Ivan looked focused as he finished the rest of the work for the day, it was already a few minutes past five, and he did not want Vera all alone in the house when it was dark.Putting some files away, Ivan picked up his jacket and key and headed for the door.The parking lot was almost empty, as the majority of his staff had already retired for the day.He stopped in his tracks as he felt eyes on him, turning to look around, he found no one in sight.Taking a brief look at the back seat of his car, he opened it, stepping inside, and calming himself down.Now he understood what Vera meant when she said she felt like she was being watched or followed.Someone was up to something, and he was going to get to the bottom of it all, he thought as he zoomed off.The evening traffic was hectic as people struggled to get back home, the hustle, and bustle of the surrounding streets made him feel less aware of the eyes that were following him.On second thoughts, Ivan stopped at a pizza place for
Ares walked back out to join them, something was oddly fishy about their attitude, and he knew his instincts never lied to him.Which was why he had insisted on going with them, Sara looked a little too happy for this to just be a little girl’s day out.Considering her recent moods and behavior, it was almost impossible.“Okay, ladies, I got it. Shall we?” He asked, gesturing towards the door.Both women exchanged knowing looks before turning to the door and walking out.Ares tried to read Anna's aura but could not, she had built a strong protective wall around her, and it was impossible for him to read her.Sara, on the other hand, had a clear aura, he could not read anything from it, and it was frustrating as he did not know whether she did that purposely or it was just how she was.The walk to the car was quiet, as neither of the women uttered a word, and I just followed behind.“So, what exactly were you girls planning today?” Ares asked, just to be certain he was not just jumping
Ivan stalked back into the house after a while, his hands looking bloody, walking in and heading straight for the kitchen.Running his bloodied fingers under the water, he rinsed off quietly. He had broken his promise of not taking the god form until he told Vera. But he could not help it, that needed to be dealt with, and he did just that.Slipping the ring back onto his fingers, he took back his human form.Tearing the shirt off his body, he threw the bloody material into the bin.On second thoughts, he took it out, shuffling through the bin and putting it at the very bottom.And fishing for bleach, he scrubbed at the sink to get rid of the smell of blood, Vera was very observant and would probably notice if he left things carelessly.He walked back upstairs after staring at his work and nodding his head in satisfaction.Vera was still curled up on the bed in a deep sleep, her hands around herself and one left outside the duvet.Ivan scooted her properly on the bed, throwing the co
Sara stood still in his embrace, he felt very familiar, everything about him did, his smell, his touch, and even his voice.When he finally let go of her, she did not say a word, she just stared at him intensely and took her seat beside him.“We have been looking for you for so long, you have no idea.” He said, gazing at her.“We?” Sara asked, her eyes lighting up.“Yes,” Hermes answered. “Me, Ivan, and the entire sect of the old gods.” “You all have been looking for me?” Sara asked again to be certain she heard right, all this while she had thought she had no people or family, the whole time she had a whole one looking everywhere for her.“I am glad we finally found you,” Hermes said with a smile.“I am glad you did,” Sara said, getting emotional.“I told Ivan about you, he was so happy and wanted to come too, but I did not know. If that was okay seeing as it was our first time meeting.” Hermes said. “Oh,” Sara exclaimed.“Yeah, so I asked her to let me come first, and maybe some o
Vera slowly opened her eyes to meet a dimly lit room, she tried to move but realized she was tied to a chair and, her back and her legs both fastened to the chair.She sat still and surveyed her environment, squinting her eyes to adjust to the darkness.She hoped her plans with the alarm had worked, so Ivan would get her out of here.Heavy footsteps sounded outside the door, and she traced herself to whatever.The same men from earlier walked in, but this time they were not alone. Vera gasped at whom she saw behind them.“Artemis?” She called out in surprise “This can't be” Vera said, laughing.“It is being Vera,” Artemis said, walking to stand in front of Vera and crouching down to her level, ok the seat.“Is this some kind of joke?” Vera asked surprised.“No Vera, I wish it was, but it is not,” Artemis said in a strict tone.“Does Ivan know what you are up to?” Vera asked her.“I won't tell if you don't tell,” Artemis said, cocking her head to one side and staring up at her.“He is
“We need you back, Ares”“This company needs you back”“The sect needs you back”“Get your shit together before it is too late” Everything Athena just said resounded in his mind as he paced the floor of his office.Ares thought about all that Athena said before she left, he could make sense and meaning out of it. He had slowly let himself go because of the whole Eve and Sara issue.Picking up his keys, he dashed out of the door, he needed to clear his head and get his shit straight like Athena had advised.He glanced at his watch as he waited for the elevator to stop, contemplating if he should get some whiskey.“It's a little too early for whiskey.” He whispered to himself as he walked out of the building.Ares decided that coffee was a better option than whiskey since it was still too early in the day.Ares sighed as he sat in his car, shaking his head to clear off his thoughts as he drove away.The ride to the café was a short one, which Ares was grateful for, and he was there in
“No!” Ivan yelled when he saw the dirty booth marks on the clean wooden floor.They were not Vera's, they were big and looked like they belonged to men about their size.“It's still a little wet.” Hermes pointed out, bending to inspect the marks properly.“They were here not too long ago, and they took Vera with them.” Ivan guessed.“Let's check outside the house,” Hermit suggested.“Okay,” Ivan said, following him. “How did they get in here,” Ivan mumbled to himself.“We will never know,” Hermes said, leading the way out of the house," only one way to find out.” “There are tire marks here,” Ivan said, squatting down to get a better look.“ Looks like it belongs to a van,” Hermes said, staring at the tire marks.“Where do we begin the search?” Hermit asked, “Should I call for backup?” He asked again.“No, not yet.” Ivan said, getting up and dusting himself, “Keep them on alert, though, we might need some backup.” He said walking to inspect other parts of the house.“We should involve
“Sara,” Anna said looking at her with tear-filled eyes, “you don't understand, Ares trusted me, with almost everything.” “I know that, Anna,” Sara said, wiping the tears that threatened to fall from the corners of her eyes.“We had a plan and everything but I… I just could not watch him keep you away from your people.” She continued, “I had to choose between doing what was right for you and keeping my loyalty to Ares.” “Look at me, Anna,” Sara said, shaking her shoulders gently and urging her to look. “You did the right thing, and it is not your fault if Ares does not see that, okay.” “Okay,” Anna said, nodding, and wiping at her face, trying to gather herself before they walked in.“Ready?” Sara asked. “Ready” Anna answered, exhaling long and loud.Sara knew he was in, she expected him, his car was parked carelessly outside and one of his headlights was still on, it was daytime so she wondered why he had it on in the first place.Ares raised his head when he heard the door open,