Chapter 22: Blood will answer blood

Chapter 22: Blood will answer blood Through the first half of the day, Stephan barely touched his design mockups. His mind circled only one thing: How to draw Yennefer out. Where to finish it. Across the office, Anna Mary turned from her table, her eyes flicking toward him. For a moment, their gazes locked. He caught the silent question there: Are you still in on that deal? He dipped his head, just enough for her to see. Yes. He understood. But even as he did, a cold knot formed in his chest. A part of him didn’t want Anna Mary involved at all. "What do you care for her safety?" hissed a darker voice inside. "She didn’t notice you. Didn’t give a fuck until you were reborn." Stephan clenched his jaw. Shadows at the edge of his sight seemed to twitch, restless. "You always like her, Stephan," the voice pressed on, oily and soft. "Nothing’s changed. You couldn’t have her before... but you can have her now." His pulse thudded against his throat. "Kill them both, Yennefer and Anna Mary... otherwise you can’t win." No. No, don’t even think about laying a hand on Anna Mary... "Still weak. Still pathetic. Still that loser who died unnoticed in the last life. Prove how strong you are....." Stephan’s breath rasped out, cutting off the voice. "What did the System say about soul‐consumption?" he reminded himself, the words cold and deliberate. "Your essence will be altered." A low, humorless chuckle slipped past his lips. Maybe this is what it meant... "I’m not fucking touching her," he muttered under his breath, his crimson gaze hardening. But Yennefer... His smirk curled, dark and hungry. She attacked me first. Right there, the plan sharpened in his mind like a blade. He’d ask the supervisor for a pass to step out early. Buy Grief some proper clothes.And if Yennefer still thought he was weak... Maybe she’d follow him. Confront him. And then, he thought, I’ll show her what I’ve become. ***** Around lunchtime, Stephan rose from his desk. He crossed the open floor toward the glass‐walled office. Inside, the supervisor looked up from her screen. For the briefest second, her breath seemed to catch, then she quickly slipped on her tinted shades, as if trying to hide the flush that crept into her cheeks. She can sense it too, Stephan thought, the ghost of a smirk flickering at the edge of his mouth. Even if she doesn’t know what it is... "I’m not feeling well," he said, his voice quieter, lower than usual, yet somehow it carried. "Headache. I’d like a pass for the afternoon." The supervisor swallowed, her fingers fumbling slightly at the drawer. "Oh.... yes, of course," she managed, voice a touch too soft. She avoided meeting his eyes directly, handing over the signed slip with just the faintest tremor. Stephan took the paper without a word, his hand brushing hers for the briefest second. Her face flushed deeper behind the dark lenses. Then he turned and walked out, the door clicking shut behind him, leaving only the faint scent of his cologne and something darker in the air. Overwhelmed by his glow and aura... She didn’t even question it. ******* "I wonder if Grief could even fit in this..." Stephan muttered under his breath, holding up a black bikini between two fingers. The tiny triangles of fabric swayed under the harsh store lights, somehow looking even more absurd in his hand. A soul‐forged Warden reborn in the Abyss...in a bikini? A small, crooked grin tugged at the corner of his lips. Maybe I really should have brought her to pick something herself... "Excuse me, sir," a voice broke in gently. He turned, and for half a second his gaze met the eyes of the shop assistant. She was striking: red hair spilling down her shoulders, green eyes bright and curious, head tilted just so. "What exactly are you looking for?" she asked, the corners of her lips lifting into a soft, almost teasing smile. "I can help you out." For a moment, Stephan felt heat prickle at his neck. Not from desire, but from something closer to embarrassment, a feeling he wasn’t used to anymore. He cleared his throat, lowering the bikini slightly. "It’s... for someone else," he said, voice dropping into that calm, gravel‐low register that always seemed to make people listen. "She’s... new here. Pale, white hair, about this tall..." His hand hovered mid‐chest. The assistant’s smile widened, professional curiosity mixing with something softer. "Well, then," she said, brushing a strand of red hair behind her ear, "let’s find something that will actually suit her." The girl led him through the aisles, holding dresses and tops against