1928

~Amolet

We don't have any other choice. I have to wrap my fingers around Cian's arm, deciding I'm not about to touch Sinful, and allow him to take me to whatever dark, cruel whole the Sin Wrath lives.

My apartment dissolves around, a flicker of darkness being all that I can see before my feet touch ground, and I'm officially back in the immortal realm...And not where I expected to be.

We aren't in a dark cave like I expected, but instead in a foreign looking forest, the trees that shroud the small dirt path we stand on like nothing I've seen before. They block most of the sunlight, but what does make it through the canopy dapples down over us, offering a small amount of warmth. Mingling amongst the trees, are a variety of wildflowers, each with colours that are vivid and bright in a way only seen in the immortal realm.

Twisting around, I notice the absence of two very irritating figures. "Where's Sinful and Hale?"

"They will be here in a moment, I imagine," Cian muses.

I suppress a shiver, even as I turn around to admire my surroundings. "This place is beautiful."

It truly is, even if a look too deep into the woods reveals dark shadows and creeping vines that sweep up and around trees, strangling their boughs. It's hard to imagine anyone lives out here, although keeping Wrath away from civilisation sounds like a good idea...

"Too idyllic, huh?" Cian murmurs, shielding his eyes as he looks up. Mercifully, by whatever magic he employed, he's now in a proper shirt, which is a relief, since I've had enough of flushing every time I glance at him. "She thinks she can hide her poisonous personality with a pretty setting. Fake bitch."

"Cian!" I snap. What if she is listening? "She's your sister."

"We'll see how kindly you speak of her once this is over. She is the only Sin who bows to their true nature in secret, yet relishes in a beautiful facade," he grumbles, gesturing down the path where I figure we will find Ira. I bristle, suddenly unsure if I want to go down there, but it's not as though I can turn around and run away, as I have no idea where in the Immortal realm we are.

Before I can change my mind on anything, the sound of feet hitting the ground and clothing rustling makes me turn around, Sinful and Hale having arrived out of nowhere. And at Sinful's side, is a petrified looking Lev.

"Apologies for the delay," Sinful mutters, pushing at Lev, causing him to stumble forward toward me. I grab his arms, horrified that he has been dragged to the immortal realm with us when I was hoping to keep him out of it. "He wasn't so willing this time."

"Lev?" I gasp, looking over him, before turning my rage-filled gaze toward Sinful. "What did you do?"

"I'm immortally bored, and I thought a little spice may make this interesting," Sinful replies with a shrug, grinning as he leans back casually against the tree. I look toward Hale, but he just stares tiredly out into the forest, infinitely bored as Cian puts it.

"It's okay, Amolet," Lev assures me, although he trembles slightly as he looks around, as amazed by our surroundings as I am.

Cian steps forward, grabbing Lev's arm. "I'll take him back."

"Uh ah, brother," Sinful dares, raising a dark brow. "Do so, and I'm out."

I gape at the immortal, wondering what has made him turn against us so quickly. This is why we can't trust Sins, why putting any faith in them at all is only going to lead to terrible misfortune. But I never expected Sinful to use Lev against me, to put someone he knows means a lot to me right where he is in serious danger. It's tempting to use my mind to strangle him again.

"Why are you doing this?" I demand.

"An innocent present for my dare sister," he grins, brushing past me to walk down the path, looking over his shoulder at us. "Might soften her up."

I glare at Sinful's back, but regardless, we all follow him, until the hill starts to slope downward, and the trees clear, revealing a small wooden cottage nestled within a blooming garden. It's a beautiful sight, but one that elicits shivers across my skin, knowing that the vibrant colours and distracting views are to conceal the darkness of Ira.

"If this is a trap, I will kill you. Slowly," I growl at Sinful, who pauses before we can make it to the front gate, painted a bright yellow.

He turns, lavender eyes assessing me, a cool expression gliding across his face. "Don't let the power get to your head, pretty mortal."

He reaches a gloved hand toward me, but I slap it away, scowling at him. Cian steps forward, pushing Sinful back by his shoulders, which sends the immortal further back than I could manage. As much as Sinful may not want to admit it, Cian is more physically adept between the two of them. Sinful has a mouth that can spin any poisonous web of lies into a warm line of poetry, and relies too much on that ability.

"Don't make me kick your ass," Cian warns, making even me a suppress a shiver

"Fine..." Sinful's smile is cold. "Hale, after you."

Hale exhales through his nose, before quietly opening the gate, weaving through the garden, smacking flowers out of the way that brush him as he passes. Sinful grabs Lev, pushing him in front of him and toward the home, Lev's mutters of protest lost in the sound of the trees rustling in the background. Cian stuffs his hands into his pockets, giving me one last look before going ahead of me.

