Abdicate - Book 7 - Man x Man

Chapter 35

Tyler and I lag behind as Helen easily keeps stride with her seething grandfather. If we were outside, I imagine the steam rising off his shoulders, he struggled with this part of the arrangement. 

How was he supposed to act on his promise if this bothered him so badly? 

Glancing over at Tyler, I feel that he would agree with my, now, husband. We shouldn't be making more wolves. Unfortunately for us, that was not an option any longer. Tyler crosses his arms, his whole world has been turned upside down, and he seems to be lamenting on this. His eyes were distant and his expression tight. 

"This reminds me of when we were captured." Helen sighs, rubbing her arms from the chill of cement walls. I shiver at the echo of our footsteps, Verando hesitates, realizing that the two magic users are trailing. He forces himself to take slower steps, gritting his teeth, and shoving his wolf back into its mental cage.

 At these depths, the metal turned into stone, layers of shale, and aged concrete. Stretching out my hand, the earth feels dead at this depth; there is no responding heartbeat from nature. How many civiliations had been buried in 400 years? For a brief moment, it's almost comforting. 

While it's lonely, cold, and dark down here, there was a peace that came with it. I could be okay with an eternity of silence, though I suppose that silence was wrecked when they carved a cell into it. There would be no escaping save for the long trek back to the surface, a grave in some aspects. 

"Where do you think Tiberius is?"

"He's a Siren; he got what he wanted; we won't be seeing him until it's time to leave for France." Verando's tone is stern, hardly above a mumble. He was on edge, too. A wolf was not meant to be below ground, while for me and Tyler, the darkness did not raise the same alarm bells. We were built to get along with nature; dirt, rock, and earth were part of that.

I want to think better of Tiberius but it would seem as though he had decided to play the part of convenience, as he never was quite around precisely when we needed him. 

"It'd be nice to have him remove the charm on Tonic." I muse, as much as I knew that Tiberius was unwilling to give much in the form of aid, it seemed like a simple request. At the very least, he could teach me to do it, and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious about the type of magic a Siren held. 

"If he's charmed." Tyler retorts. 

"While Gabriel had a hold of him for a period, I struggle to believe that Tonic hasn't been corrupt from the start," Verando grumbles in agreement; his foul mood wears on my patience.

I don't know what occurred from last night to this morning to push him over the edge into a full-scale meltdown. Did he feel so strongly about changing humans to lycans that he'd risk ruining any chance of getting Tonic back? I exchange a sideways glance at Helen, who appears to hold the same expression. 

My feet stop moving; silence overwhelms the small space save for the gentle breathing, eyeing the much taller man and then looking towards Tyler. "Would you and Verando rather return to the surface? If the goal is to help Tonic, negativity is only going to trigger any sort of charm holding onto him." 

Narrowing my eyes at the other Solomonari, I had to admit my disappointment in my young pupil to make such comments about a being in need of aid.

 "Tyler, obviously, you're too hungover to make for good company. I won't allow myself to believe this is your true thoughts, this doesn't bring me confidence when I think about leaving you behind in my place." 

Even in the peak of my alcoholic stint, I was still capable of reaching a mid-level of tolerable. 

"Go back. Helen and I have this."