Page 38 of The Devil's Mercy

The director moved to the exit, pausing beneath the threshold. “The door stays open.”

“I said I got it,” he snapped.

“One last thing then.” Titus waited until Calix gave in and turned to him. “Aodhan’s decided to call you Be’urn from nowon. You’d be wise not to reject him the way you rejected me. He won’t be as…understanding.”

Chapter 11:

Calix tentatively stepped out of the bathroom, a towel wrapped tightly around his hips to keep him covered. He’d spent as much time as he possibly could in the bath, waiting until the water had turned cold and he’d started to shiver before admitting defeat. It wasn’t like he could hide in there forever.

He was starting to think there wasn’t anywhere hecouldhide at all.

Titus was sitting in a plush ivory chair set by a large bay window, flipping through the pages of a book. He didn’t stop reading even though he had to know Cal was there.

The room was medium-sized, with a four-poster bed and an end table on either side. There was a glass trunk filled with folded blankets set at the foot of the bed, and a desk across from that. The color palette was the same in here as in the bathroom, and Calix flexed his toes against the pale pink carpet.

“You look better,” Titus’s voice was as soft as the material Cal was standing on. “How do you feel?”

“My wrists are rubbed raw and my ass stings,” he replied bluntly, but if his tone bothered the older man, Titus didn’t give it away. Calix clutched the knot holding the towel in place tightly, a move that didn’t go unnoticed.

“There are pajamas for you on the bed,” the director motioned with his chin to his left and remained seated.

Cautiously, Cal made his way toward the folded bundle resting at the head of the mattress, eyeing Titus as he went. Obviously, being in the same room as the guy and a bed made him nervous, but Titus didn’t so much as shift in the chair.

The clothes were silk, a shimmery pearl white that comfortably flowed around him as he tugged them on, starting with the button-up shirt. He dropped the towel and tugged the pants on last, only vaguely noting he hadn’t been given underwear. For now, he was just happy with having clothes in general.

“What now?” he asked when he was fully dressed and nothing else happened.

“Are you still tired?” Titus flipped another page. “You could go to sleep. I’ll wake you for breakfast.”

He stared down at the bed and clenched his hands into fists. Because yes, he was fucking tired, but what the actual hell? The bed had been made with clean sheets, and all he had to do was pull the covers down and slip beneath them. He was sure the second his head touched the fluffy pillow, he’d be out like a light.

And vulnerable.

“What are you planning? Why aren’t you taking me back downstairs?” He really didn’t want to return there, but at the same time, he didn’t like the way he was feeling now. Uncertain and confused.

Titus finally set his book aside. “Do you miss being filled already. We don’t need the hook to solve that problem.”

Calix’s gaze automatically dropped to the spot between Titus’s legs, and when that earned him a dark chuckle, he immediately tore it away. “Not a chance. I’ve seen what you’re packing. It’s twice as thick as the hook. No.”

“It’ll fit,” Titus promised. “I’ll make it.”

“Go back to reading. I liked you better then.”

“Sure.” He picked the book back up, but didn’t get a chance to look at it.

“Wait.” Why was this so uncomfortable? Was he really just going to sit there all night while Cal slept? Why weren’t they tying him up again? “The snake. Tell me about that.”

“Snake?” Titus’s dirty smirk gave away what he was thinking of, and Cal scoffed.

“Not the one in your pants! The tattoo.”

“Of course.”

“Do all Connects have moving ink?” He’d never heard anything about that in the past. Scanning over him now, Cal couldn’t see any hint of the creature.

Was it a creature?

“Is it a separate entity?” he pondered aloud. “There are many parasitic species in the universe, several in this galaxy alone. If I were one of them, I’d probably hitch a ride with a Connect if given the opportunity to as well.”

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