Bad Influence (Seven Deadly Sins #2) ✅ Completed

Chapter Twenty-Six: Unmasked

Unmasked

 

Dante stood over Andy. She was shaking like a leaf but the duct tape over her mouth kept her from making any real noise. She stared at him with crazed eyes, her nostrils flaring as she inhaled and exhaled quickly through only her nose. He could see she was close to hyperventilating.

It mattered little to him.

The former beauty queen was lucky he’d granted her the ability to still breathe considering the stunt she’d just pulled. Only a person with no honor attacked an enemy from behind. And only a creature with no soul attacked someone who was only trying to help. Perhaps Andy was crazed due to her recent experiences with Celeste, Wrath and Jackson, but she'd went after Eliza and that was something Dante would not easily forgive.    

Or forget.

He knew Eliza was lying on her bed but she wasn’t asleep – far from it actually. Dante could hear the buzz of her thoughts like background music in his own mind. It was like listening to several orchestras playing different pieces at the same time – Beethoven, Mozart, Bach, some Tchaikovsky thrown in for good measure. It was all music, but when played together, most of it was just an unholy racket.

She was going through a wide spectrum of varying concerns - most of them focused around the girl strapped in the chair in front of him. She didn’t seem to blame Andy for being scared and attacking her. If anything she sympathized with the spoiled brat, understanding the need to escape and find safety. Dante found it more than a little distracting. He reinforced the walls in his mind and Eliza's thoughts became muffled then disappeared altogether.

Eliza had no idea how often he touched her mind in a day. Besides listening for Lust, there were a myriad of other things that might try to pop in there masquerading as her own thoughts. Asher was known for his mental manipulation, but he wasn’t the only brother Dante had lurking in the shadows. Any one of them could find Eliza and try to use her against him without her knowledge.

There was no point in scaring her any more than she was already, but there were plenty of other dangers facing Eliza besides Celeste’s old master. The things that were a part of his everyday life were enough to drive any normal creature insane – most did lose their minds from just a glimpse into his world. Eliza was quickly moving towards the very epicenter of it and didn’t even realize it. Unfortunately, there was no way for him to stop it. However, unlike Celeste, Dante couldn’t shake the need to watch out for Eliza and try to protect her as much as possible. The need to do so only grew with each passing day she was a part of his life.

A fact Hermes so helpfully pointed out while she was still in his trunk retrieving the sword of Perseus.

Dante had stood sentinel over the trunk the entire time Eliza was gone. It had taken everything for him not to reach out and jump in there after her. Hermes’ trunk would never allow him to get a single finger on it, but that hadn’t stopped him from getting as close as he could possibly get without coming into actual physical contact with it.

Hermes had watched him in silence for a while. He was gifted with the all seeing eyes of the old gods so it didn't take long before he'd remarked on the obvious, “You know this is only the beginning, right?” he'd asked conversationally. 

“I know,” he’d replied.

“The others will find her soon enough – especially if Asher can’t get the job done.”

“I’ll take care of Asher and any other idiot stupid enough to try.”

“You better or you’ll lose this one too,” Hermes warned, his words tinged with an old familiar sadness. The Greek god was not as old as Dante himself, but he’d been around long enough to see plenty.