THEO
Devon pulled away, her cheeks turning scarlet.
"I-uh-"
"You don't regret that, do you?" I asked.
"No, I don't. My mind is foggy right now" she said, her lips curving into a contented smile.
"That good, huh?" I chuckled.
"Yeah" she laughed and kissed me again, her eyes fluttering close.
"Now that's entertaining" Luke said as he strolled into the garden. We both pulled apart and glared at him
"I'm sorry. I'm really sorry for interrupting your passionate display of affection but-"
"Just get on with it already, Luke" I scoffed, and he chuckled.
"Fine. Dwain's remains were found outside the Hexagon and he's been very much buried. A new leader of the hexagon has been elected. He wants to talk to everyone of us right now" he said.
"What did they say about Dwain's death?" Devon asked. "They shrugged it off, saying he'd probably been the dinner of an incubus or a Drax demon" Luke shrugged and I narrowed my eyes. They can't have shrugged it off that easily, especially since he was once the leader of the Hexagon. Something fishy was going on.
"I do hope the new leader won't be as stupid and envious as Dwain" Devon said. "We hope so" Luke said.
"Come on, lover boy. We have to go"
I rolled my eyes and kissed Devon's forehead.
"I'll see you later, okay?"
She nodded, gazing at me fondly.
"Be safe" she whispered.
I nodded and walked away with Luke.
★★★★★★★
Luke and I stepped into the hexagon HQ unceremoniously.
"The last time I was here, I was tortured" Luke muttered under his breath.
"Well, the last time I was here, some people died" I shrugged.
"Dwain is dead now. Let's hope that the new leader isn't as bad as he was"
We both joined the other nightwalkers who were standing at opposite sides of the daywalkers.
"Relax. None of them saw you the last time you came here" Luke whispered.
We heard footsteps on the cold marble. It was our cue to fall silent. The new leader faced us with a stern look on his frog-like face. I already didn't like him. He slowly ambled down the hall, lips set in a grim line.
"I am Thane Ryder, the new head of the Hexagon. My goal is to make sure that the earth is a safe place for both humans and we guardians" he said, his loud voice echoing down the hall.
"I was voted into office and if any of you are not okay with this, you can go ahead and fuck yourselves" he said.
Luke smirked from beside me. 'Feisty. Too bad I already dislike him' he said to me using the mindlink.
'Look at him, he looks like a frog' he added
I clenched my fist, resisting the urge to burst into laughter.
'Shut up' I replied.
'Come on, you don't expect me to do that. I mean, look at his nose. One of his nostrils can fit two carrots'
I bit my lower lip, still holding back my laughter.
"......As you all know, there has been recent cases of demon summons. Also, there has been a lot of dark energy released into earth. We must work together to eliminate the arising threats" Thane said, halting right in front of me.
I stared at him, letting my expression remain impassive.
"Any one of you who is found guilty of working alongside evil, will not be spared" he said, his eyes burning feverishly.
'Gosh, his statements are annoying. I'm sure he has brain failure. I mean, we all know the whole loyalty shit. He doesn't need to remind us' Luke said through the mindlink.
'Again, Shut up! If I laugh, you're dead' I hissed.
Luke bit his lip, amusement dancing in his eyes.
Thane moved on and stopped right in front of Luke.
"Anything funny, nightwalker?" He asked.
"Nope" Luke said, popping the 'p'.
Thane narrowed his eyes, looking very offended.
"Is this a joke to you?"
"Right now, nope"
'Come on, Luke. Give him a break' I said to Luke through the mindlink.
"What's your name again?" Thane asked, glaring at Luke intensely. "Luke"
"What the hell is your problem?"
Luke shrugged.
"I do not have a problem, Mr Ryder"
Thane's face turned red and he moved away from Luke.
"You can all leave. Daywalkers, go back to work. And you, stay. We need to talk" He said, his gaze resting on me.
I cautiously followed him into his office, hoping that I wasn't in trouble.
"Sit down" he said. I eyed the leather chair and slowly lowered myself in it. He poured himself a glass of scotch and sat down on the seat directly opposite me. "Theodore, is it?" He asked and I nodded. He stared at me, intensely for a moment. I was starting to wonder if he was actually seeing through my glamour. My present glamour was hiding the royal lightbearer's mark on my temple and my golden eyes was hidden. What he was seeing was a pair of indigo eyes, the usual eye color of a nightwalker.
"I've heard a lot about you, Theodore. I want you to confirm them" he said.
I raised a brow, leaning back on my seat. Now, this should be interesting.
"You once suffered from demon poisoning, yeah?"
"Right" I replied, wondering where he was going with the conversation.
"And you were what? Twelve years old?"
"Yes" I said.
"You survived it even though the healers were three days late"
"Obviously"
"You also handled a dozen deadly Drax demons on your own when you were just fourteen?" He asked.
I sighed and nodded.
"Not to mention, so many other things you have done. That's very interesting. You have so much power for a nightwalker, don't you agree?"
I gave him a blank stare.
"Where are you going with all this interrogation?" I asked. He smiled, his eyes glowing brightly
"I have a proposition" he said. "A proposition?" I said, staring at him long and hard.
"Yes"
"And what might that be?" I asked, narrowing my eyes.
"Be my assistant"
My eyes widened and I stared at him with disbelief.
He can't be serious, right?
