The Seasons

Chapter 5

Neo pointed to the occupied couch, someone had been asleep with a newspaper on their face, and he had thought it was Micah who had just fallen asleep, but Jem grinned as he took the newspaper off, and well, that was not Micah.

No, this man had dark skin, short black hair, and an angular face. Jem smacked the sleeping man’s face. Neo made a noise of protest before waving his hand and picking up the drink Jem had left and drinking it. The man frowned as he sighed and sat up. He groaned, closing his eyes and stretched, and when he opened them, Wing frowned at his eyes. They were a stunning shade of hazel, and he couldn’t pinpoint their exact colour. Even with his excellent eyesight, they were rimmed with black, creating a sharper look.

Anyone with working eyes could tell this man was attractive. He looked around, and his eyes landed on Slaine, standing near the door, his arms crossed over his chest. Yet despite being 5’2, he was the most intimidating person in the room.

“Neo, what the f**k have you gotten yourself into?” The man deadpanned after he scanned Slaine and the Wing.

Neo waved his hand, snatched the drink from his husband, and drank it. “Look, I was dragged into this and somehow ended up with more kids than I ever thought I would have. So, their problems are my problems.”

“They’re all grown adults. Let them do whatever.”

“And that’s why Thorne hates you,” Neo replied. Wing c****d his head? His Thorne? Then he scoffed. Why would his best friend know all of these people? They must have known two completely different people called Thorne, right?

The man scoffed. “He does not hate me.”

The lavender man raised an eyebrow. “No, I saw him a few days ago, he said, and I quote ‘I hate Cairo.’”

“What has Cairo ever done to this Thorne? Cairo is charming, and I wanted to visit Cairo with Grey,” Jem said, frowning.

“Not the city, him.”

Jem frowned. “Your name is Cairo?”

The man stared at Jem, an amused expression on his face. “It is, yes.”

“Now, why was the newly bred vampire trying to run, and why does that one have purple eyes? I can smell them both, and the purple one doesn't smell right.”

Neo sighed. “It’s a whole story, Grey and Micah can catch you up later. But, Wing,” he said, pointing at Wing, “is the one I was telling you about. The human who was taken and then accidentally turned by Slaine.”

Cairo stared at Wing, who shifted under the man’s gaze. “And you were human before Slaine bit you, yes?” Wing nodded. “I see. Do you remember where you found him?” he asked as he looked at Slaine.

“In a ditch.”

Jem snorted, and when Grey smacked him up the head, he frowned. “Sorry.”

“I see,” Cairo said, returning all the attention to him. “And you are sure that Wing here was taken by the same people taking the supernatural?”

Slaine nodded. “I am. When I found him, I smelt humans, vampires, werewolves, mermen, witches' magic, even little traces of nature.”

Cairo’s eyebrows shot up. “Nature? So, the fae are somehow involved, interesting. Interesting.”

“Wait, the fae? I had fae torturing my ass? What are the fae?” Wing asked, looking around the room in confusion.

“Think hot fairies, but evil,” Jem said. Grey elbowed him roughly.

“Be polite.” Grey said. Jem muttered something, but it was anything but polite from the few pieces that Wing picked up.

“Slaine, what about angels and demons? Did you smell any of them?”

Slaine stared blankly at the man. “Am I meant to know what angels and demons smell like? Look, it was dark, and I was thirsty.”

Wing’s mind was working in overdrive. Angels and demons also existed? Oh, f**k. What the hell, how the hell was he mean to cope with any of this information? Was there a chance an angel had tortured him? The whole biblical god is life. Praise be on you, angel, had willingly tortured him?

“Until we get proof otherwise, every single type of supernatural is involved,” Cairo said. “And I mean every single type from Nephilim to chimaera.”

“Cairo, what am I doing about Wing then,” Neo said, staring at the vampire spread across the couch.

He stared at Neo before giving him a lazy grin. “Well, Neo. It’s in your luck; I’ve been assigned here until we get this whole thing under control. And if Moonwane is where it all started, then it makes sense that whatever their goal is, it has to end here too.”

“So,” Jem said, eyes wide. “You’re living here for now, then?”

Cairo nodded. “I am. Yes.”

Someone tried walking in, and when Slaine blocked it, everyone heard an exasperated sigh and a loud banging on the door. Slaine rolled his eyes as he stepped out of the war, and Jasper came tumbling in. Atticus barely caught the man before he hit the ground.

Jasper stood up and wiped himself off before he turned, glaring at Slaine. “You couldn’t have waited one hour, Slaine?”

“No.”

Jasper let out a grunt of frustration. “I want to kill you.”

Slaine shrugged as he spread his arms. “Go for it.”

“Oh, f**k off, Slaine. We both know you can’t die.”

This caught Wing’s attention. He was sure vampires could die, a stake to the heart, and sunlight but from living with Slaine for the last three days, the sunlight didn’t bother him, but it didn’t affect Wing, which he had been grateful for. He had learned through Slaine’s impatience the sun had been shining through the large floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room, and he’d been too scared to go into the sunlight. So, Slaine, the ever so charming person, grabbed Wing’s hand and stuck it in the sunlight for nothing to happen.

Cairo frowned. “What do you mean Slaine can’t die?”

“I’m a vampire,” he deadpanned. “In Jasper’s human standards, of course, I can’t die. He knows how fragile human lives are. Everyone here will still stand after 80 years, but we can’t say the same for him and Atticus.”

Wing looked over at Jasper as the blood began to drain from his face, and his eyes kept flickering over to Kevin. “Oh, yeah,” he whispered.

“Okay, back to me,” Cairo said, pointing his thumbs at him. “As I was saying, I have been assigned here. But, they want me to look after the new vampire.”

“Deal,” Slaine replied. “I don’t like sharing my living space. The quicker he’s out of my hair, the better it is for me. Take him, and please, do not bring him back.”

Wing’s mouth dropped open. “No, I’ll be fine. Can’t I just go back to my old life, and I can completely forget any of this ever happened?”

“No. You died, and now you’re a vampire, and for the first ten years, controlling your blood lust is hard. Ask Slaine, who has been a vampire for almost six years, and he still went and drank from you,” Neo said, rolling his eyes. “Yes, Cairo. That’s fine. You can look after Wing.”

Wing stared at Cairo, blinking owlishly. Ah, what the hell.

~*~