disapper

But, oh, wrong I was. The atmosphere shifted.

A group of striking women entered the room, their robes of red and white clinging to their curves, with just enough skin exposed to draw every pair of eyes in the room. Their presence was magnetic, commanding attention, and as they glided gracefully through the inn, they made their way toward Lucius and the other well-dressed men seated nearby.

One of them, bold and confident, leaned over Lucius, her chest brushing his shoulder as she smiled coyly. He tensed but didn't flinch. The look in his eyes as he turned to her was hard and final.

"No," he said firmly, his voice low and unyielding. "I have a wife."

And then he did something that made my heart skip—a small, unintentional betrayal of logic. He reached for my hand. His fingers wrapped around mine with a possessiveness that sent a jolt through me, even though I knew he wasn't truly talking about me. He wasn't. And yet, the word wife echoed in my head like the chime of a bell, resonating deeper than I cared to admit.

The women shot me sharp looks as they sauntered off, their smiles now forced and fleeting. I coughed lightly, hoping to mask the rising heat in my cheeks. "I… I didn't expect to see, um, that here. This place seemed so peaceful."

Lucius smirked, raising a brow at me. "It's midnight. There's beer. Why wouldn't you expect these types of women?"

I rolled my eyes, unable to suppress a laugh. "Fair point."

We fell into a comfortable silence, the world around us blurring into the hum of conversation and clinking glasses.

---

Lucius' POV

For the first time in ten years, I felt a glimmer of something resembling peace. A rare, fleeting moment where I could forget the gnawing ache in my chest and simply exist. She thought I brought her here out of kindness, perhaps even for her sake. Oh, how wrong she was.

This night, this excursion, wasn't about her. It was about Athena. It was always about Athena.

Kiara was merely filling the void Athena had left behind. A placeholder, a shadow to sit across from me and distract me from the relentless weight of loss. Tomorrow's ritual loomed over me like a storm cloud, its uncertainty carving a pit in my stomach. What if it failed? What if we couldn't bring Athena back?

I was selfish. Cruel, even. Using Kiara this way, letting her believe this night was hers. But I needed the distraction as much as I needed the air I breathed. For tonight, I let her fill the space Athena left behind.

I sipped my drink cautiously, careful not to lose control, when a sudden commotion broke through the noise of the inn.

A man burst through the doors, his face pale and streaked with sweat. His eyes darted around wildly as he stumbled forward, collapsing onto his knees.

"Spirit!" he cried, his voice cracking with raw terror. "A spirit! It killed my friend, my wife—my children! Please! Someone help!"

The room erupted into chaos, chairs scraping against the floor, voices rising in panic. Patrons scrambled to their feet, some rushing toward the man, others backing away in fear.

I was already moving, my senses on high alert. My first thought wasn't of the spirit. It was of her.

"Kiara."

I scanned the room, my eyes darting to every corner, every shadow. She was gone.

"Where is she?" I demanded, my voice sharp and biting.

Kael stepped out from wherever he had been hiding, his presence now commanding and immediate. His gaze swept the room before locking onto me. "She's gone," he said simply, his tone clipped.

My chest tightened, and a cold, unrelenting anger began to rise within me. "How?"

"She slipped out," Kael replied, his expression unreadable. "I didn't see where."

Damn her. Damn her and her impulsiveness. Wherever she had gone, I knew one thing for certain—she was in danger. And I would burn this entire inn to the ground before I let harm come to her.

We rushed outside, hearts pounding, scanning the darkened streets for any sign of Kiara. The chaos of the inn still echoed in my mind, but I pushed it aside. The only thing that mattered now was finding her.

But when we stepped outside, there was no sign of her—only the lifeless bodies of those the spirit had claimed. The spirit itself was gone, fleeing into the shadows. Part of me wanted to tell Kael to give chase, but something far more pressing clawed at my thoughts. Kiara.

The mere thought of losing her made my skin crawl. It was as if my very bones turned to ice, and I couldn't even finish the thought before an overwhelming sense of dread took hold.

Where the fuck is she?

I scanned the area desperately, my heart sinking. And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw her. Kiara.

She was coming out of the inn, her expression confused, her steps slow, almost like she had no idea of the turmoil she had just caused. I couldn't breathe for a moment.

Without thinking, I surged toward her.

"Where have you been? Where the fuck did you go?" The words exploded from me before I could stop them. I grabbed her arm tightly, pulling her toward me. My frustration, my fear—it all boiled over. "Don't you ever leave my side like that again? Do you hear me?"

Kiara looked up at me, clearly bewildered, her eyes wide with confusion. "I just went to relieve myself," she said in a language I didn't understand, her words rapid and light, as if the whole ordeal was no big deal.

I couldn't make sense of it. "You what?" I demanded, my grip on her hand tightening. "What do you mean, you went to relieve yourself?"

She laughed, a soft, almost apologetic sound. But it only drove me further into a frenzy.

"I just went to ease myself," she said again, still not understanding the depth of my panic. "I had consumed too much beer".

The words stung, not because of what she said but because the relief in her voice only amplified the terror in mine. I had nearly lost her—again—and the thought of it sent a wave of cold rushing through me.

I could feel my hands trembling, my mind racing with thoughts of what could've happened, what might still happen.

For a moment, I pulled her toward me, crushing her into a tight embrace. I buried my face in her hair, my chest heaving with the strain of trying to regain control.

"I thought I lost you," I muttered against her hair, my voice low and rough. "I thought I lost you. Fuck."

There was a quiet moment as I held her close, trying to steady my racing heart. She was safe. She was here. But then, just as quickly, a thought struck me—this was not Athena.

I snapped back, suddenly realizing the sharpness of my own feelings. This wasn't Athena. It never could be.

"Don't disappear again," I said firmly, my hands still gripping her.