Tainted Lies (Gregvan / Gregory X Evan)

"Temporary Safety.."(20)

Evan's POV-

The clock ticks quietly from the hallway. The distance enough to make it a mute background noise. I take advantage of the fact its quiet to think of what to do next. 

Elizabeth bought us time, yes, but I'm not sure how much of it. 

Maybe William even thinks I'm dead. I hate how I have zero components of information to work with here. 

I feel Gregory's eyes burning hot on me in the comfortable silence. 

Gregory.

My main objective is to protect him at all costs. 

How do I plan to go about that? I could hand him over to Michael for awhile. He'll be temporarily safe at least.  

But after that, how do I manage William? Do I run away when the chance is available? Try and send Afton back to hell? 

I don't know if either of those are good answers. Running away is safety for a short period of time.. Sending him to hell would mean I have to work with Cassidy, but that's a price to pay, right? 

Cassidy's fine. Their just a little annoying, and difficult to work with. I would think Cassidy would want William back in hell though, as much shit as they say about him. 

"Any ideas?" Gregory asks, his voice a soft whisper. 

I let out a deep breath, "maybe. I just need to get you to safety for awhile, and do some demon spawning, but it shouldn't be that difficult."

"Some.. What? Why?" Gregory asks.

He has asked 'Why?' a lot over the past day or two. I can't particularly blame him, but not everything can be explained. 

"It'll be important, and I'll explain later, I promise." I catch my breath once its said. I promised. I hate making promises. They seem so distant, and its nothing but a word, that lacks reassurance. 

Promises are empty excuses to pushing something into a change of distance or time, in hopes that you will one day ever reach that. Promises are easily broken, and dismissed. A devoid wish. As if you have any control over your future..

Nevertheless, he smiles gently at me, and nods. So easily trusting. As if I hadn't already broken his trust already, and lied a few times.. 

"But your taking me somewhere else.. Where am I going?" Gregory looks concerned. 

"To Michael. He can keep you safe for a while. Hopefully long enough." 

"And you'll be okay?" Gregory's gentle amber eyes meet mine. I know he's scared. I don't know how to help with that.. Maybe I could've before, but I haven't allowed myself to feel fear for awhile. 

I sigh, "don't worry about that. Let's get you to safety first."

He hesitates, but nods after a minute. 

Gregory's POV-

We slip out of Evan's room and head through the hallway. I have no idea where anything is, so I follow Evan blindly. 

Evan stops and puts his hand out in front of me about halfway through the hallway. The sound of crumbling paper echoes from the room, footsteps, following shortly after. 

Evan links my arm with his and starts moving forward. Much slower, this time. He seems to calculate each step to avoid any creaks in the floorboards, or stepping to loudly. 

Light seeps from underneath the door. The footsteps feel closer with every passing second. 

Once we pass the door, Evan begins to move at a quicker pace again. Our steps aligning clearly, side by side, with the help of our intertwined arms. 

This place feels like a maze. As if most of the space was added at a different time. Each turn unpredictable. Some sections are dark, others are bright with lights. 

I don't understand the hallways at all, much less how you get around them. Evan does though, so I trust it'll be okay. 

We stop in front of a door in a dimly lit corner. The hallway looks as if it continues on after this space, too, but not for much longer. 

Evan sighs, "This is your destination."

"When will you be back?" I ask, not quite wanting him to leave.

"Eventually. You should be safe here." He says that as if he is more so trying to reassure himself, instead of me. 

Evan hesitates for a moment before pulling me into a kiss, gentle, and light.

He steps back, and smiles at me. I feel my face heat up.

I smile back, "Be careful." 

"I will. Tell Michael to protect you, and that William is going to hell. I'll be back soon,"

Michael's POV-

I sigh as I think about how good of a business owner I was, and could have been. 

That old hag was jealous. He could sense my superiority. Or maybe he was just pissed at Evan, but that doesn't matter. 

I rearrange some papers in my office. I don't think I really need them anymore, now that everything is gone.

Blueprints and lawsuits and files. Maybe I need a break. Granted, this isn't how I wanted to get one. 

My office door creaks open. 

The boy from before, Gregory, enters my office. 

"What are you doing here?" I ask, as he shuts the door behind him. 

"Evan sent me here.. He told me to tell you to protect me and, 'William is going to hell'." Gregory says, glancing around at disheveled papers and mitch-match furniture that I have collected and stored over the past few years. 

I click my tongue as I process this information. "Again?.. I don't know if that's a good idea- Eh, it'll be fine."

"So he'll be okay?" Gregory asks, meeting my eyes with anticipation for an answer. 

"Probably." 

Gregory winced slightly as if the answer wasn't what he wanted to hear, and was slightly painful, but he seemed satisfied enough with it nonetheless. 

I guess I have a child to protect. 

Evan's POV-

I continue to make my way further down hallways. 

To do this, I need to be far away from everyone. It's not particularly dangerous, but Cassidy is probably going to be pissed. 

Mostly because they'll be in the household. She hates it here. But also because I am forcing them to come hear, unannounced. 

But this is important, and they will love to have William in hell again, so it should be fine. 

I grab a pail of red paint and candles and matches that I leave at the corner of this hallway. 

I sit down underneath a pale light and set down my supplies.

Cassidy is really going to hate me for this one. Hopefully, temporarily. The better we can try and work together, the more secure William's hell will be.