Bloody Lover | Piper McLean

CHAPTER 7 : Dead Languages and a Goddess-eating Leopard

EARLANA & JASON

On the way, Earlana had detached herself from Drew, effectively not supporting her for more than a few minutes. As soon as they saw the house, Earlana and Jason knew they were screwed.

"We're here !" exclaimed Drew excitedly. "The Big House, colony headquarters."

It was hardly threatening, though : a hole-in-the-wall mansion, painted light blue with white moldings. There was a deck that went all the way around the house, furnished with lounge chairs, a game table and an unoccupied wheelchair. The carillon was adorned with nymphs that changed into trees as they turned in the wind. Earlana imagined old people coming here for their summer vacation, sipping prune juice and watching the sunset. Still, the windows seemed to stare at her angrily, and the door was wide open, ready to swallow her. On the highest gable, a bronze weathervane in the shape of an eagle turned and pointed straight at her and her companion in misfortune, as if to order them to turn back.

Every molecule in the Latina's body told her that she was in enemy territory, and turning to Jason, she saw that he had come to the same conclusion as she had.

"We shouldn't be here," she murmured, as Jason froze, perhaps trying to remember something, who knew ?

Drew slipped her arm under Jason's.

"Nonsense. You belong here perfectly, darlings. Believe me, I've seen plenty of heroes."

Drew smelled like Christmas : an unusual blend of pine and musk. Jason wondered if it was her usual scent, or one for special occasions. Her pink eyeliner was definitely an eye-catcher. Whenever she fluttered her eyelids, he almost felt compelled to look at her. Maybe it was done on purpose, to highlight her brown eyes. She was pretty, no doubt about it. But she made Jason uncomfortable.

He pulled back as gently as he could, while Earlana held back a laugh, still a gentleman, that one.

"Look, I appreciate..."

"It's that girl, right ?" asked Drew with a horrified pout. "Please tell me you're not dating the Tuna Queen ?"

"You mean Piper ? Uh..."

"Excuse me there, are you speaking about Pipes ? No shit... you don't know what you're talking about. And when that's the case, you usually shut the hell up." Earlana had responded at the same time as the blonde, her temper already put to the test.

Jason, on the other hand, was taken by surprise. He didn't think he'd ever seen Piper before that day, but it gave him a strange feeling of guilt. He knew he shouldn't be there. He shouldn't sympathize with these people, and he shouldn't be dating either of them. Still... Piper was holding his hand when he woke up on the bus. She was convinced she was his girlfriend. She'd been brave on the bridge, fighting those venti, and when she'd fallen and Earlana had caught her, he couldn't deny that he'd felt nothing but a pang of jealousy. But it wasn't right. He didn't know anything about his own history. Earlana was the only link that connected him to his past. He couldn't play with her emotions like that.

Drew rolled her eyes, then a smirk stretched her lips and her attention was no longer on Jason, but on Earlana. She with a mischievous gleam in her eyes, as if she had figured something out.

"I'll help you decide, sweetheart. You deserve better than this. A girl with your looks and talent ?"

She wasn't really looking at her though. She was staring at a point above her head.

"You're waiting for a sign," Jason guessed, who secretly was glad she'd switched targets. "Like the one that appeared above Leo's head."

"What ? But no ! I mean, from what I understand, you are quite powerful, aren't you ? But you, honey, you give off a remarkable aura of power. You're going to be important people at the colony, so I guess your divine parents will soon claim you. And I would love to be there. I want to be with you every step of the way, darling." Her attention was focused on Earlana, she had almost forgotten about Jason. "So is it your father or your mother who is a god ? Tell me it's not your mother. It would suck too much if you were a daughter of Aphrodite."