I/3I thought for a minute. “Does it have to do with his time in the Syrian prison?
He giggled again. “He said you were smart. He didn’t say you were this smart does. The man who would torture Viktor was completely consumed by a demon. Viktor saw glimpses. When your eyes change, he can’t help but remember that time. He knows it’s not the same, but he still struggles to remember that,” he said.
“How do I help him get over that?”
“You can’t,” he said and I immediately felt my hopes come crashing down. “Bet Stephen can. Adrik told him that he was going to level up soon. That’s true. Stephen will be able to take Misha’s hatred for Giana and get rid of it. Hell also be able to take everything Viktor still carries from his time in prison and get rid of it.”
“How? Doesn’t he need to give it back to the people that gave it to Misha and Viktor?”
“Not once he levels up. He spent so much time trying to find ways to transmite the pain from his childhood that he’s going to be able to do it for other people. He knows the struggle of not being able to get rid of something that feels like it’s killing you slowly. He’s going to be able to help others with that. That’s partly why he’s so happy now. He knows, without knowing, that he helped you to feel better and it’s made him ecstatic.”
I felt the tears welling up in my eyes as I thought about everything Stephen had gone through. For him to still want to help people after all that said everything anyone would need to know about what kind of person he is. I loved him a little more for it.
“How do we get over feeling irritated around Viktor?” I asked.
Once again, his boyish giggle filled the space. “You need to love your demon n little extra until they’re convinced Viktor isn’t rejecting thein.”
“Okay, I understand why you laughed at that. This is not a conversation I ever thought I’d be having. Will Viktor feel left out, though? Because his connection isn’t as strong as the others?”
“I don’t think so. I think he prefers it. It’s less he has to think about or feel. He has so much on his mind already that even just the little bit he’s gotten from you feels very overwhelming to him.” “Can I make it less for just him? I don’t want to overwhelm him. He doesn’t hood another reason to avoid me,” I said.
Kostya surprised me by walking to me, grabbing my hand. “He still loves you, Sephie. He loves you very much. It’s going to take his soul longer to get to the point the rest of you are at. That’s all it is. You can stop worrying about him leaving.” I tried to blink back the tears, but I couldn’t keep them in. Kostya grabbed my other hand. As he did, everything got brighter for a moment and suddenly I felt better. Lighter. “You just fixed me, didn’t you?”
He nodded, smiling sweetly up at me. “You had to endure abandonment to get you here, but you don’t ever have to worry about that again.” He raised my left hand, looking at my ring. “You still don’t know the significance of this, but they will always be with you and they will always protect you.”
“Let me guess, you’re not allowed to tell me either, are you?”
“Not that one, Sephie. You have to figure it out for yourself. But I’m sure you can connect the dots. You always do,” he said, winking at me.
I knelt down, so I was eye-level with him. “In another life, Viktor is very proud of the man you’re going to grow up to be,” I said.
His face lit up as his smile beamed at me. It was the last thing I saw as everything faded back to black and I could once again only see my body. I could feel Adrik’s hand lightly running up and down my back as he talked softly to me, trying to wake me up. He felt me stir and pulled me closer.
“Good morning, solnishko. Were you dreaming? You were all over the place for a few minutes there,” he said as I picked my head up to test my chin on his chest.
I smiled at him. “Kostya,” I said, laughing at his shocked expression.
“What? How?”
2/3″Same as my dad and your mom. Just a different location. Not gonna lie, it was creepy as fuck to turn around and see a little kid in front of me. Was not expecting that,” I said. Adrik’s eyes went wide. “Kids are scary. I completely agree. What did he need to tell you?
“I know why Viktor feels different to us now.”
Adrik
“Why?” I asked Sephie, completely captivated by her out of control hair that was everywhere all at once,
“When Misha said we unlocked a new life goal for him and both Andrei and Stephen agreed, they strengthened the connection. They’ll eventually be like us. They’ll be able to walk between Heaven and Hell,” she said.I inhaled. “Viktor wants no part of that,” I said.
She nodded her head, saying, “our demons still freak him the fuck out.” She grimmed at me, as she got up, straddling me. “Are you ready for this next part, because it might actually be my favorite,” she said, giggling.
I sat up a little more, my hands running over her thighs. “I can’t wait,” I said,niling at her amusement.
“The irritation we all feel around Viktor now isn’t us. It’s our demons. They’re hurt because they feel like he rejected them when he asked for his demon to be taken away,” she said. “I can’t help it. I might love my demon a little more for that. Poor thing. That’s a hard pill to swallow.”
I had to admit to feeling a pang of sympathy for my demon as well. “He asked or his to be taken away? How does that work?” I asked.
New Book: Back Home to Marry Off Myself
Loredana’s father left the family for his mistress, leaving them to fend for themselves abroad. When life was at its toughest, her father showed up with “good news” after 8 years of absence: To marry off Loredana to a paralyzed son of the wealthy Mendelsohn family.