****Yeah, it did**.** Your dad is a fucking idiot**. **I felt him coming seconds before he arrived**. **He must’ve, somehow, linked you with him**.”
I was sickened and disgusted.
“*If I’m not careful next time*…” My blood went cold. “*I don’t want to know what else he could do to me*.”
**You know what you have to do**, **You have to tell Kiya what happened**.*
I knew I had to. Goddess, she’d be so worried for me.
Her shriek of laughter pulled me to the window. Standing up from my seat, I walked over and angled my head toward the distant pool where she was swimming, with Alana and Aiyana paddling to her. The office was too far for me to see them closely, but I knew they were having fun.
Kiya risked a lot when she rescued me and my family. I wanted her to have fun today. I wanted the girls to have fun, too. Neither of us told them what had truly happened, out of worry that they might grow scared for us. We kept everything as normal as possible for them.
But seeing them enjoy themselves brought happiness to my heart. The world’s ills couldn’t spoil their joy, preserving their innocence in their little bubble. I half-mindedly wanted to join them, but after Dad’s mental attack, I didn’t think I could muster the strength to do so.
The mythology article on Apophis was still on my laptop screen.
I kissed my fingers and pressed them against the spot I could see Kiya and the girls before turning back to my seat and going back to the article. When I scrolled down further, I saw something that caught my eye.
*Apophis, hated and feared by the Egyptians, led an army of demons that preyed on the living and the dead*. *Priests of Ra created an ancient book filled with spells and rituals to keep him at bay*. *The anti-worship book emphasized the creation of snake effigies and destroy or desecrate them in any means as a way to strike him from the mortal realm*. *This was their way of helping Ra and the other gods, ensuring the sun will rise the next day*.
Hope crashed into my heart. Does this book still exist? Could this be the way to stop Apophis and permanently stop Dad and his lackeys?
*What would we do if we cannot find this book**? **I mean, it’s not like we can find these spells in the bowels of the internet**.” Onyx scoffed. “**Give Asim a call**. **He’d know best, right** **Being from Egypt and all**?”
**Good point”,” I said, pulling my phone from my pocket. “I know I shouldn’t get too hopeful, but it feels like the damn solution to all of this is right in my face*. *This shit has to end*.”
***Hey, I’m not knocking you down on it**. **I got excited too**. **But we still need a Plan B, C, and D in case shit goes wrong**. **I’m still curious about this map our grandpa gave to us**. ** What does it mean**?”
**It could be our Plan C or D*. *These dots mean something; I know they do*. *But I’ll give Asim a call to double-check about this book*.”
At the moment I was about to press the green call button, a flustered and annoyed Valerian burst into my office, slammed a black plastic bag with something inside, and pointed a finger in my face.
“I’m never going to a sex shop for you again. Next time, have Kiya order delivery on the fucking vibrator.”
I busted out laughing, pulling the bag to me. “Oh, I’m sorry. Did I embarrass my tough-as-nails Beta?”
“Nowhere in my list of duties did it mention making trips to the adult toy store for you or anyone else.” He crossed his arms. I noticed a discreet box in his hand. “Well, except for Raina, of course. The amount of trouble I had to endure…”
“Had trouble with the ladies?”
“Had trouble with the *men*.” He huffed. “Be honest with me, Neron, do I look like a twink?”
I wanted to answer, but holding in my laughter was more important. Val made it worse when he glared at me harder.
“You’d—” I inhaled through my nose, covering my mouth to hide my smile. “…you’re more like a power bottom.”
“I fucking hate you.”
“I love you too, brother.”
Oh, the tears. The *tears*. I loved messing with Val, but one of these days, he’s going to fucking deck me in the face and I’d still laugh.
“I’m not sure why you need these, bro,” Kwame said as he entered my office with a small bag in hand. “Here you go.”
He tossed it and I caught them with one hand.
“What the hell are those?” Val asked.
