim had a reputation for adoring his wife. I was right there, front and center, witnessing their love. It’s within my power to give that to her. Showing her my love is something I can do.

That knowledge cooled my anger. Dropping to one knee beside Nova, I said, “Come away with me.”

She spat out the nugget. “What?”

“Come away with me,” I said again.

She flinched, sorrow drowning in her brownie-colored orbs. “You said you weren’t him.”

There she went again, mentioning one of the many that I planned to kill. “Tell me the names of those that are after you and the one that has you shackled,” I said, snatching her wrist where I felt the cold band beneath her long sleeve. “Make the list and I’ll rid of any that have hurt you or seek to harm you.”

“Derrick’s likely decades older than you!” Nova screeched. “That would be foolish.”

“You know nothing about my family; therefore, you know nothing about who I am. As a child of Grim, I’ve never been like others.” Our family had enemies. My siblings and I learned how to use a sword and use our powers more than we played. That Nova didn’t believe I could defeat the demon in the woods offended me.

“Why?” She tugged her arm away. I didn’t let her go as she tried yanking from my grip.

I pulled her hand closer. “Because you’re mine and no one touches what’s mine.”

Her top lip curled as she glared. “I belong to no one!”

I saw the glint in her chocolate orbs and knew I only had seconds to soothe her before she exploded one of my body parts. I tried rubbing my thumb over hers. “Being mine is not a bad thing. I can give you everything. Whatever your heart desires, I can give it.”

She stood and yelled, “I wish to belong to no one!”

I saw her lips move, the piercing throb inside my chest, then nothing.