VI - part two

I counted down the seconds it took for Chante to simple slam the necklace into my face. Five-Mississippi. Six-Mississippi. Seven-Mississippi...

It took him longer than expected. I'd heard the voice interrupting us, of course, but at this point I couldn't be entirely sure it was real, and I sure as hell wasn't going to move my head to check. I doubted he could be of help anyway.

Nine-Mississippi. Ten-Mississi-

"Aidoneus." Chante's smooth voice cut through the space, and his fingers tightened more painfully around my neck. I felt his frame tense against my spine. "Kind of you to join us, but you're a tad bit late, I'm afraid. Finley here and I are well past the point of talking."

There was a tenseness in the air that hadn't been there before, and this time I was sure I wasn't imagining it: the space was actually getting darker behind my closed eyelids. I risked a quick peek and promptly wished I hadn't – shadows creeping everywhere but where Chante and I stood.

As if hypnotizing people hadn't been enough. I supposed I could add 'shadow manipulation' to the list of things to ask Ian about when – if – we ever got to talk about this. One thing was for sure: I never wanted to see his father ever again.

At least the intruder did not sound too impressed yet.

"I noticed", he responded dryly to Chante's earlier words over the sound of footsteps coming our way. "I would have been later still had I not been tipped off by a lovely redhead. One of Dio's women, I believe. I don't think she likes you very much."

There had been a spark of recognition even before he'd said those words, but at the mention of a redhead I perked up, my eyes opening before I had a chance to think about it.

All Cal had told Aides was that I was at the harbor, but if he'd known who I was with, it wouldn't have taken a rocket scientist to figure out where exactly. The Picard Cruises logo was literally right there on the front of the building.

And the frame hidden within the darkness sure looked tall enough to be him.

Which meant...

Ian.

"Chante", I squealed from beneath the man's still clamped fingers, fairly certain I was going to have a bruise or two. This time I risked looking up. "Ian. This afternoon, remember. He said—"

My airflow was cut off momentarily again, but he met my gaze with a pondering expression, his head cocking to the side in contemplation. Miraculously, he unfolded his fingers. Rather than step in front and risk making contact with the necklace, I slumped down, crawling away on hands and feet through the blood. Only when I was at the other side of the table did it dawn on me what I'd just waded through.

"Oh God..."

I'd planned to make a run for the door, but now I was at risk of retching again, my head angled upwards just to avoid the sight of my fingers. The guy was right in my path. He stood leaning against the doorframe with a sort of casualness that had been nowhere in sight this afternoon.

The shadows pulled away from him to reveal his face, and when he looked down on me, I felt that same uncomfortable sensation again.

Control. Power.

Death.

"Stay", Chante commanded at the same time Aides beckoned for me to move his way.

"Go on, Finley", he spoke in tone that almost seemed to dare me. "Step out. Run. You don't want to be in here for this next part anyway."

The gunshots outside had stopped, but there were still voices, and their accent was harsh enough that I knew they couldn't belong to Ian or any of their guards. I thought I recognized the sound of Gabriel – one of Chante's men – groaning, though. It sounded pained.

"I don't..."

My head moved from left to right, my mind still reeling from the air Chante had stolen from me. I resisted the urge to press my bloody fingers to the bruise in my neck.

I wasn't going to let the chance to get out slip, but I needed a moment to come back to my senses – get my proverbial marbles in other, before I did something rash.

"Where is he?" I asked as I scrambled to my feet. "Did you harm him?"

I hadn't meant for the words to come out accusatory, but they did all the same, and now that they'd left my lips I didn't feel like taking them back. Aides' threat from this afternoon had left an impression. I highly doubted he would just let me collect Ian and walk us both out of here.

"Who, hon hon baguette?" The laugh that came from the male's lips was nothing short of sardonic, and some of this afternoon's venom found its way back to his expression. I couldn't believe Cals nickname for Ian had stuck with him. "No worries. Your piece of a shit boyfriend, whatever you call him, is fine. He's tied up outside."

He nudged his head towards the warehouse, and as if on cue, the shadows moved aside. I followed his gaze to find a small group of men joking around and tying up Ian and his guards. My cheeks heated at the sight of my oh-so-confident fiancé thrashing around.

It was clear who had won, here.

"If you know what's good for you", Chante drew Aides' attention towards him with a growl, "you'll untie my son right now, and bring him here. The girl is staying. Don't forget that I've got this."

He sneered as he held the chain up high, his fingers still protected by the piece of cloth he held it by. It took my all not to look at that stupid stone again. Damn it, but I was envious that he still held it.

