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“Oh… and seeing as it’s after midnight, happy birthday,” he says.
I grin at him. “Well thank you.”
“I’ll make sure it’s a good day,” he says, kissing me once more before closing his eyes.
And I know he will because every day with him is a good day.
CHAPTERTWENTY-ONE
LANDON
My eyes feel heavy when I finally wake up. I pat the bed next to me, reaching for August, but instead, only find Zacia who makes apurrownoise because she loves me even when I rudely wake her from her slumber.
“Where’d August run off to?” I ask, but Zacia either gives no shits or doesn’t know because she closes her eyes and returns to purring. Reaching out, I scratch under her chin as I debate going back to sleep, but the idea that August is off doing something crazy all alone is eating away at my brain too much. Getting out of bed, I wander off into the bathroom before I hear the door swing open. Expecting August, I peek out and watch as Zacia floats across the room.
Noticing me, she stops floating and freezes for a moment before I watch her touch the floor and be made to look like she’s running out of the room. She gives me a pleading look as she’s abducted by the invisible force that clearly has no idea that cats don’t move like that.
“What the fuck are you doing abducting Princess Balzac, Deus?” I ask.
He remains silent as I see Zacia’s paw reach out and grab the bedroom door before shutting it as she leaves.
He’s so fucking weird.
Teeth brushed and fully clothed, I leave my room to see if I can figure out what strange happenings are going on downstairs that include my poor cat when suddenly there are hands pressed over my eyes.
“What the hell, Deus?” I ask.
“Shhh… don’t struggle,” he whispers in my ear.
“Saying shit like that makes me want to struggle! Why’d you abduct my cat?”
“Shhh… it’ll all be over soon. Don’t fight it. Now come along. Let’s go for a walk,” he says as he pushes me toward the stairs.
“You’re going to push me down them, aren’t you? Tell August some wild story about how I ‘accidentally’ fell down them, aren’t you?”
“The demons smile brightly on your merry day,” he says instead, which I honestly would have preferred he kept to himself.
“What. The fuck,” I mutter as I feel my way down the stairs while holding on to the handrailing. “Today is my death.”
“My demons will guide you.”
“Splendid. Lovely. Yay.”
There is alotof sarcasm tossed in that Deus seems oblivious to as I’m suddenly pulled to a stop. “Are you ready to be reborn?”
“No? No thank you, actually. You know I can toss you into the next year, right? Just… throw you and every time you try to return, I’ll throw you farther and farther.”
He starts humming something that’s probably summoning some demonic presence as he finally pulls his hands free. That’s the moment someone pops something right in my face and the group yells, “Happy birthday!”
I jump back, more startled than by Deus’s crazed antics. I look around in surprise at the living room absolutely decked out in black birthday decorations.
They start singing “Happy Birthday”… or at least all but one do. Deus’s version is completely different and as the others realize this, everyone shuts up to listen as he goes, “Contented parturition dear child of darkness—Wait… why’s everyone looking at me?”
“You guys… you guys didn’t have to do this! Especially Deus’s chant to send me to hell… or whatever that was.”
August smiles, completely ignoring my Deus comment. “I just… wanted your birthday to be special. They didn’t think it’d be good for me to leave the house and Deus really wanted to go, so I made him promise to stay invisible. I’m… I’m concerned that he gave me back the exact amount of money I gave him minus two dollars, though… Like… did you steal it all?”
Deus simply tosses confetti in August’s face. Weirdly, it makes August no less concerned.
