{"id":2830,"date":"2016-04-15T00:00:37","date_gmt":"2016-04-15T04:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=2830"},"modified":"2016-04-14T18:04:17","modified_gmt":"2016-04-14T22:04:17","slug":"twenty-nine-06-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=2830","title":{"rendered":"Twenty-nine – 06"},"content":{"rendered":"

[This post is from Matt’s point of view.]<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cYou would kill me over him? Your ally, dead, all over a man\u2014a man with no power?\u201d<\/p>\n

There was something soft and dangerous in the woman\u2019s voice and it made Matt\u2019s stomach turn.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you laid a single finger on him without his permission, it would be my pleasure<\/em> to dismember you slowly.\u201d There was definitely a tremor in Hecate\u2019s voice, barely audible but undoubtedly there\u2014but Matt wondered if he was the only one who heard it.<\/p>\n

He met her gaze and saw fear there. He swallowed hard.<\/p>\n

The strange woman\u2014she was familiar somehow, though he couldn\u2019t quite put his finger on why\u2014began to laugh.<\/p>\n

A shudder shot through him.<\/p>\n

Menhit.<\/em><\/p>\n

Hecate pressed the blade\u2019s edge a little tighter against Menhit\u2019s throat. \u201cI fail to see what\u2019s so amusing,\u201d she hissed. \u201cAre you going to let me in on the joke?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cOh, this is delightful,\u201d Menhit said, her laughter fading even as her smile turned wicked. \u201cHe\u2019s one of them.\u201d She looked away from Matt and focused on Hecate, smirking. \u201cStay your blade, goddess. Your point is made.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cReally. I\u2019m not quite certain of that, to be frank.\u201d Hecate\u2019s glare hardened for a moment and she hesitated before slowly removing the knife\u2019s edge from Menhit\u2019s throat. She beckoned to Matt with her free hand as she stepped away from Menhit slowly and tucked her weapon away and out of sight.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t mean to interrupt. I can\u2014\u201d Matt began, then stopped, the words that he\u2019d intended to follow the statement with dying on his tongue as Hecate looked at him.<\/p>\n

The fear was still there in her eyes.<\/p>\n

Stay.<\/em><\/p>\n

His lips thinned and he slowly moved past Menhit to Hecate\u2019s side. The slender woman drew herself up a little straighter as he joined her, like somehow his presence was\u2014<\/p>\n

Was what, exactly?<\/p>\n

\u201cI shouldn\u2019t have kept going after your friends.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cIt happens a lot more than it doesn\u2019t.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

His hand found hers somehow and squeezed.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpeak,\u201d Hecate ordered, her glare focused on Menhit. \u201cYou clearly garnered some inappropriate level of amusement from his presence here. I would have you explain yourself, and quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n

One corner of Menhit\u2019s mouth curved upward in a grin. \u201cI ws just marveling, really. The witch with no weaknesses suddenly finds one amongst her enemies.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hecate\u2019s eyes narrowed. \u201cWatch your tongue, little cat, unless you\u2019ve a desire to lose it.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd I suppose you\u2019ll be doing me the grand favor of removing it?\u201d Menhit smirked. \u201cYou know that they won\u2019t let you keep him\u2014not unless they\u2019re dead already.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hecate stiffened. Matt\u2019s stomach dropped.<\/p>\n

Do something.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd if they\u2019re not dead, I should be doing something about making sure you get to keep what you\u2019ve claimed,\u201d Menhit continued, as if she hadn\u2019t noticed the effect she\u2019d had on both of them\u2014though Matt suspected she knew exactly<\/em> the impact she\u2019d just made.<\/p>\n

You have to do something or else they\u2019re all as good as dead.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t have a quarrel with them any longer,\u201d Hecate said softly. \u201cBut do what you will, Menhit. You were going to whether I offered you payment or not.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cGood on you to realize that.\u201d Beads and shells clacked as Menhit flipped her braids back over her shoulder. \u201cThough I did hope that my actions would be, shall we say, mutually beneficent. They have spent so long being a thorn in your side, those northron princes and the Taliesin. And then of course there\u2019s the Wild Hunt and all.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hecate\u2019s teeth ground. She dropped Matt\u2019s hand. \u201cWhat are you proposing?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSimply that I make sure that none of them will be a problem for you ever again,\u201d Menhit said, her tone light but somehow frigid at the same time. \u201cWould that suit you, my lady?\u201d<\/p>\n

Shit. Shit, <\/em>do something. Stop standing like a statute and do something.<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ll consider it,\u201d Hecate said. \u201cNow go.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd if I don\u2019t? If I want my answer now?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThen you\u2019ll have to live with disappointment,\u201d Hecate said, stepping away from Matt and advancing on the other woman. \u201cNow go before I change my mind about having mercy on you.\u201d<\/p>\n

Menhit smirked and dropped into an exaggerated curtsey. \u201cAs you wish, my lady<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

She turned and walked to a door half-hidden behind a curtain, stepping out and vanishing from sight.<\/p>\n

Matt sucked in a breath, not realizing he\u2019d been holding his up until that very moment. Hecate turned toward him, her expression bleak.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s right, isn\u2019t she? They\u2019re not going to let you stay with me.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThey will as long as I tell them it\u2019s my choice,\u201d Matt said quietly.<\/p>\n

Is there really a choice?<\/em><\/p>\n

She looked down, her eyes sliding shut. A tear welled up, catching on her lashes for a bare moment before sliding down her cheek.<\/p>\n

Matt\u2019s throat tightened.<\/p>\n

No. No, there\u2019s no choice.<\/em><\/p>\n

He reached out and brushed away the tear.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell me everything,\u201d he said softly.<\/p>\n

Hecate looked up at him, fear and pain warring in her eyes.<\/p>\n

\u201cAre you sure you want to know?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cHow else am I going to make them understand?\u201d<\/p>\n

She smiled a tremulous smile and nodded, another tear chasing the first down her cheek.<\/p>\n

Matt put his arms around her and let her cry.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

[This post is from Matt’s point of view.] \u201cYou would kill me over him? Your ally, dead, all over a man\u2014a man with no power?\u201d There was something soft and dangerous in the woman\u2019s voice and it made Matt\u2019s stomach … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[124,201,14],"tags":[150,171,170,194,181,149,148,168,147,165,146],"class_list":["post-2830","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-5","category-chapter-29-book-5","category-story","tag-awakenings","tag-fantasy","tag-fiction","tag-hecate","tag-matthew-astoris","tag-original-fiction","tag-post-apocalyptic","tag-serial","tag-serial-fiction","tag-story","tag-web-fiction"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-JE","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2830","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2830"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2830\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2831,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2830\/revisions\/2831"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2830"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2830"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2830"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}