Page 13

Chapter

Ten

LUST

I didn’t have time for Gluttony’s little get-together, but I knew if I didn’t attend, it would cause far more problems in the long run.

Driving over to his place on the upper side of town, I wished yet again I had Pride’s demon ancestry to shift, or even Gluttony’s vampirism to just run where I needed to go in thirty seconds flat.

But no...as an incubus I was good-looking, and recharged from sex. It wasn’t pure immortality, but my mantle as a sin took care of that anyway.

Fucking useless.

“You’re early.”

Pride met me at the massive door, grabbing my wrist and shifting us directly to Gluttony’s favorite parlor in a whirl of shadows.

I snatched my hand back, irritated.

“Walking wouldn’t kill you!” I insisted.

“Walking is for mortals,” Pride replied stuffily, smoothing down the front of his black satin shirt.

I resisted the urge to punch him in the face; then he wouldn’t be so proud, would he?

“Play nice. G is in a mood,” he said as I pushed through the double doors and stared down at the rest of my ‘family’.

Five brothers, all with different fathers, but sharing a demigod mother.

No wonder we were cursed with this burden.

Pride strode past me, his dark hair perfectly combed back, the sleekness of it matching the sharpness in his deep blue eyes.

His lean, muscular frame moved with effortless grace as he flung the French doors open and sank into the couch, crossing his long legs and spreading his arms behind him like a king claiming his throne.

His tailored suit accentuated his controlled, almost regal posture, every movement deliberate and precise.

Sloth was curled up in the corner of the same couch, his pale, lanky figure barely shifting as he shot Pride a sharp glare.

His dusty-blond hair was tousled in a careless, centuries-old disarray, and his deep-set, half-lidded eyes—like dark pools—held a calm disdain, clutching a fuzzy blanket wrapped tightly around him.

His hand, long and slender despite the exhaustion, carefully held a steaming cup of tea, as if wary of disturbing the stillness.

Far across the room, Gluttony sat in his favorite leather armchair, broad and imposing.

His pale skin was marked with a faint scar along his jawline, and his thick fingers rested on his knee, the veins beneath his skin faint but visible—evidence of his centuries of indulgence and restraint pushed to its limits.

He was studying me with an expression of quiet curiosity, the dark, heavy aura around him contrasting sharply with his seemingly relaxed posture.

With effort, I attempted to pull myself together.

“G, good to see you,” I said politely.

Far too politely for normal.

“Knock knock, motherfuckers!” shouted Greed.

I sat quickly in the leather armchair next to Gluttony as Envy and Greed burst through the door behind, exuberant idiots that they usually were.

For as much of a quiet tacker that Envy was, he turned into a complete moron whenever Greed was around.

If it weren’t their different looks, you’d have thought they were twins with how they acted.

“Welcome, everyone. I am thankful you could all join me today,” Gluttony began formally. “Before we begin, the council has sent out notice that there is a rise in missing supernatural children, so be on the lookout.”

We had nothing to say to that.

Greed gave Envy one last half-hearted shove before they squeezed into the love seat on my left, and the right of the sofa. Our little square of sins was complete.

Well, almost.

There was currently no Wrath. We weren’t sure why...there just wasn’t. I had

suspicions that Gluttony knew why, but wasn’t letting on for whatever reason.

“Now, who shall go first?” Gluttony asked lightly.

When no one jumped forward to immediately begin, Greed rubbed his hands together.

“Well, I heard someone certainly had a big week. Your first reanimation, was it?”

I released a breath when it was apparent he was talking about Pride , and not me. Gods on Earth, I needed to calm down.

Gluttony’s eyes trained on me for a tad too long before sliding over to Pride, a small smirk lifting the corner of his mouth.

“It’s not my first,” Pride argued, though two spots of pink appeared high on his cheekbones.

“First reanimation in a century or so though, eh?” Greed leaned forward, his broad shoulders filling out the finely tailored blazer, emphasizing his commanding presence.

His thick, dark hair was styled in a slightly tousled, deliberate mess, appearing effortlessly disheveled yet undeniably expensive, with strands falling casually into place.

The sharp angles of his jawline and the glint of emerald in his eyes highlighted his calculating, scheming gaze.

He reached for a handful of grapes, his large fingers faintly stained with the remnants of fine wine, and carefully selected each one before popping them into his mouth with a small groan of appreciation.

The sound of his smacking lips irritated me, but I stayed silent.

My fingers dug into the leather armrests as I noted the faint gleam of gold at the corners of his lips, watching me with that sharp, assessing stare.

“What’s more, the girl is now working with Lust .” Envy added on, gaze flicking between Pride and I.

Don’t clutch the armrest anymore. Act naturally.

“Really?” I drawled, trying to appear uninterested.

“Haven’t gotten into that little succubus who works there?” Gluttony asked me, sucking on his fingers. “I sent her your way as a peace offering.” His head tilted to the side, one eyebrow lifting in confusion.

I had nothing to say. No smart comeback, or even an attempt at a denial.

And I should have. I should have joked back that I hadn’t tasted her yet, but would, or that I’d already had, several times.

Something was wrong with me. Sweat broke out on my back, and in a moment I suddenly had the undivided attention of all of my brothers.

Because it wasn’t like me, was it? I was Lust. In any other circumstance, I’d have jumped at the chance to be with another supernatural being who I didn’t have to worry about accidentally killing her mid-coitus.

