Chapter Eight

August

I walked through the woods that night. My fears kept me from leaving. It wasn’t until Grim faded and brought me home before I left. But it was only for a few hours. Long enough for my parents to fall asleep. I went back to that awful place. The protection ward in that foul place wouldn’t let me reach Nova and the others. Like Nova said, I tried following them, but lost them within minutes. One second, they were in front of me, then the next, they were gone. It drove me insane. I couldn’t sleep. All I could do was yell and kick my frustration out on that stupid tree I’d marked to keep up with where I’d been hours ago. No matter how much I ventured into the woods, I kept ending up in the same spot.

I didn’t know if they were okay because I couldn’t get to them. I never knew an irrationality like that. A mindless terror that kept me from doing anything but wait for Nova’s return.

Something had changed between Nova and me. I didn’t know what it was exactly. I just knew she was the one thing in life I needed. If she’d let me free her… Greed would let everything else go. I knew it in my heart. The quietness that existed there. The only beats my heart and curse gave were their desire to take Nova.

While resting, I heard them approaching as I leaned against the tree. Jumping up, I checked my clothes for dirt stains, then wondered why I bothered. Nova probably didn’t know how handsome I was. Despite her worn raggedy dress, beauty would never draw her in, even though she embodied the very definition of it. Being filthy didn’t hide the lovely tone of her skin and the unique pink spots that covered one of her eyes and parts of hand and neck that I could see. It was impossible to disguise beauty like that, no matter what covered it.

When I popped around the tree, all five of them were there. Nova’s curls were already down and frizzy. The tension I’d had through the night drained out of my shoulders as I walked toward them. Nova’s gaze roamed over me. “Did you not leave?” she asked. I wasn’t aware Nova paid attention to me enough to know I wore the same clothes.

“Are you okay?” I asked instead. Her face dropped and she tensed.

I couldn’t help but notice the odd way Odin and the others tensed at my question. “What is it?”

“Someone broke through the barrier searching for me,” Nova said.

Someone broke through that maze of trees, and I couldn’t. How? My nostrils flared.

“Nova—”

Nova never let me get a word out. She surprised me by saying, “That movie you spoke about. We’d like to see it. Please.” She pinned with her chocolate stare.

I swallowed heavily. “Nova.” I wanted badly to talk about what was truly happening.

“Please?” Her brown orbs twinkled with unshed tears.

Gritting my teeth, I sighed. Why couldn’t I just steal her away, so I’d know she was safe? Greed never had a problem taking something before. Love was troublesome, but it seemed it was a feeling I couldn’t escape.

“Payment—” I didn’t get to finish before she held out her hand. I couldn’t help but notice the hair tie differed from all those before. There was a pattern woven into the tie like she was more careful with how she made that one. The decoration reminded me of stars embedded in the tree-like bark she used, but I didn’t think she’d know what one looked like. When I lifted my eyes to meet hers, she averted hers. My heart nearly beat out of my chest. Wait. Did she pay extra attention to it because she was giving it to me?

I stood straighter and materialized iPads in everyone’s hands, except Nova’s. They watched me closely as I put a Disney movie on for each of them. Mom spent a lifetime as a human. We knew of the human world and kept up with their gadgets because of that. She tried to get me and my brothers to attend a year of high school to see how they lived. None of us would. Who had time for school when you were born into our family? Joy and Kitty were interested and would attend when they were older.

“Where’s mine?” Nova asked as I finished setting Sofia up and handed it to her. Everyone had agreed on fried chicken again, so that’s what I gave them.

“Only one left,” I lied, knowing I could materialize however many I wanted at will. “We have to share.”

I crouched down, leaned against the tree, and motioned for Nova to sit next to me. She had a chicken leg in her mouth. She narrowed her eyes and watched me slowly before sitting down.

“I don’t bite,” I murmured, even though there might be a day in our future when I might. If that was what she liked. We would discover our shared interests along the way. I longed for Nova to be ready for a relationship, so we could discuss our plans together. I wanted to know her wishes so that I could fulfill them.

Instead of watching the movie when it started up, I watched the way Nova’s face lit up at the animation. I waited until she fixated on the screen for a while before maneuvering my arm around her neck. She still noticed and stiffened. Slowly, her face turned to meet mine, and my cheeks burned with embarrassment.

“If I said to remove your arm, would you?” she asked randomly.

I removed it and frowned. “Yeah. I’m always going to try to get closer to you, anyway.”