"You don't have shit, old man. Let go of it while you still can. I am done playing this game."

Aides took a step forward, and Chante responded by taking a step back, his blue eyes shifting to me for a moment. "You are too late, Aidoneus", he continued in a tone that contrasted starkly with the cowardly movement. "She doesn't understand it, but I saw how she reacted to it. It is hers now. You cannot take it."

Aides rose one perfectly arched eyebrow, and I completely shocked myself by pushing myself to my feet.

I couldn't let go of my belief that Chante was right.

If I had felt even the tiniest bit reasonable at the moment, I would've wondered if it was simply the voodoo shit making me do things again, but deep inside I knew it wasn't, and I wasn't going to fight it either way, tiredness and a sort of surrender fueling my steps.

I was about fucking done. The necklace was the problem? Then I would take it and me out of the equation all together.

I grasped.

The sensation was something I never would be able to put into words. There was a burning just like I'd expected, but then there was something else, and that something was a balm to my very soul. I experienced the power as if it was truly mine to hold. It was tranquility and freedom and desperation all at once. It was a sense of nothingness that ran so deep I felt like I was falling within myself. It was pain turned tangible, restricted to a point somewhere deep inside my chest.

And then it was all gone again.

And I felt... complete.

"Am I—?"

I'd wanted to ask if I was dead, but the answer was right before my eyes, my hands still looking like fully functioning limbs. Not a single blister or black spot. Just gold and black shining against the tan of my skin.

It felt good.

"Gamóto", Aides cursed somewhere at my side, but Chante laughed over it, the sound nothing short of manic.

"See?" Ian's father's words rang in my ears like a gong. "Like I said, Aidoneus. You are too late. The necklace is hers, and I have already made her mine in mind. Run along, boy."

He beckoned for me to step to his side, but I didn't move – couldn't, when all I wanted to do was curl up with my necklace and thank it for its choice. I couldn't believe it hadn't killed me. Seconds ago I'd felt scared shitless, but now I couldn't have been content had I bagged the moon and hung it above my bed to make love to myself beneath it all night long.

It had chosen me. It loved me.

And I loved it right back.

"Oh, please. Look at her. She is losing her fucking mind is what she is." Aides' sardonic voice got lost in my own humming, a sort of drunkenness taking over my body. "Need I remind you about the accords? You know just as well as I do that human minds have a limit. Let me take her with me while there's still a chance to undo at least part of the damage you have done."

Now there was a growl, and that reminded me of the sound I'd heard when Agnese had crumpled into a bloody pile, my heartbeat picking up in speed again. I didn't like those words. Now that he'd mentioned it, there was a faint ringing in my ears. Was that really worrisome?

"You and I both know she doesn't need to live, Aidoneus. I just need to be the one to kill her."

The necklace slipped from my fingers again, dropping into the blood at my feet. A panicked squeal escaped my lips. My view of the room became a horizontal one.

I hadn't even noticed it was Chante that was on me again until he put all his weight onto my body, his bloodied fingers struggling to get a hold of my neck. Aides snarled out loud, and Chante roared right back, both – if not all three of us – loosing their shit.

I couldn't even pretend it was for a trinket anymore. We were fighting for life and death here. I couldn't lose.

A snarl sounded close to my ear. "Kill the girl, and you will be next."

I couldn't see past the blur, but I felt Aides' anger, and somehow that was enough for my fight or flight instinct to kick back in. I tried to slam my knee into Chante's side, toppling him at least somewhat to the side, but the man was stronger. I was just being tugged with him. The weight of the two men was enough that my lungs felt deflated.

"Let. Me. Go! Please..." My screech turned into more of a sputter, the air that left my body no longer being replaced. I could still feel the draw of the necklace that lay to the side, but the effect was less strong, as if completing my bond with it had been enough to ease the constant worry inside my chest. I felt more clearheaded than I'd had since the beginning of this drama.

"Stop it", Chante sneered in a tone that didn't sound even remotely human, his eyes positively ablaze as they somehow found mine. His power didn't work this time, though. "Stop fighting me, Finley. Be a good bitch and die already."

He managed to maintain his grip on my body a moment longer, but something about the air around us was changing again, the darkness closing until it was just the three of us in a pit of black.

"Fuck the accords. Fuck it." Aides murmured something beneath his breath, and then the shadows took tangible form, their whisps curling around Chante's arms and lifting the weight from my chest and neck. The man screamed as if the darkness burned him.

It was the last thing I heard before the tentacles reached me and my sight was taken from me completely.