Page 14 of Witch's Rebirth
As if things weren't awkward enough, I couldn't take back the words after I said them. Raum's shoulders shook as he chuckled but it didn't bother me much. Of all the house residents, he was the one that seemed the most okay with me being here.
"I'll let him know you said that," he cracked with a wink over his shoulder.
"Please don't." I couldn't help but let out a small laugh myself.
Raum settled for a beer. He cracked it open as he turned around to face me, still smirking at some private joke. As big and imposing as the guy was, something about him made me relax a little. He just seemed to instinctively know how to diffuse a tense situation.
"You look worn the fuck out, dude," he said abruptly. "But in all fairness, I bet I've been the only one sleeping for two days straight."
"Yeah, we've been pretty busy since the hunters came up on us." I gave him a quick recap of the aftermath, plus finding Juno and the aftermath of that.
"No shit?" Raum's eyes widened. "She spit on Ash and Deja killed her just like that?"
"Yeah, it was pretty surreal," I admitted. "She acted so fucking fast. Juno was insulting her and talking so much shit but the second she did that to him, it seemed like that was the last straw for her."
"Damn, I would have loved to see that." His grin widened. "She's amazing. Swift, beautiful, and deadly."
I silently agreed, realizing something I hadn't before. Deja was willing to take endless abuse upon herself for her loved ones. I had no doubt if we didn't make her stay inside, she would have taken that angel's kiss to the chest herself to save Raum. Likewise, Juno's insults, as stupid as they were, rolled off her back like water. But one gesture of disrespect to one of her lovers, and all her tolerance went out the window. When it came to protecting those she loved, she was swift and merciless.
I found it admirable, but also found myself a bit envious. I never knew what it was like to care about someone that much, or had someone feel that way about me.
Raum's dark eyes watched me from across the kitchen, shimmering knowingly and I bristled. He couldn't read my shadows, I'd feel him if he was. But his look said he knew all about what I was thinking, what my deepest desire was.
"She's sleeping up in the master bedroom, looking adorable as fuck if you're up for a cuddle." He took a long pull from his beer. "You look like you could use some."
"Don't think she'd be too keen on that," I scoffed. "And even if she was, the other two probably won't be okay with it even if you are.”
He shrugged and added an eye roll for good measure. "It's her decision, not theirs. None of us control her."
"I get that but I'm also well aware of how serious this whole thing is." My hands gestured wildly. "You're all in a 3-way marriage basically and I'm trying my damnedest to not get my ass beat for doing the wrong thing with your wife."
"But it's not a marriage." The corners of Raum's mouth remained tilted up as he pulled from his bottle. "We're serious about her and will love her until the end of days, yes. But marriage consists of a legally binding transaction. She's not our property. There's nothing binding her to us or vice versa other than how we feel about each other."
I searched his expression but he gave nothing away. Somehow this guy was the most open and gregarious with me, yet the hardest to figure out.
"And are the three of you just with her or...?"
Raum nearly choked on his beer from laughing so hard.
"Ah, fuck me," he said, wiping his eyes. "It's been two-thousand and eighteen years since watching Christ go up on the cross. Women are still slaves in parts of the world but no, you humans are still uncomfortable with men consensually fucking each other."
"I'm not uncomfortable with it." I bristled defensively. "I just genuinely can't tell if that's what's going on or not."
He composed himself and sighed out a long breath. "No, that's not how we are. The three of us are like brothers. We only have eyes and hard dicks for her."
"That's… a bit more than I wanted to know." I raised my hands. "Sorry I asked."
"Don't ever apologize for asking questions." Raum gave me a stern look. "The pursuit of knowledge is what we're all about. And despite your heritage and enhanced abilities, there's still a lot you don't know about demonkind."
I wrestled with telling him something I'd never told anyone. He could tell, as evident by his cocked eyebrow and sharp eyes never wavering from me, and I thoughtfuck it.I was already too deep in these people's world. Witch society would never take me back again.
"Beelzebub used to punish me for asking questions," I confessed. "Anytime I went against what he commanded my body to do or say, or just asked why he was doing this to me, he'd..."
"'Cause you great pain?" Raum prompted.
"That and more," I admitted. "At first it was just physical pain. Body aches, migraines, seizures, all that when I was a kid. When that only made me stronger and I learned to control it... I could feel him shut down parts of my mind." Raum said nothing so I continued. "When I made him mad, he made me forget things. I forgot how to speak, or how a shower worked. For a few days, I didn't know what a knife and fork were for.”
"You should tell this to Ash," Raum said. "He might not be thrilled that you're here but his judgement is fair. If he knows the full extent of how you were mistreated, he will make sure Beelz gets the full punishment he deserves."
