Deadly Silent | Book 2

T E N

T E N
Messy Thoughts

THERE WERE TIMES in which I wondered to myself with all of my heart: 'how did I get myself into this mess?'

Well, this was one of those times.

While Dimitri still had his usual smirk-that-hid-endless-sinister-ideas hung on his face, Calvin had a much softer school-boy grin accessorizing his. On the other hand, Wilhelm looked positively grumpy from the prior argument while Fabian looked straight up murderous.

It was times like this in which I began to wonder if the four brothers had their identities mixed up at birth, seeing that Dimitri looked the least likely to kill me at the instant.

After Calvin had not-too-gentlemanly pulled me into the main sitting room using his voodoo magic, we had since sat together on these posh velvet couches in silence as two out of three of the boys stared at me with a goofy grin on their faces, the other two silently plotting my death in their minds.

"So, Addison," Calvin trailed off with a mildly excited grin still high upon his lips. "I see that my brother had finally charmed you to stay in our very own Hotel Transylvania."

I chuckled slightly before disguising it with a cough when Dimitri jutted his elbow against Calvin's stomach, causing the latter to groan in pain.

"She came here on her own free will. To see her friend." Without much hesitation, Dimitri explained my circumstances with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Ah yes. The very attractive ginger." Breaking his tough facade, a small smirk (a trait that was obviously passed down in the family) curved the corners of Wilhelm's lips as well. "Your loyalties stand strong, Miss Pilediah. That is admirable, especially considering your past judgment in men."

It had been a mistake of mine, but my eyes had immediately flickered over to Dimitri for a short span of a second just as he caught my gaze. Turning the brightest shade of crimson humanely possible, I could only turn my head back sharply as the man's lazy grin widened even further. Apparently, this man had the wildest effects on me. Be it making me absolutely breathless from his soul-sucking demonic powers or making my insides flutter from those indiscrete unintentional smiles that held a whole universe of stars within.

Undeniably, the man was an artwork so fine that famous artists of the past would be put to shame by his creator.

This attraction in which I harbored for a man that had made an attempt on my life was pure insanity; a delusional mix of stockholm syndrome and a drop or two of love potion. What I had in my mind was not normal, in every sense of the word.

I kept my chin up as highly as I could, trying desperately to regain the proud look in which I had accessorized myself with during my early teenage years. That same tilt of my chin and scrutinizing gaze was a part of what made me the queen above everyone else -- by pretending that I was on top simply because everyone else was below me.

However, this wouldn't be too easy to replicate, especially when I was trying to show my worth in the presence of four kings while still in their domain. I am basically courting death itself.

But you know, not literally courting.

"My loyalties lie where they belong; in the hands of people who deserve it."

Calvin, seeming to be somewhat satisfied with my answer, simply flashed me a calm smile before placing the edge of a glass against his lips. He calmly sipped the golden whiskey inside before sighing in satisfaction, placing the glass gently back on the table. His calm actions cause a flurry of nerves within me but I pushed them as far into the back of my mind as possible.