Page 28 of When Death Called Life Home (When Deities Awaken #1)

Chapter 28

Hold Tight

ASCIAN

A lora didn’t join Ascian and Maelo in the kitchen for dinner, too focused on practising the spinning kick Tallulah tasked her with first. Ascian shook his head when Maelo raised her eyebrow in question. He didn’t miss the look of disappointment on Emilia’s face, either.

“She’s practising a kick,” he explained. This only raised Maelo’s brows higher. Ascian sighed, glancing back towards the kitchen exit. “You don’t remember your first separation from your guardian?”

Instantly, Maelo screwed her face up and gripped her mug tighter. “I’m pretty sure I almost took my trainer’s head off.”

“Exactly,” Ascian muttered. “And Alora’s been away from Elysia for three years.”

Beside Maelo, Emilia cleared her throat, drawing Ascian’s attention. “What happens the first time you’re separated from your guardian?”

Maelo hushed her, patting her hands where they rested on the bench. Ascian, however, offered her a tense smile and answered, “It’s like having a part of you pulled away and hidden. You know it’s there, you can still feel it, but you can’t see or touch it. You can’t call it forward in your mind and have it slot back into place and complete your mind again.”

“You’d be put in an insane asylum if you were on Earth,” Maelo added quietly. Ascian didn’t miss her physical retreating away from Emilia.

Emilia frowned, her doe-like eyes changing towards that of a siren’s. “Why are they separated, then?”

“Her guardian is young, inexperienced in certain areas, and currently extremely protective. Alora being surrounded by hostility would likely result in a lot of deaths if her guardian remained with her through this process.” Ascian grabbed a couple plates and served up freshly roasted meat with vegetables and fresh cut greens. Succulent venison filled his nostrils, his stomach grumbling at the smell.

A small bang sounded behind him then Emilia said, “Then perhaps a lot of death is required.”

When Ascian turned he found Emilia’s back disappearing out the door and back towards their bedrooms. His gaze slid to Maelo. She raised her hands and shook her head in an ‘ I don’t know what to do about it ’ way.

“How’s your little pet doing?” He muttered instead, turning back to his task.

Maelo’s chair squealed as she pushed it back and her feet landed lightly on the ground. Her footsteps sounded around the island bench until they stopped by his left side. “She’s not human, As.”

He raised a brow but didn’t look at her. “No?”

It felt her stare shift into a glare right before she smacked his arm. “Not taking into account the fact she fell through a portal crack , I have a fucking rune seared into my shoulder. A rune. Seared into my shoulder. No, she’s not fucking human.”

Ascian paused, his hands freezing with a spoonful of the vegetables over his and Alora’s plates. He lifted his eyes to meet Maelo’s. “When did that happen? ”

“A couple nights ago,” she answered quietly. “While I was-.”

“Stop right there. I don’t need details.” Ascian shuddered. He preferred not to think about his sister's bedroom habits.

Maelo rolled her eyes. “She’s not an Elysian, either, As. There’s only two others she could be, and they’re meant to be gone.”

A muscle in Ascian’s jaw feathered. “The Elders have apparently lied to us about a lot of things, Maelo. It’s not surprising they’d lie about the other species, too.”

“Wouldn’t we have seen signs of them, though?”

“Not if they were sent into hiding.” Ascian finished plating up his and Alora’s food and grabbed both plates. He turned to his sister, pursing his lips. “I’m guessing you suspect which one she is.”

“The Primals weren’t exactly known for burning runes into other people's skins,” she retorted.

Ascian nodded towards her shoulders. “Show me.”

Maelo pulled her shirt down from her shoulder and twisted to show him the mark. Flowing lines and curves created a small scythe in her skin. The edges were red and the design itself looked like a raised scar. Ascian stepped closer, studying the scythe and then the more minute, sharper lines of what appeared to be a sun beneath the scythe's curved blade.

“You have two,” he commented.

Maelo spun to face him, confusion lighting her face. “Two?”

“A scythe and a sun. Maybe see Zillah in the library about any witch rune books.”

Maelo nodded, dazed almost. “You don’t think I need to worry?”

