Page 36 of Knox
Adrian gaped at his grandma, then shook himself out of his stupor.
"Grandma, these are Lyrian and Zev," Adrian introduced the newcomers, trying not to drown in the absurdity of the moment.
"Lovely to meet you both," Evelyn said. She seemed so genuinely pleased that Adrian had brought 'friends' home that Adrian found it difficult not to wince. He’d never been very good at socializing offline. His brother, Grant, had been the popular one,the athlete with the big birthday parties and all the dates. Never Adrian.
"Take a seat," Evelyn said. "Lunch will be ready soon."
Adrian’s eyes flicked to the TV screen where a news reporter was speaking animatedly. His stomach dropped as he recognized the footage from earlier—the chaos on the bridge, people panicking and shouting.
"You’re quite famous," Evelyn remarked, pointing at the screen.
Adrian’s heart skipped a beat as he saw Lyrian’s figure standing atop a car, singing to calm the crowd. The camera zoomed in on Knox struggling against Caelen before showing close-ups of frightened faces now serene thanks to Lyrian’s song.
The reporter’s voice cut through his thoughts. "Witnesses describe a surreal scene where a man with an angelic voice appeared to pacify what seemed like dark apparitions attacking civilians."
Evelyn glanced at Adrian with a raised eyebrow. "Care to explain?"
Adrian sighed, rubbing his temples. "It’s complicated, Grandma."
"Well," she said, turning back to her cooking with a shrug, "whatever it is, you’ve got half the city talking about it."
Lyrian looked amused as he watched the footage of himself singing on screen. "Not my usual audience," he remarked lightly.
Zev smirked. "You always did know how to make an entrance."
Knox remained silent, his eyes fixed on the screen where Caelen’s face loomed large—calm, composed, and disturbingly charismatic as he spoke to reporters.
"We need to be careful," Knox muttered finally, more to himself than anyone else.
Evelyn began setting plates on the table. "Be that as it may," she said firmly, "you all need to eat."
Adrian felt a pang of gratitude for his grandmother’s unwavering practicality. No matter how bizarre things got, Evelyn always knew how to ground them back in reality—at least for a little while.
Evelyn placed a platter of sandwiches on the table, each one carefully cut into neat triangles. There were cucumber and cream cheese, ham and mustard, and egg salad—all of Adrian’s favorites. She also set down a bowl of mixed greens tossed with a light vinaigrette and a plate of freshly sliced fruit.
"Dig in," she encouraged as she took her seat.
Knox reached for a sandwich but his gaze remained on Lyrian and Zev. "How did you both end up here?"
"Probably the same way you did, which is to say I have no idea how." Lyrian leaned back in his chair. "We found ourselves in the middle of an incredibly noisy club last night. Quite disorienting."
Zev nodded. "But it wasn’t long before we received several offers from… enthusiastic hosts."
Adrian raised an eyebrow at that, but a small smile played on Lyrian’s lips. "Humans are so eager to offer shelter when they find you charming enough."
Adrian suppressed a groan. Of course Lyrian and Zev would have had people falling over themselves to host them. The siren was elegance and grace personified, and there was something strangely alluring about Zev’s darker beauty as well. The intensity of his smile made people want to do things they absolutely shouldn’t.
Adrian wasn’t tempted by either of them, but that was probably because his mind was still reeling from the encounter he’d had with Knox.
Unaware of Adrian’s thoughts, Zev nodded to the television.
"A little while ago, we saw Caelen in one of those picture boxes," he said. "We knew where we had to go."
Lyrian’s expression grew serious. "During the chaos on the bridge, I noticed Caelen drawing power from the crowd. The more people believe in him, the stronger he becomes."
"That’s why he was playing the savior," Zev said. "The people of this world have no idea how horrible he really is."
"They would know if they read the recordings," Knox said between two bites of his sandwich.
