Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to the series PJO or HOO.
AN: Warning of explicit sexual descriptions in this chapter. Please skip to after the first break if that's not your cup of tea.
Anyhow, I hope everyone is excited for another chapter! The action in this story has just truly started now. I will try to update once every two weeks, but with uni starting soon we'll see how long I can keep up my promise. What are all your plans for 2019?
I'm grateful for any favourites, follows or reviews!
H.
-o-
He gave one final thrust and the pressure at his groin was released. There was another rush of something and he shifted even deeper instinctively. Nico arched his back slowly and groaned as he was overcome by ecstasy. Beneath him, Reyna responded by lifting her hips in a sudden upward motion.
Between their slowly rocking motions, he looked down at her toned bare torso, half covered by long black hair, which draped over his pillows and would leave a sweet smell for the next few days to come. Her skin glistened with a fine sheen of sweat by the light of the softly crackling fireplace.
Nico has observed that her eyes were never open when they were together. He didn't know if it was because she was enjoying it all too much or was just too embarrassed to look him in the eye.
Something primal overcame him again and disrupted his thoughts. Nico's hips seemed to move of their own accord, thrusting forwards as another wave of euphoria overcame him. Reyna locked her legs around his hips and pulled him in.
They were angled strangely, but Reyna's entire body was trembling now, and he knew that she was close. He leaned down and nibbled at her neck. With a moan, Reyna shook with a series of spasms, shaking him too via their intimate physical connection.
When it was over Reyna unbuckled her legs from around him and Nico rolled over to lie down on the spacious bed next to her. For a few moments, he could barely breathe, and it felt like his heart was going to pop out of his chest as the rate that it was pumping.
He ignored the stabbing sensations in his chest and reached one hand out to catch Reyna's. But she pushed herself up into a sitting position and started to tie her hair.
"Stay with me?" He asked, even though he already knew what the answer was.
Reyna shook her head, "No. We shouldn't have even done that."
"You say that every time, and yet here we are."
The bodyguard stood up and started to pick up her clothes from the floor. "I'm serious this time. I've already told you that I've come to say goodbye. Before, when Hades was alive, this could all be considered some childish act of rebellion. But he's gone now, and it's up to you to act your age and start doing more work for the family. For his legacy."
Nico felt anger bubble inside him, but he was too tired to sit up and confront her. "I didn't choose to be his legacy, and you know as well as me that I've basically been excluded from all the affairs of his company."
Reyna was fully dressed now and looked up from strapping her weapon holster to her side.
"Then you have to fight for it. It's always up to you to actively participate. You've shied away from duty for far too long. Start off with naming your uncle as heir to show that you have some brains."
The bed was getting too big and cold for his liking, so Nico sat up slowly and nodded to placate her. "When will I see you again?"
"You literally see me every time you see Hazel."
"You know what I mean. How will I see you like this again?"
Reyna sighed as she headed for the door. "Nico, people like you and I are not meant to be together. I don't know when we'll see each other, maybe in a few weeks. Maybe never. At least not like this."
As the door shut behind her with a light thud, Nico fought back the forlornness that settled over him and pulled the covers up to his chin. The space next to him smelt like Reyna, but it was cold and empty.
He grimaced as his left side was attacked by a jolt of stabbing pain. He rolled over and tried to ignore the small voice at the back of his mind that whispered of wrongness. There aren't many people left in his life and another one had just abandoned him. This must be what they called heartbreak.
It was better to not think about it.
-o-
Monday mornings were always marked by a magnificent buffet breakfast. That was, even more so than usual- perhaps the cooks were trying to distract them all from another week of work. Hazel tucked into a pancake stack that was sided with ice cream, maple syrup and a small mountain of fresh berries that were trying their best to escape her plate.
She looked around at the unusually subdued occupants of the room. Since neither Poseidon or Triton were big on formalities, Reyna was eating beside her. They still had to go back to school and keep on pretences- or at least that's what Hazel wanted. She didn't want to be suddenly elevated to some private school where she would be even more out of place.
"These pancakes are pretty good. Do you want some?"