Ascian sighed heavily, earning a look from his sister. “If you were doing the thing I think you were doing when it happened? No. Witches were powerful and could do great harm when they tried, but they were more known as advisories. Their runes, at least the ones documented before they started exploring a more violent magic, offered insights to the future.”

Maelo visibly relaxed, nodding at the comfort he brought her with his words. She smiled in amusement, “You ever thought about a scholar position?”

Ascian shrugged. “Not before Alora returned, but we need to survive the Elders before we can even think about that.”

Maelo watched him for a moment, her gaze tracking over his face. She used to do it when they were kids. Even more so after he first mentioned a little blonde girl with bright blue eyes. He never could figure out what she searched for.

“You should take that food up before it gets cold,” she hummed.

Ascian shook his head in exasperation and followed the same path Emilia had taken. Periodic thumps sounded from behind his and Alora’s door, a grunt sounding before and after each set. He turned his back to the door and used his elbow to push the handle down and open it.

Alora’s back was to him, sweat soaking through the back of her shirt, making it stick to her skin. Ascian set the plates on top of the dresser as she crouched to throw herself into the spinning kick, again. He closed the door softly and moved to a position close enough to touch her if he wanted to. Then, as she spun, her foot stretched out in a quivering arc, Ascian grabbed her ankle and pulled her to his chest. Alora blinked up at him, dazed looking. He wouldn’t be surprised if she were dizzy from spinning so much.

“Hello, amorsa,” he purred, leaning down and brushing his lips against the top of her neck.

Alora melted against him. “Hello, Commander. ”

Ascian ignored the shiver that raced up his spine and created a tightness in his pants. She needed sustenance, and not that kind. “I brought you food.”

A smile breezed onto her lips but she made no move to step away from him.

Ascian chuckled. “Come on, you need to eat.” He reluctantly pulled himself away from her and directed her towards the plates of food.

Alora heaved a dramatic breath but grabbed one of the plates and joined him on the bed to eat. Ascian picked at his food while Alora devoured hers. He watched her with hooded eyes, his gaze dropping to her lips as she bit into a piece of the cooling venison.

“You also need to eat,” Alora said, breaking Ascian from his trance. “And I mean food, not me.”

Ascian snorted. “It’s you that keeps me living, amorsa, not nutritious food.”

“And you can have me,” she hummed, flicking those damn sultry eyes towards him. “Once you’ve also eaten.”

Ascian narrowed his eyes at her, testing her resolve. She could break. He could get her, too, but that’d be a little hypocritical to make her eat and him not. He tore his attention from her and started eating .

“Can I ask you a question about Emilia?”

“Sure.” Alora shrugged. “I can’t be certain I’ll be able to answer it, though.”

“She said you two were sisters,” Ascian started. “Obviously you were adopted into the family, but was she born from them?”

Alora paused, her nose scrunching like it did when she didn’t like the topic. “No.”

“No … as in you don’t know? Or, no, as in, she wasn’t born to them?”

“She’s not their biological daughter.”

Ascian frowned deeply, a deep weight settling on his chest. “You seem uncomfortable talking about it. Were they mean to you?”

Alora finished the last bit of food that was on her plate and stood to set it on top of the dresser, again. When she turned to face him, a bitter darkness coated her body. “Not exactly.” She took a moment to, what Ascian assumed, collect herself before continuing. “Emilia’s a year younger than me, but when I was found, she immediately became this protective barrier between myself and the Lexington’s biological son. They’re kind people, for the most part. They provided us with everything we ever needed.”

She paused and her hand slid over the corset Ascian saw peeking through her movement strewn shirt. Ascian stood, placing his empty plate atop hers, and then he slowly undone her top and pulled it off her. She stared at him, silver lining her eyes. He wished he could collect them. Take her sadness from her and hide it so she never went through it again.

“But you weren’t their child.”

Alora shook her head, chin lifting as she sucked in a breath. Ascian moved behind her, fingers deftly working the corset lacing loose. He pressed kisses to her shoulders, then to down her back as more and more of her skin was exposed.

“I thought she was protective because of the simple fact they were using us to gain more wealth. I didn’t realise it wasn’t them she was protecting me from, but rather their son and his night time explorations.” Alora heaved a breath as Ascian pulled the corset from her torso and folded it neatly to slide into a drawer of the dressers. His arms slid around her waist, hands splayed over her soft skin. She smelled of pollen, ripened fruit, and sun showers. Her sweat, an ever growing addiction.

