Holly woke up to find Ruby and Quix both in the same room in wooden chairs on either side of her. Quix smiled as soon as she made eye-contact with him and Holly looked away as her chest tightened.She wanted to wallow in this warmth, but how could she? It wasn't real. "Your slumber looked unpleasant. Was Death troubling you?" Ruby demanded.Holly smiled at the other woman but shook her head. "No, it had nothing to do with him. At least not this time. Where is everyone else? I'm surprised I've been left alone with the big bad reapers."Quix chuckled. "Eros is guarding just outside the door and that Dagon guy put some barriers around. No one can teleport in or out. He's still pretty upset over the whole attack earlier. He'll cool off eventually I guess.""And Lachesis?" Holly demanded as she looked around. She had barely spent time with the Fate but now she had the same question for her, plus an additional one.Quix shook hi

Famine slowly stood back to his full height and readjusted his tie. The skin on his cheek bore the vivid imprint of Holly's anger. Those steel-blue eyes of his studied Holly in more depth now. "Brother, your chosen one has caught my interest. That is the first time a mortal has ever dared to strike me."Dagon smoothly stepped in front of him. "You are not touching her. I don't care if you withdraw your support. I won't let you hurt her in retaliation.""Retaliation?" Famine shook his head with the smallest of movements. "No, do not misunderstand me. She has merely woken an interest. I will not hurt her though you might want to raise your guard a bit more."Eros all but growled. "She's obviously not interested in you, Famine. Just get out of here."The mildly amused eyes that had warmed on Holly turned to pure steel as his lip flared at the sight of Eros. "And now your pet yaps at me and bares its comically small fangs. Tell me, Lust, just what do you plan

Holly woke up and shivered. A cover was wrapped around her instantly and she looked up to see Quix's bruised face but his warm eyes. "You didn't look like it was a good rest. Are you okay?"Holly nodded. "I'm fine.""You're not," Quix observed. "Something is wrong. Krim is gone, for now, you can talk to me.""How can you be so relaxed?" Holly demanded. "Ruby and Lachesis are missing!""From what I heard Famine went to go get them," Quix replied. "You don't know the brothers as we do. If one says they're going to do something, they will. If you were the one in danger, it would be far more dangerous. Death isn't about to use too much security for hostages, not when he's not sure it will work out. He's lazy if there's a chance of failure.""He's been gone for hours," Holly whispered. "It's been too long. Something had to have happened."Quix crawled into the bed with her and held her. Eros looked up from his corner but didn't move. "Trust me th

Holly woke long before Quix did. She ran a hand through his hair and he smiled and leaned into her touch before he snored at her. True, he needed his rest and a lot of it. She got dressed with a wince. What she wouldn't do for fresh clothes. How could anyone like her when her clothes smelled so? Quix stayed asleep and she smiled at him once more before she slipped through the door.As she walked through the frame, her smile faded away. She needed to talk to the others. Eros was nowhere to be seen, but sitting on a stool beside the door was Dagon. "I want to talk to you," she said in a whisper."What's wrong?" Dagon sat forward. "There's something off with you, and it's not just because you've had sex."Holly's cheeks blazed. "That has nothing to do with it, and that's none of your business in the first place, Dagon."He shrugged. "I just wanted you to know that it didn't bother me. It hasn't before and it won't in th

The sloth's face was screwed up as if she had a sour lemon stuck into her mouth. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'll be retreating, for now. But don't think you've won, any of you." She found Holly with her crimson eyes once more. "And if you do make Lust shed a single tear, I'll follow through the rest of my promise. You can be sure of that."Dagon scowled as the sloth vanished. "I should have known that sloth would be a coward here too." He turned his attention to Holly, completely ignoring Angel. "Are you okay? She didn't hurt you did she?"Holly shook her head. "She was obsessed with Eros. A bit more than I expected. We should keep an eye on him or she might go after him."Angel snorted. "Good riddance."Holly turned toward him. "Excuse me?" she demanded.Angel blinked. "Good riddance to a Sin?" he responded. "Come on, you can't be soft for him too. I dealt with enough of that when it came to Acacia! The sins are evil, you can't trust th