....
DEVON
I was lying on my bed, engrossed in the novel I was reading when I heard a knock on the door.
"Come in" I said.
My mum walked in with a sad smile on her face.
"Mum? What's wrong?" I asked, concerned.
"Your father.... he's home" she said.
"And?"
"He wants you to go on a date with Casper today"
"Wait, what?" I said, rising to my feet.
"You should've told him that I'm dating someone else!" I said. "I-I tried but he didn't listen to me" she sighed, lowering her gaze. My heart sank when I saw the discoloration on her left cheek.
"Oh my God.....mum....he slapped you" I said, tears filling my eyes.
"N-no. He didn't mean to. You see, your father hates it when he's being defied. He lost control....he didn't mean to" she said, her blue eyes filled with sadness and pain.
"Why are you defending him, mum?" I said.
"Sweetheart, he's your father and I still love him" she said to me and I shook my head.
"But, mum-"
"It won't happen again.."
"Are you saying that to convince me or yourself?" I said and she closed her eyes briefly.
Pursing her lips, she said, "Devon, don't say that. It was a mistake"
She rose to her feet and started to walk towards the door. But then, she halted, her fingers lingering over the door knob.
"Casper will be here in thirty minutes" she said, opened the door and left. I sank to the ground, bringing my knees to my chin. Why am I so unfortunate?
I held my pendant firmly and closed my eyes. I won't let anyone get in between Theo and I. Not even my dad, not even Casper. My phone rang and I picked the call.
"Hey, Dev" Karla said.
"Hey, Karla. You sound really cheery" I said, smiling.
"I was just shopping with Amyra. She's a shopaholic but she's awesome. You should be here, Dev" she whined.
I chuckled.
"I'm glad you're having a great time" I said.
"You don't sound so happy, Dev. What's wrong?"
I heaved a sigh.
"Remember Casper? The one I told you about?" I asked.
"Yeah"
"He's coming over to take me out on a date" I said.
"WHAT?!"
"It's crazy, I know. I'm going to have to tell him that I'm not interested. I can't go out with him. I know I'm going to hurt him by saying that but Theo is worth it" I said
"I understand. I'm glad you've made the right decision, atta girl"
I smiled, my smile fading away just as I heard another knock on my door.
"Sweetie, he's here" My mum said, poking her head in. "Wish me luck" I said to Karla. "Good luck, sweetpea"
The line went dead.
"Are you going on a date with an oversized T-shirt and those pink shorts?" My mum asked, looking confused. I stared down at Theo's white T-shirt which I was wearing, as well as the pink shorts that hugged my curves, exposing a lot of skin. My hair was in two beautiful braids. "Mum, I'm not going on a date with him" I said and moved past her. I went downstairs and opened the main entrance door. There stood Casper clad in dark jeans and a red shirt. He still had a scowl on his face. I was starting to wonder if smiling was a taboo, especially to him.
"Is that what you're wearing for a date?" He asked, his eyes roving over my thighs.
I rolled my eyes.
Perv.
"I'm not going on a date with you. I'm sorry but I can't. I can't marry you either" I said. Casper glared daggers at me. "I've always known you're nothing but a bitch. I'm glad I don't even have feelings for you. You're despicable" he spat. He threw the flowers he was holding, on the floor and stormed off.
"Jerk" I muttered, slamming the door shut.
***************
"Dev?"
I groaned, turning to face Melvin with a scowl on my face. "What?" I groaned.
"Don't you know what the time is? It's fucking two a.m!" I hissed in annoyance.
Melvin chuckled.
"I heard about what happened today.... I mean about the date" he said.
I groaned.
"I'm tired.... can we talk about it tomorrow? Wait, where were you all day?" I asked. "Searching for Allen" he shrugged. I felt guilty.
I'd forgotten about my brother's predicament. What sort of sister does that make me? "Don't. Just don't. Don't blame yourself for anything. Look, even if you wanted to help find him, you can't. He masked his location. I couldn't find him, either" he said.
"Oh"
"Go back to sleep, Dev" he said and switched off the lamp. I grumbled and laid down on my bed. He chuckled and tucked the blankets around me. I vaguely heard him shut the door just as I sank into a welcoming slumber again.
"Theo!" I screamed as I watched him walk away from me. He was heading towards Barza with a dreamy smile on his face.
I tried to run towards him to stop him but there was an invincible force holding me back. "Theo, please come back! Theo! No!"
They were heading for the cliff but they didn't care. Barza stopped holding Theo's arm. Tears were pouring down my cheeks as I watched him move dangerously closer to the edge. I kept screaming at him to listen to me but it was like he'd gone deaf.
I knew I had to save him before it was too late so I struggled harder. I still couldn't move. Theo turned to face me. That was when I saw it. His golden eyes had become pitch black. His lips slowly curved into a smirk.
In a flash, Theo became me. I stared at the very evil version of myself, stunned. She turned away from me and without wasting time, she jumped off the cliff and I let out an ear piercing cry.
"No! No!"
"Wake up!"
"Hey, wake up. It's just a dream. It's okay-"
My eyes snapped open and I broke down into tears when my gaze met a familiar golden eyed gaze.
"It's okay. I've got you" he whispered over and over again as much as it took for me to stop trembling.
I squeezed my eyes shut, my heart thudding madly.
It had felt so.....real.