Fear the Reaper [malexmale]

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

After another hour of shouting, Hades's snarky comebacks, Michael almost breaking a vase over his head, and Simon making enough food to feed an army, we managed to sit down. On the floor. In Michael's dining room.

"We wouldn't be down here if someone hadn't broken my table," Michael muttered, taking a polite bite out of his grilled cheese. He paused to look at the thing, like he was stunned it actually tasted good. He took another bite, his anger over the table briefly forgotten. Hades cut him a dry stare.

"We could still eat in the living room, you know."

"Over my 13th century Persian rug? I think not."

"Okay," I announced, drawing the attention back to the task at hand, "Let's figure out how the fuck we're going to start looking for Alaric. Because I literally have no idea where to even start." Rowan frowned as he took a bite of his grilled cheese and swallowed it down with some of Michael's weirdass non-dairy organic milk shit. Props to Rowan for not spitting the shit out on the floor. Probably didn't want to fuck up Michael's floorboards to add to the current damage already done.

"Perhaps we should check back in Viviana's realm," he said, making everyone glance up, "Clearly she knows something about this. She's still around. I know I've seen her and spoken to her."

"But how do you know for sure?" Hades asked. Rowan looked at him.

"Trust me. Viviana and this shape shifting thing are different creatures."

"How do you know that thing isn't just taking Viviana's form?"

"Call it a gut feeling."

"I don't like to base my entire battle strategy on gut feelings," Hades responded dryly. Michael looked at him and opened his mouth to say something, but Xiphrus cleared his throat loudly, obnoxiously, and Michael slowly turned to look at him with a look of annoyance. Hades smirked.

"Anyway," I drawled, "I'm taking Rowan's side in this. He hasn't been wrong yet."

"Which brings me to my next inquiry," Hades drawled, "Why the hell should we trust this guy? Hasn't he been around every single time that thing has shown up?" I frowned. He had a point there, and I hadn't actually thought about that until just now. The shape shifter showed up in my hospital room first, where Rowan had been standing nearby to keep watch. Then again at the church, Rowan was also there. In fact, he was the one that suggested we walk into the church in the first place. And the shape shifter jumped me again, here, in Michael's house, with Rowan just downstairs.

"If he was working with that shifter, he would've killed Stanton a long time ago," Simon spoke up from where he sat in the corner of the dining room, licking Oreo crumbs off his lips. Hades glanced at him dryly.

"And what about you?"

"I told you to put my Oreos back," Michael said coldly. Simon smiled and held up the empty package.

"I did. Just not in the pantry."

"I want him out of my house."

"Too bad," I stated, "First of all, I like him. Second of all, I like him more than you. And third, he's going to help us. Just like Rowan has. Because like Rowan, Simon hasn't made an attempt on my life either. In fact, he helped me back in Viviana's place. So I trust him; I trust them both." Hades looked like he wanted to debate that, but Hades didn't trust anyone, so I didn't take offense to it. The guy saw everyone he ran into as a threat. I think the only reason he hasn't killed me off or thrown accusations my way was the fact that he thought I was a lazy bum. Which I wouldn't argue with, because let's face it; if the world, and my husband, wasn't at stake right now, I'd probably be sitting at home watching reruns of Friends.