Demons and Kings

Chapter 6

I had paled in comparison to Isis.

Perhaps I was being childish. A fact I wouldn't have admitted to at the time. But I so rarely allowed myself these small bouts of immaturity that I had felt entitled. Just this once, I told myself, nobody has to know the extent of my loathing but me.

I just couldn't help it. The sheer amount of knowledge she seemed to have concerning ancient artifacts far surpassed my own. And let's be honest; no one likes to be shown up. I was not exempt from that rule, it was just that it rarely ever happened. She was better than meand it stung. My family sang her praises, and it seemed as though the unease and repulsion she inspired was completely one-sided. Naturally, I was upset.

Overall, the entire ordeal... it made me wonder if she hadn't been involved in the more illegal side of acquisition before we'd met her.

To add insult to injury I had been receiving worried looks from my oh so loving family for the better part of the afternoon. My mother had even gone so far as to pull me aside, assuring me that I was pretty too and couldn't let this hurt my self-confidence. Rodney had snickered behind her back, his mouth full of food. How humiliating.

Now Isis's looks being a grade or too above mine was something I could have cared less about. That kind of attention was how girls ended up dead if they weren't careful. So, I shouldn't want that kind of attention. I didn't. I had said as much, only to end up with more kind appeasements from my ever-supportive mother, a dry chuckle and a pat on the head. I could brush off the comments over my outfits, my hair, my lack of social graces.

None of that mattered. I wasn't vain.

I was prideful, and I was proud of my education. The snide looks she had been sending me all evening only cemented the idea that not only did she know I was envious, she enjoyed it.

What a bitch.

I had been pushed aside as a hostess of the evening the minute she'd shown up and the sea of dazed male admirers that followed her around was big enough to drown in. The mob of jealous wives and girlfriends was even bigger. So, the refreshment table had become my refuge. I didn't care how many looks I got for keeping all the best desserts for myself. Not to mention it was a fantastic vantage point with which I could see the entirety of the auctions ground floor.

Carol and Jimmy were standing by the closed sarcophagus, holding hands and giggling in a way that made my stomach turn. They were edging towards the door, giving each other the type of look that made me wish someone other than me was noticing. I searched for any form of parental guidance to shove their way and came up blank.

Ryan was with the professor and a few of the museums' board members, his plastered business smile blinding even from where I stood hidden away in a corner. Turning, I pretended not to see as he tried to catch my eye and motioned me over. Help me, he mouthed. I couldn't help but notice the white-knuckled grip on the scotch glass he was holding was starting to look downright painful.

Then there was our mother, who was thoroughly put out after my less than enthusiastic reaction to her pep talk, and then my adamant refusal of the coincidental meeting with 'a very nice boy' whom she thought I just had to meet. I blamed my aforementioned poor social skills for whatever insult that eventually caused him to walk away. My eventual avoidance of her was even more off-putting apparently, if the sulky glances and two empty martini glasses were anything to go by.

Neither of them seemed like prime candidates for putting a stop to teenage indiscretions.

"Evie," Carol called, and I turned to watch as she pulled a reluctant Jimmy across the room towards me. "Hey," she grinned at me, "so... Jimmy and I want to get some fresh air."