Page 4 of Painless
“No, nothing.” I drummed my fingers on his ribs in contemplation. “Maybe she’s too young? When did Hades start talking to you?”
“About six months after I found him. I don’t know if it has to do with age, or because that was the first time I had to kill someone after finding him.”
Their lives are yours to take. Reap what has been sown.
Those words echoed like a drum in my head ever since the Steel Demons came to my and Gunner’s rescue from skin traffickers, two weeks ago. Reaper had hinted about it before, but told me the full extent after we all made it back home.
Ever since he found Hades as a puppy, that voice told him who to kill or not kill. It could only come from the dog, who had bonded deeply with Reaper, and was clearly more intelligent than any normal animal. Reaper was certain that only he could hear the voice of Hades, until I confessed that he had spoken to me too.
He came to me in the rough, hazy form of a man and told me who he was. I wrote it off as a dream, until I saw that same vision while Hades the dog tore through the ankles of those holding Gunner and I captive.
Interestingly, Reaper never had any dreams or other interpretations of Hades, other than hearing his voice.
Gunner had a bond with his falcon, Horus, though theirs seemed entirely different. Gunner could see through Horus, as though he were in the falcon’s body. But he never mentioned hearing voices or seeing him in another form either.
And now I had Freyja. Some kind of invisible pull brought me to the junk pile in Jandro’s backyard where she had been stuck. Getting her out felt infinitely more important than just rescuing a kitten. I felt like I would lose a limb, part of myself, if I didn’t rescue her. The only word that popped into my head was her name, and somehow I just knew she was meant to be with me.
As far aswhatshe was orwhyI had to find her? That remained to be seen. But three of us in the SDMC now had these animals with strange, unique abilities. I had more questions than answers, and it made my head spin the more I thought about it. But I found comfort in knowing these creatures were here to help us, to guide us with their abilities and heightened intelligence. I just didn’t know for what purpose.
Before finding myself with the Steel Demons, I would have driven myself insane looking for answers. As someone who owed their medical training to research and science, my little head would have exploded at the implication that something magical or paranormal was at play.
Strangely enough, it was using Reaper’s approach that kept me from freaking out. He simply accepted that some things couldn’t be explained. These animals had proved themselves to be trustworthy, protective of us in many cases. He wasn’t going to pick apart theories and go hunting for answers when we lived in a time where survival was our number one priority. After Reaper and Gunner saved their animals, their own lives were saved in return. And that was all that mattered.
I could only wonder what the silly kitten flopping all over the floor would save me from one day.
Reaper and I watched them from bed like adoring parents for a few more minutes before I kissed his chest and reluctantly rolled away.
“I have to go to Tessa’s,” I said to his pouting expression.
“You just checked on her three days ago.” He rolled toward me, pulling me back into his warmth.
“She’s at least thirty-six weeks now. The baby’s almost here.” Briefly giving in to his hold, I peppered kisses underneath his jaw. “And she’s stressed. She needs to be among friends. She and Big G are…kind of on the rocks, it seems.”
“I know he’s a dog,” Reaper sighed into my hair. “She’s a good woman. She deserves better.”
I paused with my nose against his throat, the wheels turning in my head. Tessa seemed convinced that Reaper would never let her separate from Big G, that the club would see it as breaking up their family. But the Steel Demons president grew up in a matriarchal society, where women had multiple partners as a sign of devotion and trust from their men. Surely Reaper wouldn’t force Tessa to stay in a situation where she was unhappy.
“What if Tessa and Big G had been part of your parents’ community?” I asked him. “How would they handle a man’s cheating?”
“Oh, he’d be kicked out within a week,” Reaper grunted. “He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed when it comes to social graces. They’d give him a few chances for making some remark, or being inappropriate with a taken woman, but he’s too slow to adapt to such a different paradigm. He’d be gone long before he could actually stick his dick where it didn’t belong.”
“Hmm.” I swirled a finger through the hair dusting his chest. If I brought it upgentlyto Tessa again and indicated Reaper did not approve of his behavior, she might be more receptive to moving out.
“That being said,” Reaper continued. “The situation here is different.”
“How so?”
“We’re an MC, sugar, not a ‘peace and love’ hippie commune.” He squeezed my waist. “I need men that can ride, fight, and follow orders. Unfortunately, that includes some men with unsavory habits when it comes to women.”
“But that doesn’t mean she has to staywithhim, right?”
Reaper’s eyes narrowed to slits. “What are you saying?”
“What if they both stayed in Sheol, but lived separately? He could be free to do whoever and she could find another man if she wanted.”
“A divorce?” He propped his head up on his hand. “That’s illegal,” he said with a smirk that made it clear he was joking.
I dragged a finger down his abdomen, teasing at where the sheet covered him just below his waist. “Since when do you care about breaking the law?”
