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“That’s not an answer.”

His features turns dark again. “We should talk.”

“I don’t want to talk right now.”

He sighs and says nothing. The scenery passing by tells me that we’re almost home. I just want to sleep. I want to get this wretched dress off, wash away the night, and sleep curled up against Aedon. I know him well enough to know that he isn’t going to let this conversation he's requested go unspoken through the night. I don’t need him to say it to have figured out he knows. He knows who Killian was to me, and he’s not happy about it.

Chapter twenty-four

Aedonaeus

After the strange interaction between Josie and Killian, I wanted to talk to her. She immediately panicked, which is something that's out of character for her. I've seen Josie angry, and I've seen her upset. I've never seen her quite like this. She wasn’t even phased by Eris. When she told me people were going to kill her, she laughed. This is different. This is because of Killian.

It’s not clear how they know each other, but it could be work related. A past flame in the throes of death. Killian carries out Eris’ dirty work so it’s not a far-fetched theory, but deep down I know it’s more than that. It takes a lot to make Josie disturbed. I could feel her terror deep inside of my soul.

If she thinks I’ll be angry for sleeping with some idiot before we met, I won’t be. I’ve made plenty of my own mistakes. I try to sort through what I know about Killian, and it isn’t much. He’s Eris’ fiancé, but he’s also her pet. I’ve never known how they met, and now I’m curious.

Killian and his pissing contest managed to get to me. He’s a disrespectful weasel just like his fiancée. The fact that he felt he could speak to Josie, of all people, in that way, perturbs me. It was authoritative, something I’ve never known him to be. He’s a coward. After confirming Vivian has left the party, I need air, and I want to be alone. Josie will be safe with Minos. Probably drunk after that interaction, but safe, nonetheless.

I descend the marble stairs and walk around the corner to the edge of the garden, leaning against the wall. I play through the interaction over and over again in my head. It’s painful to think about. They definitely know each other on a deeper level than some fling.

He had the audacity to ask her to privately speak with him. There was certainly a possessiveness to it, as if she would immediately say yes and follow him like a sheep. I should have waited before shutting it down so I could see what she would do. I squash the thought. My wife wouldn’t go with him. She snarled at the sight of him.

He called her Jo, something I've only ever heard Vivian refer to her as. It's always seemed like an affectionate nickname reserved only for them. With that logic, and the way Josie reacted, there is only one irrational explanation for how she may know Killian. She tried to downplay her emotion as surprise, but I felt shock echo through her.

My soul fractures when I realize it. He’s the boy Josie once loved. There were so many emotions filtering under the surface of shock that I couldn’t detect it immediately. She truly believed he was dead all of this time. That was pain on her face. It wasn’t the kind most people would notice, but I saw it for what it was. Heartache. My beautiful, tortured wife was blindsided by Killian. She had said he was dead, but I’ve known him for years while he wormed his way around Eris and the palace.

He’s a fucking snake and always has been.

All this time it was him. There was no way I could have known, but I still feel at fault for some reason. My mind tries to rationalize the situation. That had to be years ago, not only that, but Josie married me. I am Josie’s fucking husband by choice, not by force. Or was it? I did give her an ultimatum. I told a lonely woman she could be with me or have no one at all. What would I pick?

No, she’s strong. Josie doesn’t do anything she doesn’t want to. That’s one of the frustrating reasons I love her.

I should talk to Josie about this, but instead I’m here hiding from her. I don’t know what I plan to do, but I want to know who she was. It shouldn’t be relevant. She isn’t that person anymore, but I can’t stop myself. We are leaving this party, and for once she is going to give me a full fucking explanation.

Killian sneaks around the corner sticking to the shadows. He looks distressed and doesn’t even notice me standing there. When he passes, I impulsively grab the back of his suit and drag him back to me. I can smell Josie on him, it’s faint but it’s there mixed with those cigarettes she sneaks when she’s stressed. They’ve spoken since I left, which just pisses me off that much more.

“Aedonaeus,” Killian says with gritted teeth.

“Killian,” I spit, letting the poison drip with disparity. “Or should I say Killy?”

He stands tall, ready for a fight. I don’t want to fight him. I want to hear what he says about Josie. I can kill him another time.

“No one calls me that.”

“Josie did. Why?”

A deranged smile creeps across his face. I’ve given up any semblance of sanity, and he has recognized my own desperation for knowledge. “Look at you coming to me with questions about your own wife.”

“Why did she call you Killy?” I demand. I’m losing whatever patience I managed to retain, quickly. If I kill him Josie might not forgive me, or maybe she’ll thank me.

Killian looks away, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Because it bothers me.”

I stare at him in silence. I’m not sure what to ask or say because there are so many things swirling in my brain. I can’t hold onto just one.

“Did she really never tell you about me?” he asks quietly, breaking the silence.

Inside of that cocky asshole there is a defeated boy. I’ve never seen him so dejected. Josie must have told him to fuck off. I smirk at the thought.