Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 123065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 123065 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 615(@200wpm)___ 492(@250wpm)___ 410(@300wpm)
Ra became what people believed.
A slave to Chaos.
A monster.
If you’re the slave, the man owning you is the monster.
If you’re the monster, those who fear you are your slaves.
Perception is everything.
“Want me to tell you a story?” I ask. “Over breakfast, maybe? I can hear your stomach growling from here.”
Cleo’s still frowning at the depiction. The truest one of them all. “Sure, yeah, I am hungry.” She looks over her shoulder twice before we finally walk back through the pub to sit at the bar. I motion for Mara to bring out the food and hot coffee. I ordered Cleo extra eggs, bacon, sausage, and toast—to make her glow with health of course.
The sun demands a glowing sacrifice after all, like the stars in the sky.
I pull out her chair. After she sips her coffee, she takes a bite of bacon then covers her mouth in shock.
“Did you think anything I touched would be bad?” I laugh. Humans can be so funny sometimes. “The food is farmed locally, very good, all creatures treated nicely, and we use every part, but don’t worry you didn’t get any liver in yours.”
She makes a face. “Really?”
“Don’t knock it until you try it.”
“Do you eat brain?” She drops her bacon onto her plate and makes a comical face that has me instantly checking myself and putting my walls back up.
“Okay, not everything.” Well, there was that one time we tried it with Cow, but that was a very bad day for everyone, never piss off a goddess. “I’ll talk, you eat, and then we’ll tour the local museum where we keep the artifacts your brother was so obsessed with before we start our training when the bar opens.”
She nods and takes another bite of her eggs, her posture relaxed toward me, probably because she’s eating at the moment and her defenses are down. It gives me time to stare at her pretty side profile, her jet-black hair is pulled back in a ponytail, her tight sweater accentuates her small curves in a way that would make anyone look. She needs to eat more, but she’ll learn—eventually. Food is for strength, and she’ll need all the strength she can get in the next week where she thinks she’ll be reunited with Jake and hopping on a ferry home.
“Okay, so where’s my fairy tale? Or the story you promised?”
“How about we start with the vampires. Did you know some believe them to be a created race just like angels?”
“Both of which aren’t real.” She points at me with her bacon. “But go on. I’m intrigued.”
“People believe them to be abominations out to kill everyone, but what if I were to tell you there’s research that states their bloodline is angelic. A created race to help wage war on behalf of the Creator, a part of an army. What if I were to tell you we have proof Fallen Angels exist and have some of their very swords in the warehouse?”
Her eyes widen.
“Furthermore,” I lean in. “What if I were to tell you, that I’m right, and you’re wrong. The gods people worship are created beings from some of the most powerful deities in the world. Werewolves rule the earth—the dirt itself. Watchers sit on each continent protecting humanity from immortals that want nothing more than to rejoin the heavens but have messed up too many times to hear the song of the skies again, the song of the stars. They were born to hear it and without it, they lose their souls and feed on humans to get high. I think I’m getting off base and scaring you, but again, they’re just stories and fairytales…according to you, nothing is real.” I lean so close that my mouth nearly brushes hers. “And yet your heart is beating so wildly against your chest that your lips tremble to speak truth.”
Truth is always stranger than fiction.
Cleo frowns and looks away down at her napkin. “I think you may be rich and extremely smart, but you’re full of shit, how could you have proof?”
“Guess you’ll find out later today when you explore, also, if you see a demon don’t run from it, just tell it to stop chasing you. Using words always works, they can’t fight against the spoken word unless they have a soul and those are still being restored as we speak.”
She shakes her head. “You’re so damn convincing, have you ever thought of going into acting? Not that you need money but you’d make a killing.”
“Ah, I’ve killed enough.” I wink.
She laughs. “Okay, killer, what about Egyptian mythology since it seemed to ruffle you up a bit. Any deep insight Dr. Cyrus?”
I nearly drop my coffee cup; the way she says doctor does things to my chest. I feel hot. I know she’s teasing me, but I like it. After a deep breath I continue. “Egyptian mythology is a bit different. They were a race of people who believed fiercely in the afterlife but in a need to keep it quote unquote fair, they said as long as you had enough coin to balance out any sort of sin, you’d gain entry to the afterlife to see your family. But if you’re weighed and found wanting, you are lost.”