her own frame to check sizes. Stephan’s crimson gaze flickered only half at the clothes; the other half was on something else. From beyond the glass storefront, he felt a pulse of soul energy, faint but familiar, brushing against his senses like a cold draft. Someone’s here. "Ugh...I just remembered something," Stephan said abruptly, turning to the red‐haired assistant. "I have to be somewhere." "Oh," she blinked, surprised. "Are you sure? We haven’t even...." "I can never lie to a girl as stunning as you," Stephan cut in, flashing a crooked, almost lazy smile. "I’ll definitely be back." A flush rose to her cheeks. "O‐okay, sir... of course." Stephan paid for the few clothes he’d already picked out, the scanner beeping softly. The moment the bag was in his hand, he stepped outside into the noon sun. And there she was. Anna Mary sat casually on a bench by the window, sipping from a can of lemonade, as if she’d been there all morning. "So... you’re stalking me now?" Stephan drawled, dropping onto the bench beside her, one arm draped loosely over the shopping bag. Anna Mary’s lips curved into a smile. "You left without a word," she said lightly. "I figured I’d follow you." She turned, eyes bright with mischief. "How did you know I was out here?" Stephan’s crimson gaze sharpened. "Same way you knew I left," he murmured. "Leaking your soul energy is dangerous, you know." Her smile barely twitched. "You were leaking yours too, weren’t you?" "I was trying to draw Yennefer out," he admitted, voice dropping. "Still dangerous," Anna Mary teased, tilting her head. "You can’t just wander around leaking power when you’re only an F‐rank... it’s like walking blindfolded through a den of wolves." So she still thinks I’m an F‐rank, Stephan thought, the corner of his mouth twitching. Good. Let her keep believing that. "So where is Yennefer now?" he asked, voice cool. "Still at work," Anna Mary said, crushing the empty can in one hand and tossing it into a trash bin across the street without looking. It landed with a clean clink. "We can wait until she’s dismissed..." Her eyes met his, the smile fading. "...Then we kill her." Stephan said nothing, but inside, the words ignited a low, dark hunger. His bloodlust almost rose to the surface before he forced it back down. "Anyway," she went on, leaning over to peek inside his shopping bag, "what were you doing in a women’s boutique?" Stephan’s grip tightened on the bag. "Buying clothes," he muttered. Anna Mary raised an eyebrow, curiosity and suspicion swirling together. "Girls’ clothes... really?" "It’s not what you think," Stephan said, voice flat, hoping to shut her down. Anna Mary’s eyes sparkled, lips parting in surprise. "Wait... Stephan King has a girlfriend?" "Something like that," Stephan said, already pushing himself up from the bench. "What? Who?" Anna Mary’s voice tripped over itself, tinged with something rawer than curiosity. "Who is she?" "Doesn’t matter," Stephan tossed over his shoulder, already walking. "Mind helping me out, though?" He didn’t have to say more. At the faintest hint of competition, Anna Mary was on her feet instantly, following close behind, eyes sharp, mind racing. ***** A few hours later, twilight had settled over the city like a fading bruise. Neon signs flickered to life, throwing restless shadows across concrete and glass. Across the street from their workplace, Stephan and Anna Mary waited in the narrow mouth of an alley, half‐hidden behind a rusted delivery truck. "Do you think she’ll come out anytime soon?" Stephan murmured, his eyes fixed on the glass doors of the office building. "It’s already past seven," Anna Mary replied, her voice low but steady. "I can still sense her soul energy inside... but it’s moving. She’ll be leaving any moment now." Stephan’s fingers drummed once against the cold metal of the truck. And then, as if summoned by the quiet promise of violence, she appeared. Yennefer stepped out through the glass doors, her posture casual yet wary. Her eyes swept the street, scanning the thinning crowd for danger, or perhaps, for them. Then she turned and began walking down the dimly lit sidewalk, the sharp clip of her heels echoing against concrete. "There goes our prey," Anna Mary whispered, her breath barely a ghost in the evening air. Stephan’s lips curled into a slow, hungry smirk, the predator in him stirring awake. "Then let the hunt begin," he murmured, voice edged with darkness. At last, the shadows whispered back in agreement. Blood will answer blood. And they stepped out into the night, following silently in Yennefer’s wake.