"Immortal freaks," I mutter under my breath, following them toward the small oak door shrouded with fat blooming irises.

Hale doesn't bother knocking, opening the door and stepping inside confidently. We all follow into a small but quaint space, the scent of lilac's suddenly overwhelming, likely attempting to hide the smell of magic.

From around a dusty pink coloured wall, a girl emerges, her lithe figure covered by a pretty white dress with puffy sleeves, dotted with sewn sunflowers. She's beautiful in an unsuspecting way, with her large blue eyes, a smattering of light brown freckles spread across her nose and forehead to compliment her fawny brown hair, tight curls bouncing as she approaches.

"Well well, isn't this quite the shocking surprise," she exclaims warmly, looking over all of us with a curious eye, the smile on her face large and genuine.

Accept it's not. That much I'm sure of.

"Ira, it's wonderful to see you," Hale greets, leaning forward to pick his sister up, her yellow slippers grazing the ground as he twirls her around.

"Hale, it's been far too long since you last visited me," Ira gushes, adjusting her curls once Hale let's her down. The moment, however, that her attention drifts from Hale, a certain coldness seeps into her eyes at the sight of Sinful and Cian. "As for you two...What do you want?"

"We may not have ended on good terms last time, Ira, but we need your help," Cian admits tightly, stepping forward. It's obvious asking Ira to do this causes him great pain.

"My favourite words to come out of someone's mouth," she sighs. "You need my help."

I look toward Cian, who looks nothing but irritated, so I decide to step in. "We will do anything."

Even Sinful stiffens at the sound of my voices, eyes full of a cold warning. Ira brushes Cian out of her way, stepping toward me instead, gaze travelling down my body as she scrutinises me quietly. It takes all my self control not to shift comfortably, or to even turn and flee out the door. She seems so small, a few inches shorter than me, and yet I know she could kill me in an instance.

"And who are you?" she asks sardonically.

I swallow. "I'm Amolet."

"Before you say anything else, most generous and kind sister, she has an uncanny ability to strangle Immortals, so I wouldn't risk getting on her bad side. Trust me," Sinful adds, to which I narrow my eyes on him, although am silently glad he's informed Ira of that, a frown gathering between the girl's brows.

"Interesting," she muses. "I assume Sinful has fallen victim to this power of yours due to his mouth."

"Exactly," I respond softly. Maybe her and I can bond over how much we dislike Sinful.

Ira looks toward Lev, who stands close to me, fingertips brushing mine, although I don't hold his hand, not wanting Ira to learn of how much he means to me. "And you?"

"My name is Lev. I'm a friend of Amolet's," he introduces. Cian clears his throat, and from behind Ira, shakes his head at Lev in warning. Don't give her anymore information than is needed, I can practically hear him warn. I want to say the same thing, knowing any hint of weakness is her perfect weapon.

"And what are two mortals doing in the immortal realm?" she questions, gesturing around herself. "In my humble cottage?"

It's far from humble. Everything here has a warm, comfortable vibe to it, to lull any visitors into a sense of security. There are worn books on sagging shelves, chairs with dents in them from constant sitting, and fraying, fading blankets. Do people really fall for this? Were it not for Ira, I could imagine myself staying here, being happy.

"This is about Stace," Cian cuts in, voice firm and no-nonsense, having years experience dealing with his irritable sister. "Amolet may be the only one who can kill Stace with her powers."

Ira smiles as she inhales deeply. "Stace...Can't decide whether I want to fuck him or tear his heart out."

"I can't be the one to kill Stace...We have to find another way," I exclaim suddenly. They can't possibly want me to use my powers to choke him to death, do they? I may want to help them, but I can't be the one to take his life. I have nothing against Stace other than what he has done to immortals. I can't be the one to do it, even if I'm able to use my powers on someone from another realm, which we can't be sure of.

"So she's useless?" Ira grumbles.

"Ira..." Cian growls.

Ira turns, looking between Cian and I in turn. "Do I sense tension between you and the mortal, Cian?"

"Yup," Sinful laughs, making my breath quicken.

"Assuming you're here to grovel to me about me helping you kill Stace, I'll do it," Ira says with a simple shrug. She let's the offer hang in the air for a long, painful moment, giving us hope that it was always going to be this easy. "But not unless I get something in return."

The shoulders of almost everyone in the room deflates, including Cian's, who glares pointedly at his sister. "What do you want?"

Ira's smile, pure wrath, makes me want to be sick. "I want you, Amolet, to kiss Cian."

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Sophie_Midika

Midikacrane

~Midika 💜🐼