~Kezziah
His words didn’t calm me, but I lowered my guard.
Thought relaxes too, noticing my aggression toward him hinder. His uncanny relation to Time is unnerving. It’s as if I’m looking at the immortal himself, aside from those shifting silver eyes and slightly different features. They must be close to twins. If so, I wonder why Thought would break his bond with his brother to help me.
He can see I’m clearly skeptical. I’ve learnt never to trust immortals. Time taught me that well. They only ever do things for their own gain, not out of the kindness of their heart. When you have all of eternity to live, you learn to care for yourself, I’m sure.
“Why are you telling me this?” I question, narrowing my eyes at him. I’m still pinned to the corner of the room, not wanting to put my full amount of trust in him yet.
Not until he does something for me.
“I can see you’re assuming my brother and I get along,” Thought says sourly, as if insinuating an allegiance with his brother left a bad taste in his mouth. “If that were the case, I wouldn’t be here right now. And I wouldn’t have tried to warn you earlier. I’ve been trying to help you.”
“Coming into my dreams and acting creepy isn’t a warning. How was I supposed to know an immortal was haunting my nightmares?” I question, folding my arms over my chest. I had dismissed that dream as pure imagination.
Thought sighs deeply. “Do you always give people this much of a hard time when they are trying to do you good?”
“Shouldn’t you know?” I mutter.
There’s a glint in his eyes, but it’s only for a fleeting moment. I can see him changing his approach, backing away from me to move around the living room. Watching him carefully, I don’t move. He hasn’t hurt me yet, but that doesn’t mean he won’t. I still haven’t decided if he is lying about how he feels about Time.
“Time has a lot of power, and he knows how to use it. However, like anyone in power, there is always a weakness. And as his brother, I know just how to exploit it,” Thought tells me, sitting down neatly on the couch. He nods to the one opposite it.
Dubiously, I approach the other couch, willing to listen as long as he is being truthful. Knowing Time’s weakness would be beneficial.
Thought’s smile is triumphant as I sit down.
“You may not think it, considering where Time has chosen to live, but he hates being alone. He likes to have someone with him at all times. The idea of him being alone scares him so much, that I’ve concluded he brands these innocent people as a way to force people into being connected to him,” Thought explains.
For a moment I doubted that cold, empty soul felt any kind of emotion, however, it somehow made sense. The way he played music at all times, as if quiet haunted him. It all made sense.
“So what do we do? How are we going to work that in our favour?” I question, still skeptical if there is anyway of dealing with Time.
A smile creeps onto Thought’s face.
“Well, we have to get him alone. Alone until some sense gets into him. Believe it or not, if someone can get through to him, he can be very regretful. We do this, he’ll surrender immediately. You’ll never have to deal with him again,” Thought says, laying out his plan in front of me.
I glance down at the brand that has been creeping down my arm. It’s not getting better, but worst. Thought notices notices where I’m looking, or maybe he can read my mind. HIs expression doesn’t shift.
“You can get Time to remove the branding. He can take it away as easy as he can put it there,” Thought explains.
“And the bond?”
A muscle in his jaw clicks. “That is a bit tricker. But if anyone were to figure out how to remove it, it’s Alden. I wouldn’t worry about that. I would be concerned about getting Time off your back first. He’s stubborn. He won’t give in unless he has a reason to, and that reason is something he’s only going to realise if we do this.”
“Does he not have a mate we can reason with or something? Someone he loves to get through to him?” I question. I’m not sure why he would mark me if he had a mate, but it’s worth a try.
“If only things were that easy,” Thought tells me.
If only. If only he had a mate, that would make everything easier. Maybe he wouldn’t be the way he is if he did have one. Maybe a mate would change him completely…They would be able to reason with them.
“Why do you want to help me so badly?” I ask him as he relaxes into the couch. “You don’t even know me.”
“It’s simple. I don’t like with my brother is doing. You might not think of me as a good person, but I promise you, I would do anything to stop my brother. What he endures, I endure. It’s been like that all of our lives. The rest of the immortals blame me for him, think I should stop him. This might quiet him down. At least for a little while,” he tells me.
“How are we going to pull this off without him being aware?” I ask. It seems everything I do Time is aware of before getting this ring. I can’t imagine him not figuring this out before we can success go through with it.
Thought brushes that off. “He’s occupied at the moment, and will be for some time. I would suggest you stay low and we reconvene later on.”
Breathing in deeply, I nod.
I’m worried about waiting too long and the bond between Time and I getting deeper, or the brand on my skin encompassing more of me. Regardless, I agree with Thought, and let him get on his way. I’m relieved once he leaves, promising he would be back when he knows it will be safer.
I went to bed that night worried beyond belief. I couldn’t get Thought and Time out of my head. Luckily I wasn’t haunted by any nightmares, and woke up the next morning feeling a little better about myself.
Alden didn’t return until the afternoon.
The moment he walked in, I was surprised at my inner excitement to see him, as if he had left for over a month. It was a relief to have him back. I didn’t have time to sit down and ask him what happened at the labs. I had to sit down and tell him about Thought and about his idea for Time.
He seemed confused for the entire explanation, but he seemed further convinced after I explained why Thought is so interested in helping.
“Maybe it will work,” Alden muses. “But he’s right. For now, you should lay low, and not get Time’s attention.”
“I know. I agree,” I tell him.
We spend the rest of the night watching television. Alden informed me that the labs had excelled the research for the cure over everything else. He seemed almost regretful. However, I’ll be able to sleep better at night knowing he has a better chance of survival now.
I was drifting in and out of sleep as we watch a movie when Alden roused me. “I think it’s time to go to bed.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I murmur, letting him lead me to bed.
As he leads me into my room, I feel oddly disappointed he didn’t take me into his room. I’m not sure why he would be ready for me to be in there yet, so I don’t complain. Instead, I clamber into bed, swallowing my disappointment. Alden doesn’t seem bothered at all. He kisses my forehead and wishes me goodnight before he leaves.
I lay there for a moment, considering my feelings. Should I just go into his room and join him in his bed? Or maybe he wouldn’t like that. But every part of me wants to spend the night with my mate. Just lying next to him at least.
So, with my plan in mind, I sneak out of my room, stealing my way into his. He doesn’t seem to hear my footsteps as I cross the room, looking for his bed in the darkness.
There is no word of protest as I pull back the covers and clamber into bed with him. He even reaches out, wrapping his arms around me and tugging me closer to his chest. Perfect.
After everything recently, at least one thing feels right.