46. DEVRIM

“What was that about?” I questioned him as soon as I was sure that the bathroom was empty.

Obsidian flashed his teeth at me. “She was going to touch her.”

“You allowed Vanya to hug Betsy a few seconds before,” I pointed out.

“It’s not the same,” he muttered.

I blinked at him. Not the same? What the hell is going on inside that head of his?

Obsidian walked over to the basin and splashed his face with cold water, then leaned forward with his head hung and palms resting on the marble countertop.

“You’re nervous.”

He rolled his shoulders and slowly straightened. I handed him some paper towels to dry his face.

 Obsidian aggressively wiped his face before running a shaky hand through his hair.

“Too many humans,” he rasped. “They keep staring at me.”

I gave him a small smile. “They’re staring at all of us, not just you,” I said, but I knew he wasn’t listening.

Obsidian raised his hand and traced the scar on his face with his fingertips.

Stepping closer, I hesitated a moment before I did something on impulse, I pressed my lips to his cheek, right over the scar he had just touched.

When I pulled back, Obsidian was staring at me with wide eyes. I smiled at him, but it quickly faded when he growled. Maybe I shouldn’t have done that. He surprised me by gripping the back of my neck and pulling me against his body.

“D-don’t let them hurt me,” he whispered.

For a moment, Obsidian’s guard lowered, allowing me to see every emotion he was feeling, including the fear.

“If they try anything, I will kill them,” I promised.

His lips twitched. “Funny,” he muttered. “You just warned me against killing anyone.”

I sighed and reached up to grip his wrist. Stepping forward, I pressed my forehead to his. I had a feeling that Obsidian hadn’t really thought his plan through. He wanted to protect Vanya, but being surrounded by humans was the last place he wanted to be.

How had he managed it all those times he travelled off the island?

Obsidian licked his lips and then closed the few inches between us. Everything faded from my mind when he kissed me. He changed our positions and stepped forward, making me move backwards until my ass hit the counter. I knew better than to touch him, so I gripped the counter instead.

Obsidian reached up with his other hand and gripped my throat, fingers pressed to my beating pulse.

“They can’t touch her,” he whispered against my lips.

I swallowed. “Vanya’s right, you know. You rejected her.”

He nodded and then shook his head. “She’s ours.”

He silenced my words with another kiss—one that was interrupted by the bathroom door opening.

I felt him tense.

Obsidian pulled away slightly, but didn’t turn around. His eyes darted to the mirror behind me. Whoever it was made him smirk.

“Done with your reunion, sweets?” he questioned.

I sighed and stepped out from in front of him. My eyes locked with Vanya’s and then darted over to Ezra who instantly looked away. I looked at Vanya again, only to find her eyes still on mine.

“It’s about to start,” Vanya said softly. “We need to find our seats.”

***

The first time I had attended the Christmas Ball had been a year after we were freed. Melanie, Vanya’s mother, had invited us, but Obsidian hadn’t been in the right space to attend and Ezra was still enjoying his sudden freedom.

It was the first time I had laid eyes on Vanya. She had only been a little girl then, who had been performing in a concert with her school. Things had still been a mess within the pride, because everything had been so confusing, but I had wanted to catch a glimpse of the things humans enjoyed.

It had been a lot different from it was now.

“We’ll be sitting at the head table with my father,” Vanya said as we entered the room again. “It’s—”

“No,” Obsidian growled. “We’ll find another table.”

“We can’t.” Vanya glared at him, but he ignored her.

There was no sign of the vulnerability he had shown in the bathroom when we were alone. Obsidian’s guard was up again, which basically meant that he was back to being the asshole Vanya always accused him of being.

“Where are you going?” Vanya hissed, hurrying after him. “Obsidian!”

Like I expected he would, Obsidian made his way over to a table in the far back corner of the room. It was hidden slightly behind square walls that had been built randomly around the room—something I had been told was to give the building an added structure.

Humans were already seated at the table with their plates of food. They fell silent the moment they spotted Obsidian approaching.

“Move,” he growled.

They stared at him for a few more seconds before they all scrambled to get away.

My eyes darted over to Vanya to watch her reaction. She was staring at Obsidian with parted lips and wide eyes.

Obsidian walked around the table and took a seat right in the corner with his back to the wall.

The wall as protection so nobody can sneak up on him.

I pressed my hand against Vanya’s back and urged her forward. She turned instead of moving.

“You’re the… leader, aren’t you going to demand him to do what he should or something?” she questioned.

“Demand him?” I smiled at her. “Nobody demands Obsidian.”

“Especially not Devrim,” Ezra hissed from our left. “He’d rather kneel for him instead.”

Ezra passed us and took a seat two chairs away from Obsidian. He didn’t look at me again, but his words hung in the air between us.

“What does he mean by that?” Vanya asked.

I shook my head. “Nothing. Take a seat, rosebud.”

She hesitated, but I gave her no choice but to follow. I really needed to talk to Ezra and find out what exactly his problem was regarding my relationship with Obsidian.

Obsidian winked at me when Vanya took a seat next to him. I sat down on Vanya’s other side and sighed.

I looked around and once again realized that there were a lot more people here than there should be. My guess was that it had something to do with us. Mayor Reeves definitely had something to do with it. Instead of allowing us to just blend in, he had gone out of his way to make us stand out.

It made my suspicion towards him increase.

What if our plan fails because of him?

Commotion at the door caught my attention. I leaned back in my chair and watched as Reeves and Joy entered. The humans clapped and cheered as he made his way towards his table.

I tracked his movement as he moved. He paused here and there to greet someone before moving on. The moment he reached his table, he frowned. Reeves was expecting Vanya to be sitting there, right in the centre of attention and in plain sight of the killer.

“How long will this thing last?” Obsidian asked.

Reeves glanced around the room, his frown deepening when he didn’t spot us. I smirked and focused on what Vanya was saying.

“It goes on for hours. They’re going to ask him to say a few words, which he will, but it won’t be a few.” She raised her head and looked around the room. “The school kids usually perform a special Christmas concert, but I don’t know if they still do that. It’s been a few years since I attended the Christmas ball.”

I reached out and placed my hand on hers. Something told me that she was remembering happier times.

“I stopped coming here when Joy took over,” she muttered.

I nodded and gave her hand a squeeze. “Your mother did things differently, yes.”

Vanya’s head moved up so fast that I heard the snap before she felt it. Wincing, she reached up to press a hand against the side of her neck. “You knew my mother?”

I hesitated and then nodded. “When we arrived on the island, we—”

“That can’t be right,” she interrupted. “The newspaper clippings in Obsidian’s room say differently.”

My eyes darted over her head to him. I had told him long ago to get rid of it. Everything else regarding the facility had been destroyed when we were freed. Why does he still have it? Why would he allow Vanya to see it?

Obsidian shrugged when our eyes locked. “Let’s not talk here.”

I nodded, looking back at Vanya. “I had… we had met your mother a few times before she died.”