“He abused her?” Ascian didn’t care to hide the anger in his voice.

Alora nodded against his chest. “I’ve never gotten confirmation, but I know he did. A woman like her doesn’t hesitate unless she’s experienced something to make her.”

Ascian nuzzled her neck gently. “You hesitated.”

She had, when he found her again, staring at the serpent. She’d hesitated at having his fingers brush the skin of her jaw. He lifted his hand to it now, tilting her head up and towards his face.

“I’ve heard of others’ abuse, it makes one wary,” she replied. Alora took in a long breath as Ascian trailed his fingers over her neck and then caged it within them. Her entire face relaxed, the muscles throughout her body melting against him.

“You don’t seem wary now,” Ascian whispered against her ear, feeling the shiver run through her body.

“You’ve proven yourself safe.”

“Oh?” He hummed, his other hand sliding beneath the waistband of her pants and brushing the top of her pelvis. Her breathing quickened slightly, abdominal muscles tightening. “Even when you know I want nothing more than to feast on you?”

Alora groaned quietly. “Especially then.”

He circled her clit with his fingertips slowly, the tightness in his pants increasing to a painful level as her breaths quickened more and she arced herself into him. Her arms reached back, hands burying themselves into his hair.

Ascian dragged his teeth up the edge of Alora’s ear, nipping it gently. “Turn around.”

Her hands slipped from his hair long enough for him to spin her and lift her into his arms. He moved them to the bathroom, Alora’s face buried in his neck. It only took a couple minutes for him to turn on the shower and undress Alora while the water heated. The soul of the dead powering all their amenities.

Ascian checked the water temperature before sending Alora under the spray of it, and then undressing himself. He took his time, letting Alora enjoy it alone. Apparently too long, though.

“Are you going to join me?”

Ascian looked up from shoving their clothes into a washing basket and found her leaning against the shower opening. Her entire body glistened from the water, her short, blonde hair sticking to the tops of her shoulders. Her perky breasts on full show with hardened nipples. A drop of water raced down her sternum and over her soft belly, disappearing into the delicious dip between her legs.

Movement up her body brought his attention to her fingers as she hooked them towards herself in a, ‘come here’ motion. Who was Ascian to rebel? His feet took him to her, her touch on his chest pulling him closer to her until he pinned her against the wall of the shower. His hand slipped between her thighs again and he groaned at the wetness he found when he slipped a finger inside her.

“No,” Alora breathed. “I want your cock.”

Ascian’s hardness twitched at the crude word leaving her perfect lips. Death below, he’d finish before he even started if she wasn’t careful.

“Anything for you, amorsa,” he whispered back. Ascian gripped her thighs instead, lifting her until his tip pressed into her pussy. Alora’s nails dug into his shoulders, her forehead pressed to his as he slowly lowered her onto himself. He watched the tiny changes of her features with each inch that filled her. The small breath as their hips connected and she clenched around him.

“Move,” she commanded and he complied. A servant to her any whim. He lifted her as he drew himself away, then let her fall back onto him as he shifted his hips forward again. That luscious mouth of hers remaining in a small ‘o’ as quiet moans filled the bathroom. “Faster.”

“Hold tight to me,” Ascian moaned back. He quickened their pace, feeling the Alora rotate her hips just so as they collided and a pulse around his cock threatened to destroy his control. Alora’s hands moved down his back, nails leaving a pleasurable burning sensation in their wake. It matched the burn he ignored in his thighs.

“I’m so close,” Alora moaned against his neck. “Ascian!”

She clenched around him, arching into his body and he lost it. His thrusts turned erratic, one hand leaving her thigh to brace against the wall behind her. His climax hit and he felt her tighten around him again. Her legs clamped tighter around his torso, her nails breaking his skin as she moaned his name.

Ascian slowed to a stop, resting with his own face buried against her neck in return, letting the warm water rush over them while their high ebbed into a tranquillity he hadn’t experienced in years. He could fall asleep there, in the bathroom beneath the shower spray, as long as Alora and him were one.

He didn’t need anything else but her in this life.