But I hadn’t.

Because of the stupid, stray witch.

“So, Lust, what has been happening with you?” Envy asked wryly.

I’d punch Envy right in his stupid, smug little face. I’d break his nose and–

“Lust.” The reprimand from Gluttony was one word, but it sent a shudder down my spine.

“I–” My throat closed up, as though Gluttony had his cold, dead hands around my neck. But he didn’t. They all just sat there, waiting.

Deflect. Detract.

“Why did you reanimate her anyway?” I asked, inwardly euphoric it came out somewhat normally.

Every head swung to look at Pride, who blanched.

The urge to pound my fist in the air was strong, but I stuffed it down.

“Er, I...seemed like a good time to try, with Hades away...” He pulled at the collar of his shirt.

Gluttony’s lips thinned. “Conducting rare magick when your Master isn’t at home should you fuck it up isn’t very you.”

“Oooh, he’s got you there.” Greed grinned.

Pride’s face twisted. “I just...I just...”

Gluttony leaned forward in his chair, a silent order for Green and Envy to shut the fuck up. Even Sloth glanced up from his book, eyes darting up to Pride with interest.

“What is it?” Gluttony asked patiently.

Silence settled over us like a thick layer of fog.

“I just...couldn’t let her become like all the other wraiths.

It felt wrong.” Pride glanced up, face carved from stone as though waiting for all of us to laugh in his face.

Which was a likely possibility, any other time.

We enjoyed taking the piss out of each other as often as we could, but there was something about the way Gluttony sat leaning on one side, shoulders and arms oddly tense in his leather armchair.

“Pride, don’t–” G began.

“I think she’s my mate.” Pride burst out.

We all stiffened in unison around the room, joining Gluttony as a complete circle of stony sins.

Gluttony stood, anger and disappointment on his face.

“Oh shit–” Greed launched out from his seat, pushing Envy to the side. Both of them nearly tripped on their faces in their efforts to get out of the way as fast as possible.

Sloth squeaked in protest, hands clenched around his precious book. The cup of tea clattered to the group, its dark liquid soaking into the rug below. “My tea!”

If I thought Gluttony was pissed before, his expression became downright thunderous at the dismayed look on Sloth’s face. He glared at Greed.

“Sorry! Here, let me!” Envy rushed to clean up the mess, Greed not bothering and hopping behind the couch, keeping something large between him and Gluttony. Everyone was so caught up in a pissed-off Gluttony that they missed Pride skedaddling out the door.

“Guys. Guys. ” I waved my hands in the air, trying to gain everyone’s attention.

As one they all turned in time to see the French doors slam shut.

Gluttony growled and a pane of glass broke.

The sound of a book slamming shut made me flinch. Sloth stood and sighed dramatically. “Now you’ve made him pissy. Out.”

He made a shooing motion at us, as though we were annoying sycophants who had tired out their master, and not all Sins in our own standing!”

“We’ll just–” Greed began.

“See ourselves out!” Envy finished.

Greed and Envy couldn’t leave fast enough, yanking open the doors and fleeing down the hallway. Unfortunately, this left all the focus on me.

I cleared my throat. It sounded unnaturally loud in the sudden silence left behind.

“Sloth, what books have you been–”

“Not going to work today,” Sloth cut me off rudely, crossing his arms over his chest.

Fine, if he wanted to play dirty, so could I. “So I guess G’s still pretty mad about Clio–”

“OUT!” Gluttony roared, every piece of glass in the house breaking. Sloth shot me a terrified expression, and I immediately felt bad. I’d meant to keep Gluttony in a pissy mood for Sloth to deal with, not make him so angry he was terrified.

“I–”

SMACK.

Gluttony hit me so hard across the head I flew through the French doors, down the hall, and my back hit the wall went through that as well. I stopped up against the original stone wall behind the facade, coughing up bits of plaster and probably asbestos.

I blinked, stunned, only for Greed and Envy’s faces to hover over me. Without a word from either, they each stuck a hand out. Groaning, I reached for both and they pulled me out of the wall.

“Always knew you were a masochist,” Greed grumbled.

Envy rolled his eyes. “You’re an idiot, Lust. He’s going to hold a grudge against you for a while.”

I winced, remembering the last time Gluttony had held a grudge against me. I couldn’t remember exactly what it had been about, but somehow it involved the beginning of prohibition.

Not that I’d take credit for that.

“Pride was uncomfortable. I was trying to deflect blame. He never gets as mad at me as he does you two and Pride. I’ll be fine.” I tried to brush the dust off me, and stand as though my entire body didn’t feel like it had gotten hit by a semi.

Or a fucking wall.

“You don’t have to do that. We aren’t kids anymore,” Envy insisted, but his voice softened toward the end.

Heat rushed up the side of my neck.

“I...I’m doing what I’m supposed to.” My shoulders straightened.

I was the oldest after Gluttony, so I felt it was my duty to look after the others.

Gluttony was wonderful at watching out for us most of the time, but he could also be as stubborn as a bull, quick to judgement and anger once he got a particular thought in his head.

`“You know in a few days his anger will fizzle out. I will return then and sort it out, and everything will be fine. You’ll see.”

`Greed nodded eagerly, wanting to believe everything was fine. Envy was a bit more skeptical, but I’d always thought he was the more pragmatic out of the two of them. What was the true difference between Greed and Envy anyway?

I bid them goodbye, and headed to ‘work.’