Page 62 of Not All Himbos Wear Capes
If I hadn’t been so hasty in my invitation, I would have arranged for Butch to meet the family when Iwasn’texpected to speak with my father. Unfortunately, my impulsivity meant I would now have to leave the most precious thing in the world to me in the company of fiends. But it was that or take him with me into ‘the workshop.’
And I would rather die than have him face my father.
Butch squeezed my hand as I rose to stand, so I bent down to sweetly kiss him, audience be damned. “I’ll only be gone for a bit, baby,” I soothed, willing myself to appear calm for his sake.
My father could choose to kill me at any moment, but I would try my hardest to please him, especially as I needed to make sure Butch got out of here alive. Straightening, I threw a glare around the table. “I expect him to be in one piece when I get back.”
Violentia winked while Baltasar rolled his eyes. The twins had already tuned us out with their heads bent to each other, whispering in hushed tones.
My mother’s mouth stretched in a Cheshire grin before she cooed, “We’ll save you aslice.”Before I could retort, she pointed at her German chocolate cake, as ifthatwas what she’d been referring to.
My vision was dangerously close to turning red as I spun on my heel and began walking away. I knew I needed to get my shit under control before facing Apocalypto Man, but leaving Butch unprotected in such dangerous company was making my skin crawl, my insides buzz…it was making me want to kill…
Kill kill killkillkill….
“I’ll keep an eye on him,” Wolfgang spoke so softly as I passed by, I almost didn’t catch it. When I abruptly stopped to face him, he added, “He’ll be safe.” Following his gaze, I saw he wasn’t focused on Butch, but was intensely locked in on our mother instead.
“Thank you, Wolfy,” I whispered in return, immediately returning to baseline. “I owe you one.”
He chuckled low. “Careful, Xanny. You have no idea what I want.”
That’s not fucking ominous or anything.
Swallowing hard, I forced my feet to carry me from the room, leaving my heart behind as I went to face a nightmare.
* * *
“Enter.”
I’d barely made it to my father’s workshop when his command demanded I pick up the pace. I willed my body not to piss itself as I entered his lair, averting my eyes from whatever his current project was.
Apocalypto Man could cryogenically freeze a human—trapping them in their own bodies—before snapping them out of existence, but sometimes he kept them around to dismember. As if they were nothing but lab rats for his experiments.
At least I only dissect dead animals.
Mostly.
“Xander,” his voice was as detached as ever, but his golden eyes flickered upward as if looking through multiple floors to the dining room far above. “It appears you’ve brought a guest.”
I cleared my throat, not wanting to talk about Butch at all with this monster, but knowing better than to refuse. “Yes, his name is Butch Hawthorne, and he’s a normie who works for Biggs Enterprises. We met on a dating app, and it’s pretty serious, so… yeah, I thought he should meet all of you. Most of you.”
Moving on…
My father didnotcare about me or my life. I was nothing more than a tool at his disposal who was forced to prove time and time again that I was worthy of the family name—and my existence. Clearing my throat again, I geared up to redirect the conversation when he surprised me by keeping it going.
“Whyhim,Xander?” His golden gaze was boring into my soul now, and I did not for one second believe he wanted the sentimental reasons I’d given Dr. Ownit.
“Um,” I stuttered, desperately trying to determine what answer would keep me alive. “We… connect. I feel atangibleconnection to him where I physically want him around me all the time. We fit well with each other.”
“I’m sure you do,” my father murmured beforeSMILING AT ME.
I actually stumbled backward, my lower back hitting the examination table as I narrowly missed putting my hand into the mess of leftover human spread over its surface.
“Your mother mentioned that you’re manifesting powers,” he calmly continued, as if he hadn’t justSMILED AT ME.“How long has that been going on?”
“A couple weeks, tops,” I stammered, surprised my mother had taken my claim seriously enough to pass along. “I would have told you immediately, but I didn’t know if that’s what was going—”
“The timing is intriguing,” was all he said before sweeping a cool gaze over the examination table.