“Silk and satin blindfolds. Lori had like, five packs of them, so she didn’t mind giving one away. “My Gamma arched an eyebrow, facing my direction. “…Please tell me you’re using them for sleep or to style your hair or some shit.”
I curved my lips into a grin, running my thumbs over the noisy plastic. “Let’s just say, it’s part of a lesson I hope to teach in the future.”
“I don’t need to hear about your sex life.” My Beta rolled his eyes and turned to walk out the door.
“What’s in the box?” Kwame asked.
“None of your business.” He answered, walking fast out the door. I didn’t miss the pink dusting on the apple of his cheeks.
*It looks like he picked up something for himself at the store.
Kwame chuckled and shook his head, also turning to the door. Our favorite pastime was teasing the fuck out of Val. “Have fun with your lesson, dude. Thank Goddess for soundproof walls, right?”
“Yep.” I said, popping the ‘P’. “Do me a favor and ask Kiya to come to my office. She’s by the pool with Alana and Aiyana.”
“Sure. But you better bring her back in one piece.” He warned playfully before shutting the door behind him.
“Yeah, that won’t happen”.
Curious, I glanced inside the bag to see the type of vibrator my sweet little student picked out. Discreet packaging? Check. I didn’t want Kiya to go into town to pick it up because of present dangers, and I’d never miss the chance to embarrass the fuck out of Valerian, so I ordered him to pick it up instead.
I opened the package and pulled out the actual package of the toy.
*Oh*.
I didn’t know she was the flowery* type.
Onyx chuckled like an evil gremlin in my head. “**Oh, I like that toy very much**! **She won’t be escaping her fate with this**,”
*No, she definitely won’t be*.
As I waited for her to arrive, a fit of giggles passed by my door, followed by two pairs of feet. I laughed to myself, shaking my head. Whatever was in that box Valerian tried to brush off, Raina was going to love it.
A couple of minutes later, Kiya waddled into my office draped in a white-and-purple stripped pool towel. She looked like an adorable ghost by holding the towel in place in front of her. Giving me her heart-stopping grin, she stopped at my desk. “You rang?”
“Yes. Did you and the girls have fun?”
She shrugged the towel off her head, revealing her damp coils. “We did! The girls haven’t swum before, but honestly? They’re naturals and needed a chance to shine. They’re playing with the other kids their age, so we don’t need to worry about them too much.”
“As long as they’re being looked after by the older pack members,” I said, rising out of my seat. Kiya’s breath hitched when I rounded the desk and gently gripped her chin. Fire sparked under my fingertips from our bond, mapping throughout my hand. Her eyes bounced from my face to my neck and back, glimmering with curiosity. She clutched her towel tighter, squeaking when I lowered my head and kissed her plump lips.
*Still so goddamn sweet*.
“There are two things I need to tell you.”
Kiya blinked. “What is it? Anything I should be concerned about?”
“Just one thing.” I sighed, expanding the distance between our lips. Sitting on the edge of the desk, I explained everything that had transpired; from my research to Dad getting in my head, to the discovery of the anti-worship book. Kiya stood still in her spot, her earlier mirth gone from the stone mask she donned.
“Of all the things your father would do…” She grumbled under her breath, shaking her head. ” But the book sounds promising. If it exists, we can use the spells and rituals against your father and his undead comradery since Apophis siphons his powers to them.”
“The keyword in that sentence is ‘if’. I’ve thought about calling Asim to see if he can verify his existence, but if such a book exists, wouldn’t he know about it and tell us sooner?”
“Logically, yes, but there’s a chance that he doesn’t know about it either. There’s a good reason to why there isn’t a lot of information about that book on the internet.”
If I was one of those priests, I wouldn’t want such rituals falling into the hands of reckless teenagers or trolls who can manipulate its authenticity with a click of the mouse. I’d stow the book away in a place so sacred where no one would get to it. Unfortunately, none of them counted on Apophis raising vengeful souls to go after other people.