me to get started...waiting...waiting...fine. But the offer will forever stand.”
“Listen. I’ve been meaning to talk to you but time got away from me.” Danika was a petite blonde whose nickname confused Katarina. The All-seeing Eye. “I see into the future and what I’ve seen...well, if you don’t step up, it’s not pretty, Katarina. Please help him. Help us all.”
What did Danika mean, she saw into the future? Was she psychic? Well. That explained the name, didn’t it?
Katarina managed to escape the group without making any promises.
That night, Baden placed his pallet right next to the bed, so close she could touch him with her toes if she stretched out her leg. She still didn’t care what he did...but for some strange reason, she took comfort from his nearness.
The next morning, she stumbled upon a make-out session between Danika and Reyes, the warrior possessed by Pain. Knives were involved, and it made Katarina gasp with horror. She raced away before the two realized they had an audience, trying to wipe the memory from her mind. But...
The two had looked so happy.
As the rest of the week ticked by, Katarina witnessed several other make-out sessions. One couple couldn’t wait to get to their bedroom before ripping at each other’s clothes. Another couple chased each other through the halls, laughing. Through it all, a startling fact became very clear. These people might be vicious and bloodthirsty, but they loved each other. Deeply. Madly. Their devotion was palpable.
And, in the quiet darkness of Baden’s bedroom that night—with the redhead asleep on the other side of the mattress, the pallet forgotten—Katarina could no longer deny the truth: that devotion had lured her out of isolation. These people kept each other going. They had troubles, but they never gave up. Bearing witness to their bravery and determination to live life to the fullest had eased something inside her.
When morning sunlight streamed into the bedroom, she was once again alone. Thirsty for the first time in forever, she padded to the kitchen. As she poured herself a glass of orange juice, Baden crossed the threshold. He noticed her right away, as if his gaze was drawn to her, and closed in on her.
“I can’t get you out of my mind, and it’s twisting up my insides,” he said, his voice a mix of anger and concern. “I’m worried about you. One minute I want to shake you, the next I want to...hold you.”
He wants to hold me?
“Welcome to a non-relationship,” Gideon said as he entered the kitchen. The keeper of Lies. “Please tell me you drank all the—”
Baden pointed to the hall.
“So cool.” The warrior with blue hair and multiple piercings backed out of view.
“You’ve disconnected from life,” Baden continued. “I understand why, but now you need a reason to connect again.”
She turned away from him. Even though he was right. She had disconnected, and this wasn’t the first time.
After her mom died, she’d disconnected from the more rambunctious aspects of her personality. The girl who loved to laugh had soon become the somber girl who focused on her work with her father. Then she’d lost her father, then Peter—new reasons to throw herself into her work. Then she’d lost her work...her pets. Her only source of unconditional love.
Katarina slammed the juice on the counter. The glass shattered, liquid spilling everywhere. She rushed from the kitchen and into the safety of Baden’s room, where she climbed into bed and buried herself under the covers.
A few seconds later, Baden stretched out beside her. Because he wanted to hold her?
He combed his fingers through her hair, making her gasp—tremble. Purposeful contact? “I know words can’t make this better for you, nothing can, but I am sorry for your loss.”
Guilt clogged her throat. Wasn’t the blame partly hers? She could have told Baden the truth their first night together. Maybe he would have helped her rescue the dogs, maybe not, but she had denied him the chance, allowing fear to lead her.
“I know what you’re doing,” she croaked. What was he doing? “Stop.”
He continued combing her hair. “I’m familiar with the pain of saying goodbye to someone you love. There were more of us created, you know. More immortal warriors meant to guard Zeus. Before the box, we lost eight brothers and six sisters during battle, and I still bear the scars.” He expelled a forced breath. “After I died, my thoughts free of the demon for the first time in hundreds of years, I realized just how thoroughly I