She observed my lips funnily. “But if I said no each time, you’d stop?”

“You’re not always going to want me to stop,” I said as my chest stung from her rejection.

“That wasn’t an answer.” Nova sulked.

My shoulders drooped. “ Yes , I would stop. Why would you ask? If I didn’t listen to you, you’d already be safe and sound right now. In a home, with a warm bed, and food each night.”

Her eyes watered again, and she faced the screen. Abruptly, she turned to look at me again. “If I said you can keep me safe from one thing, August, but at a cost. Would you still do it?”

I didn’t even hesitate. “I would. You’re mine to keep safe.”

Nova flinched at my words. “I hate when you say that.”

“Would it make you happy to know that I’d be yours, too?” I grabbed her hand, rubbing my thumb over the top of hers.

Her eyes bulged, then she stammered. “I-I.” Closing her lids, she pulled her hand away and sighed. “I don’t know if it will work, but a girl told me a spell her mother taught her before Derrick kidnapped her…”

“You plan to use it on me?” I guessed.

“On us,” she corrected me. “It’s a spell that binds two people. It protects either from…” She averted her gaze again. “From that.”

“That what?” I asked.

“Unwanted touches.” She pinned me with a scowl that dared me to say anything. “I’m getting older now. I-I can’t protect myself from Derrick. He controls me with these.” She flicked the shackle on her wrist.

I glowered. “He hasn’t….”

“Not yet, but he’s clarifying that it’s his intention.”

“I’ll kill him for every touch he’s laid upon you and the others,” I vowed to her. “No one will hurt any of you. Not when I get my hands on these guys.”

“Do you have a knife?” she asked. I materialized one for her and nearly took it away from her when she sliced her palm open. Blood dripped on my pants leg. “Now yours,” she said.

“I heal quick,” I replied as I cut mine.

“I’ll be quicker,” she promised. Her lashes fluttered quickly as she spoke words I didn’t recognize. When she let go of her hand, she dropped my hand. “You can still, you know…”

I had a feeling I knew what she was referring to, but still needed her to say it. “Let me know, since it’s too late to back out now.”

She huffed. “You can still be with whoever you want. With however many you want. You know sex. Not that you needed protection from someone, but it would keep Derrick or anyone from touching me. I don’t want those things.”

I gawked. “Never?”

“Why do you seem so disturbed?” She leaned away warily.

Because you’re the one I want to do those things with. Not now. Or even in a few years, but when you’re no longer so afraid every time I touch you. “I’m not… I think right now we’re young and you’re not sure what you might want years from now.”

She had a dreamy expression, as if she thought of something wondrous, glancing toward the trees. “I know exactly what I want.”

“What’s that?”

“I want to live far away from all the bad things in the world. Somewhere nice and safe. Somewhere that allows me to live in harmony with the kids.” Her eyes shined bright observing them. “Maybe by a lot of water. I like the idea of being clean, or I mean, cleaner.”

There were thoughts of a casino I planned to put in the Underworld. Or the many more I could add to steal from the demons of the city. All those wants disappeared as I admired Nova. I had no desire to claim the city. Instead, Greed tried to imagine what Nova might look like in twenty years resting on a beach. It was impossible to picture how much her beauty might change, but the idea of her being happy was all my curse needed to want that, too. I pictured Nova resting in a tub as I lathered her curls and my chest felt like it would burst from happiness. And I thought of how nice it would be to hold her hand as we shopped a human street, and I showed her a variety of yummy food. But nothing would be new to her anymore because I would have given her everything.

“Yeah, that sounds exactly like my idea for the future,” I whispered.

Her head turned toward me gradually. I held her eyes, not to intimidate her like I did to so many, but because I craved a connection with her. One stronger than anything she’d felt before. I wanted her to know she was my girl.

“Okay,” Nova said suddenly, which had me freezing in place.

“Okay what?” I asked.

“I’m scared,” she admitted the same two words she did the day before, and I grabbed her hand, hoping to soothe her. “But I don’t want to be anymore.”

Grabbing her other hand, I squeezed both as if I prayed she could sense everything I felt for her through our touch. “By my side, no one will dare hurt you,” I swore.

Her throat moved as she swallowed nervously. “Tomorrow. This time tomorrow. I’ll hide the kids in the woods and let you free me, then we’ll…” She let her words drift off as she looked at me expectantly.

My heart knocked against my ribcage. “I’ll find us a home. All of us,” I promised.

It was the first time Nova smiled because of me. And the last.