Our Cruel Hearts

Chapter Four

It's seven fifty five am and I am racing the tick of the clock, my coffee spills with every rushed step I take up the office stairs. The elevator was full and there was no chance I would risk being late to my first meeting on the team. I push through the set of glass doors on the fifth floor, trying to handle my bag and the two coffees in my hands, one for myself and one for Griffin. I'm not actually sure how he likes his coffee so I just got him a large black coffee, I mean it can be altered in case he likes it with cream and milk. As I get into the office the cool air floats across the heated skin on my face, it smells of papers and clean air in here. Quite different from the roads of New York. The walk here was only 10 minutes but I slept through my alarm, which isn't something I do often but this past weekend has been particularly demanding on my body. I speed through the office, peeking through the windows as I walk past trying to find which room the meeting takes place in. I pass the kitchen on my journey through the office and feel a little silly with my store bought coffee when I see an avant-garde coffee machine on the kitchen counter, surrounded by little biodegradable cups. I sigh, considering chucking the two coffees down the sink.
"Ayla!"

"Oh Lord!" I jolt, whipping my head at Meera and one of the coffees in my hands threatens to fall but I manage to stop it. Meera is reaching for me trying to prevent a disaster from unfolding, and an unexpected laugh climbs up my throat as we both steady ourselves. "You have a weird tendency of appearing behind me out of thin air, Meera." She laughs.

"The meeting starts in two minutes, I'll show you where it is." Meera says as she takes my bag from my hand, pulling it over her shoulder and leading the way.

We walk in unison as Meera shows me where the bathrooms are, she explains that the floor above the office is dedicated to staff headquarters. She isn't sure if I'll be joining them up there but she reckons I'll find out soon. It wouldn't be a bad idea, staying in a hotel room for the next couple months doesn't sound like a good time. My boots click against the tiles as we come up on a large glass door at the end of the hallway, Meera shoulders the door open and holds it behind me as I enter the meeting room. Sunlight bleeds into the room through floor to ceiling windows and reflects off of the long conference table in the middle of the room, only four other people sit around the table and I let out a sigh of relief when I notice three empty seats. Meera crosses to the front of the room and starts organising papers at the end of the table. I throw a small smile at each of the people around the table, doing my best to keep up a confident persona until my eyes trail to the seat at the head of the table where Griffin sits. And Meera -bless her- put my bag down in the worst spot possible, the seat right next to his. I hold back a huff as I walk over to the seat I've been unwillingly assigned to, and as I reach to pull my chair out Griffin is a step ahead. He pulls my chair out for me and gestures for me to take my seat. His hair is neatly gelled back with one singular strand hanging down his forehead, much neater and intense-looking than the Griffin I had seen just two nights ago. Griffin peels his eyes from mine with a look I can't quite decipher. I sit down, and it takes effort to keep from fiddling with my fingers so I look to Meera out of desperation. She's across the table, the sunlight hitting her rich dark skin as she floats past each person and hands out a sheet of paper to each of them. The paper lands on the table in front of me and I hesitate before I pick it up and examine the information on it. The smell of Meera's saccharine perfume floats under my nose as she passes behind me. "Please hold onto these while we wait for James and Liam," She says to no one in particular as she takes her seat, two chairs down from me.

I glance around the table again, everyone studying the map before them and for a moment it feels like I'm back home in the battle brief room with Luca and everyone else. Griffin inches closer to the table as he examines the map and I keep my eyes glued to my paper, only watching his movements through my peripheral vision. Griffin spins a pen between his fingers, and I'm dangerously close to staring at him when two men burst through the door apologising relentlessly to Griffin. Griffin just nods. One of the men that had just stumbled in has messy honey blonde hair that hangs just past his ears. Dark eye bags sit under his eyes, and his eyes wrinkle as he observes everyone else around the table. The other man sits suspiciously close to him and toys with his tie as he attempts to hold in a laugh, his pale skin tinged a shade of sunburnt red that stands out against his pitch black hair. I look closer and notice a scar spanning the skin from his forehead, through his eyebrow and it ends just under his eye. My eyes narrow at him, and I hope he doesn't feel me staring as I trail my eyes down to his hands. And just as I expected his fingers are covered in the same little scars mine have, most likely from a butterfly knife or crossbow. I'm zoning out with my eyes on his hands when someone elbows me in my arm. I bounce to attention in my seat, and everyone's eyes are looking at me expectantly. I clear my throat and look to Meera for guidance,