“Where I was born. It always brings comfort. Snow… represents where I was born.”
Stephanie leaned in, sniffing the air. “Truth. So, Cassius…” She patted my stomach, I’d seen human couples do that before in teasing and never understood the need for such trivial flirting with one’s hands… until her hands were on me, until I was part of the couple, and every single glance and caress my way was like breathing for the first time, after being without air for an eternity. “Where were you born? Siberia?”
“Da.” I confirmed in Russian and then pressed my fingertips to her wrist.
Stephanie
“WHERE ARE WE?” I gasped, rubbing my arms, they weren’t necessarily chilled, but they felt colder than ever before. The sun was just starting to set, casting a beautiful orange glow across a small city.
It reminded me of Christmas.
And the movie Frozen. The one that Genesis had forced Mason to watch only to ask him later if he could morph into a reindeer instead of a wolf for Halloween.
He’d said he’d attempt it. Ethan and Alex still made fun of him for his promise, but that was Mason. He lived to make others happy—maybe it was because he wasn’t capable of happiness himself.
“Mason,” Cassius said, interrupting my thoughts, “has a bright future.”
“And Alex?” I couldn’t help but ask.
“Once you can control your power you’ll be able to comb through futures at ease,” Cassius explained. “And Alex has… an intriguing few months ahead of him.”
“Hmm.” I liked the sound of that.
The wind picked up just as the sun made its final descent behind the snow covered mountains blanketing everything but the few street lights in darkness.
“I forgot how quiet it was here.” Cassius mused, grabbing my hand in his. We were both still in our street clothes. Jeans and T-shirts.
He quickly tugged me into the first store on the main street and pulled out a fur coat, hat, and pants that looked two sizes too big for my legs. Boots were tossed in my direction, and then he was at the counter speaking in a harsh language I’d never heard him speak before.
Could it be that Cassius really was… Russian?
The man at the desk laughed loudly then pulled out a shot glass and a bottle of vodka. He poured one for himself, took it, then poured one for Cassius.
Without breaking his laugh, Cassius tossed the alcohol back and slammed the shot glass back onto the table.
They shook hands.
While I stood there open-mouthed like I’d just seen a miracle occur. Cassius, almost appeared normal. Almost.
And then he smiled, and I was reminded all over again why he was so beautiful, so effortlessly gorgeous that it hurt to look at his face for too long of a stretch. His beauty was like a constantly changing painting, I always noticed something different about his face, his bright blue eyes, how dark his lashes were ,the angle of his jaw, the shape of his sculpted lips—there was always something interesting something unique, different, and I was immortal, I was used to seeing pretty things.
I self-consciously tugged at my dark hair. Had my appearance altered much since the glamour wore off? Humans didn’t seem to stare at me any differently, maybe longer, but they were born with a natural fear of things they didn’t understand—and immortality was something they would never be able to comprehend, meaning, they usually gave us a wide berth, even if they were interested.
Sensual lips pressed together in a wicked smirk as Cassius held out his hand. “Do you like the boots?”
“I’m wearing Mason.” I stared down at the furry boots and laughed. “I think he’d be pissed if he saw these.”
“They don’t hunt those types of wolves up here,” Cassius promised. “Even Mason’s kind stay away from the bitter cold of Oymyakon.”
“Siberia…” I shivered again even though the cold was normal for my typically frigid body. “So you were serious.”
Cassius smiled even wider, maybe being home was good for him.
“So…” I spread my free arm out as we walked down the abandoned icy streets. “This is where young Cassius grew up.”
Cassius’s face darkened for a brief moment before he grabbed my hand and started whistling.
The tune wasn’t familiar, but its haunting melody had me shivering as he continued to whistle and the wind picked up. I wrapped my jacket tighter around myself and ducked into his body.
I’d always hated the wind. When I was little it had reminded me of anger, of cold, and now that I was a Dark One and didn’t really get cold in the same way, I still hated it because it was still angry.
Wind was nature’s temper tantrum.
At least it had always felt that way.
“Wind…” Cassius stopped whistling. “…is a warning of things to come.”
I frowned. “In nature or in life?”
The wind dipped and roared down the street as we made our way toward a small dark house.