“No, of course not. I’ll let you two have a minute.” Her father rubbed Natti’s bicep. “I’ll meet you by the door.”
He released his grasp and walked to the hospital’s entry. Natti watched before returning her attention to Seth. He placed his hand on her bare shoulder, making her skin tingle and her muscles relax. His eyes were bearing down on her as if he was looking into her soul.
“Natti, I know this is hard, but please let me take care of this,” he said in a soft, hushed voice. “I just don’t want you to get hurt, okay?”
Natti battled with her conscious and fear. After tonight, pretty much all her logic had been tossed out the window. She felt stripped bare and exhausted. Yet something deep inside her heart trusted him, trusted his judgment.
“Okay,” she breathed.
Seth’s tension released. “I’ll see you at school then.”
“Yeah.” Natti nodded. “Good night.”
Her body didn’t move at first, her curiosity and desires willing her to stay a bit longer. Her eyes kept jumping to Seth’s lips, longing for a good night kiss. After a moment of silence, she finally started walking toward her father. When she came alongside him, he wrapped his arm around her and guided her out of the hospital.
Seth pulled up along the sidewalk, slammed on the brakes, and threw the Jaguar into park before turning off the engine. Nothing had changed at Q’s house since he and Natti had carried Wanda out to his car. Everyone was still buzzed and swayed to the mind-altering music. Seth’s burning rage numbed the effect of the shock wave blasting through his body when he opened the door. He stormed into the house and charged upstairs, knowing exactly where he would find Ky and Q. Once on the second landing, he pushed open a door to his left and entered a darkened room. A moan and a shrill shriek escaped from the shadows.
As Seth had expected, Ky and Q had slithered off to Q’s room to have a mini party of their own. Ky was on top of a girl in the small bed, who was screaming in ecstasy. Q, on the other hand, was in the bathroom of the small suite, making out with a girl so drunk she probably could hardly walk a straight line.
Seth turned on the light and forced the door to slam against the wall to get their attention. “Girls, get out!”
Startled, both girls jumped to life, staggered to their feet, grabbed their things, and rushed past Seth for the door. Ky dragged on a joint, sat at the edge of the bed, and zipped up his pants. Q stepped into the room, adjusting his glasses. Seth scowled at them both before slamming the door shut behind him.
“Wow, man, you look tense.” Ky held the joint out to Seth. “You want a hit?”
Seth automatically took it and inhaled once before dropping the joint and crushing it into the carpet with his heel.
“Ah man! Dude, what did you do that for?” Ky whined. “That was primo stuff.”
“I have a better question,” Seth snapped. “What the hell were you two thinking, slipping a roofie into Natti’s drink? Have you gone completely insane?”
Ky snorted. “We were just having a bit of fun.”
“She was going to call the cops, you ass! You know what that would have done? How would we have explained that screw up? You were lucky I talked her into not getting involved!”
Q and Ky stared at him for a moment then both began to laugh. “Oh, man, you’re really tripping.” Ky leaned back onto the pillows. “Even if she did call the police, you know our fathers would have taken care of the situation.”
“I’m sure my father has already altered any hospital records and disposed of any evidence,” Q remarked.
“And, of course, if they did decide to file a case, as the District Attorney for the county, my father would have had it buried under a stack of papers a mile high. And the hem-netjer would have taken care of the witnesses.” Ky paused, lost in thought. “That Natti chick would make a lovely addition to the temple, don’t you think?”
Seth’s rage flared. “You still shouldn’t have done it. It was reckless and stupid.”
Q puffed his chest. “It was brilliant and simple. Drug the girl and carry her into my father’s sanctuary—”
“You were going to rape her in front of Set!”
Q crinkled his nose. “No! Neither Ky nor I were going to touch her. You were.”
Seth took a step back in shock. “Me!”
“Why did you think we targeted her in the first place, man? With the drug in her system, she would have been completely under your control. As for the sanctuary, it would have been the perfect place. It’s quiet, and no one would have disturbed us or even stumbled on her as we carried out the deed. And what better way to honor the god of darkness and chaos than to let him witness our powers in play before him.”
“Besides, it’s what we do, bro.” Ky shrugged. “We steal, rape, and even murder. It’s the code.”
“We haven’t done any of those things.” Seth thought for a moment. “Except maybe the first.”