Reyna glanced at the empty doorway, "Nah, I'm alright." Her best friend was wearing their uniform and chewing gum thoughtfully. Hazel wondered if she was thinking about Nico. She bit her tongue to stop herself from asking. Not here- not in front of their uncle and cousin.
"I'm nearly done, by the way. So, we can get going pretty soon."
Poseidon pushed his now empty panna cotta plate away and grinned at her, but his smile didn't look as jolly as it usually did.
"Child, you don't have to hurry. We'll get someone to drop you two off, so you won't be late. Enjoy yourself whilst you still can."
It was a strange thing to say all of the sudden, Hazel felt. But she just nodded her head in agreement- one never knew what tomorrow would bring. "I think it's probably best if we just take the bus. Otherwise, you never know who might be watching and what they might think."
"Who cares what they think?" Triton piped up, "Are you afraid that their jealousy might be too much for you to handle?"
"I think there is a reason that my mom was so insistent that I stay out of the spotlight. And with what happened to my father, I think maybe that she might have been right."
Reyna bumped her lightly with one shoulder, "I'll make sure you don't get kidnapped."
Hazel nodded, grateful knowing that such reassurance was designed to placate Poseidon. She and Reyna had recovered their prior closeness over the last few weeks since she found out her true identity. At first, when Reyna had shed her familiar purple spiky earrings for a tailored suit, Hazel felt like her friend had morphed into someone different. But now she realised that Reyna was still the same person, and Hazel actually felt even more positively towards the friend that had not only kept her company over the years but also protected her life in the shadows.
Reyna was still the same person, kind and generous, humorous and sarcastic. She walked, talked and smiled that same. She just no longer had to hide her occupation and the skills that came with it. Hazel had to admit that it frightened her to know that Reyna could kill an enemy without batting an eye.
Aside from her relationship with Reyna, one other person that she had grown particularly close to was Frank. The bumbling and slightly awkward Asian guy made her heart flutter in a way that no boy had ever made it before. Whenever there was free time she found herself seeking him out, and vice versa when he was taking a break.
One day, as they waited for Nico to come to the car, Frank had told her about his family.
There isn't really anyone left, my parents were both soldiers and they died whilst on a campaign when I was quite young. Frank looked sad. All I have is my grandmother- she's my only surviving family.
"Well, everyone is here." A mildly amused voice interrupted her thoughts.
She turned around and saw her brother, immaculately dressed as always- he had chosen a grey coloured shirt with black pants today. Nico took a swig from the whiskey bottle he held in one hand and surveyed the room. Hazel felt dangerous energy emitting from him, and the silence in the room built as the other occupants felt it too.
Frank shuffled in after Nico, wringing his hands and looking perplexed. No doubt he wanted to regain control over the alcohol supply for Nico's own safety.
Nico walked over to her and gripped one of her shoulders with one shaking hand. Hazel felt what she thought was a friendly squeeze turn into a painful twist. "Stop, you're hurting me!" She struggled out of the grip and stood to face him, "What's gotten into you?"
Her brother ignored her questioning and stared daggers at Poseidon instead. "Uncle," he said, "I was wrong. I have decided to name an heir after all."
Immediately the tension in the room melted. Triton's face broke out into a smile and Frank stopped his shuffling near the door. Hazel felt the tension go out of Reyna next to her and their uncle gave a booming laugh.
She placed a hand on Nico's forearm encouragingly.
"Hazel." He said with a tone of finality.
"Huh?" She waited for him to tell her whatever he had directed her attention for.
"It's going to be Hazel. My sister. Now, my lawful heir."
And the room descended into chaos.
-o-
"How could you be so stupid?" Hazel forced herself to not shout as she paced around her brother's room. The target of her very justified anger was sitting calmly on the grey couch. She, on the other hand, wanted to kick something- or someone. "I know absolutely nothing about business. Zero. Nothing! How could you have named me your heir? I would run this company into the ground- it's like…"
She struggled for an example, "Nominating a blind person to be the designated driver."
Nico sighed, "I'm not going to just suddenly die and leave you everything our father had. It was just a signal to the member of the board that I won't be cowed into submission. They wanted my heir to be a real adult who they could talk money-making nonsense into. Now they know that if anything were to happen to me, they would have to deal with someone with absolutely no experience in business and even less suited to the position than me."
Hazel was fuming. She ignored the hurt those words caused her. "Have you thought about how selfish that was of you? Your father, no- our father built this empire that you're willing to throw it away because the board of directors make a perfectly normal request that a stupid boy shouldn't be left alone to manage affairs?"
Nico glared daggers at her, "Stupid boy? Who are you calling stupid?"
"You've been cushioned by our father's money all your life. Earning and making a living is hard. Is it so bad for the executives of the company to be trying to keep the company alive?"
"Keeping the company alive?" Nico snorted derisively, "They're watching out for their own wallets. This company was built with blood money- people like your mother who were scammed into throwing their lives away and diving head first into the pile of addicts that my father and uncle fed on."
There were some lines that shouldn't be crossed. And talking about her mother in such a dismissive way was one of them.
"Don't talk about her like that." A sense of déjà vu flashed through her mind- they had had a similar argument just a few weeks ago. It made her feel like the progress they had made in their relationship was unravelling. "She might have been an addict, but she was a good mother. What do you know about good parenting?"
Nico stood up suddenly and stalked towards her, and for a moment she thought he was going to strike her in anger. But he paused and looked directly into her eyes.
"Good parenting, huh? You know why I never had good parenting? Because my father was a drug dealer and my mother was murdered before I could even form coherent memories of her. That's what money buys you- misery and grief."
"I don't want his legacy. I don't want the life I have now. And I don't need you to tell me what is right and what is wrong."
"I know, Nico. You've never needed me. I'm the half-sister that you turn to when you think about the concept of family. The half-sister that you cast out the moment she tells you the truth."
Hazel turned and stalked towards the door. "Goodbye. You won't see me after school. You might never see me again!"
She felt Nico move to follow her, but then hesitate. She shook her head derisively and didn't look back. Pushing past Frank, barely holding back tears, she headed towards the lift. Reyna would be waiting for her in the carpark. Her only dependable friend. The only person that she was certain of.
Maybe except Frank, she added. She would come back, even if it was just to visit him.
But, for now, she just wanted a boring period of maths with red-faced Mr Menzies to occupy her mind completely.
-o-
He didn't really know how long he sat there in that armchair after Hazel had left. By now, there were only a few drops left in the whiskey bottle that he had taken up upstairs with him. His head was buzzing, but instead of the normal peaceful mindset he found himself in after drinking, he felt ill.
"Was this bottle full or half full when I got my hands on it?" Nico asked himself. His speech was slurring now, and he thought it was best that he got himself on to the bed before he slid off the chair completely and made a fool of himself.
As he stood, the bottle rolled off his lap and under the chair. But when he bent down to pick it up, a wave of nausea overwhelmed him. Gasping, Nico fell to his knees and tried not to gag. His head was pounding, and so was his heart.
But it was different from the quick pains that had plagued him over the last week or so.
He was in agony.
Nico collapsed onto the ground, room spinning madly as he desperately tried not to vomit. However, it wasn't very successful. The young man retched, and a mixture of whiskey and stomach acid splashed onto the carpet.
He pinched the third button of his shirt- a mechanism that would call Frank to his location at any time of the day. It was something only he knew about. Without warning, a streak of pain shot up his arm and into his heart.
He groaned, "What's happening to me? Gods, do you just hate me?"
At these words, he could no longer support himself. Nico's entire body jerked with spasms as he clutched at his chest, hoping that a firm grip could stop the force which seemed to be physically crushing his heart.
His lungs seemed to have stopped working as well, and weak wheezing was all he was capable of at this point. He tried to call for help. Was this death? And just after he had nominated Hazel… Cruel irony indeed.
Dimly, with increasingly blurry vision, he was aware of a shadow above him. Was it Frank? He was being shifted, and someone was talking. Talking much too loudly. He wanted the darkness to embrace him and take him away from the fire that was engulfing his body. It felt like his entire body was numb, and he only had partial control of his thoughts.
Dull pressure was being applied to his chest, pain flaring as his barely healed ribs were pressed on.
Nico's eyes rolled back into his head as he succumbed to the darkness.
-o-
Did I just kill off another main character? Or did someone else?