Page 59 of Legion
His inner demons stared at her, nonplussed.“Draya, I can honestly tell you that I felt no such thing,” Luka bluntly stated.“I can also tell you that, Naomi or no Naomi, I would have made no move on you.I don’t want a woman in my life who’d not only try to get an in with me through my anchor but wouldn’t respect my need for privacy.”
Her eyes went diamond-hard.“You’re pretty big-headed to think that my being friendly with Ella has anything to do with you.”
His patience wearing thin, Luka leaned forward in his seat, bracing his lower arms on the table.“Don’t insult my intelligence.You plied her with personal questions about me, so your purpose for seeking her out was more than fucking obvious.”
Draya snapped her mouth shut.“I see no point in continuing this conversation.It’s not making our situation any better.”
“Wedon’t have a situation.There’s noweat all.I’m your employer, nothing more.Unless, of course, you’d like to quit your job.Is that where this is going?”
She paused.“Miss out on the tips I get here?No.No, I’m not quitting.”
“Then keep things professional from here on out and stay away from Ella.If you don’t, you won’t merely be fired, Draya.I don’t tolerate anyone fucking with my anchor.”
The she-demon swallowed hard, her eyes flickering, and then haughtily squared her shoulders.“Understood.”She rose from her chair, her back ramrod straight.“I’d like to get back to work now.”
Luka flicked a hand toward the door.“Then go.”
She turned stiffly toward it and calmly left the room.
The twins returned, closing the door behind them.
“She’s not a happy bunny right now,” Nikandr noted.“Neither are you,” he added, studying Luka’s expression.“What did she say that put that look on your face?”
Luka relaxed in his chair.“Several things I didn’t like.”He brought the brothers up to speed, giving them a short summary of the conversation.
Nikandr scowled.“I get that her ego will have taken a hit when you chose to pursue Naomi rather than her; that’s understandable.But believing that anyone—male or female—is obligated to take flirting further is a messed-up mindset.”
Mikhail nodded hard.“Fuck, I flirt all the time.It means shit.”
“To be fair, bro, I don’t think women always realize it’s supposed to be flirting—you’re not that good at it,” teased Nikandr, his lips tipping up when Mikhail cursed him in Russian.
Raiden’s mind abruptly bumped into Luka’s, a sense of urgency buzzing along his consciousness.I know you didn’t want to be interrupted, but we have a major situation here.
Luka felt his brow crease.What sort?
Iain seems to be on the verge of going rogue, replied the sentinel.
Fuck.
CHAPTER TWELVE
Mere minutes later, Daniil teleported Luka and the twins to the underground vault.Luka took the lead as they strode down the passageway, making a beeline for Iain’s cell, allowing the relative darkness to envelop them.
If Iain was on the verge of turning rogue, it could mean two things.Either his psyche was splintering, or he was prepared to willingly surrender control to his entity as a means of escape.It wouldn’t be the first time someone had left their demon to deal with the consequences of their actions.
Whatever the case, this wasn’t good.
The only thing stopping a person’s inner entity from giving in to their unfeeling nature was the balance they received from sharing their soul with someone.When a demon took over, they had no balance.
To turn rogue wasn’t to lose your sanity.It simply meant that a demon would lose any and all interest in reason or rationality.They would kill because they could, no motive required.And they would not stop until somebody killedthem.
Nearing Iain’s cell, Luka saw the prisoner leaning against the bars, each hand loosely clasping one.Raiden watched him uneasily from a short distance away.
A flickering bulb cast light over Iain’s face, giving Luka flashes of pure black eyes.It was then he realized that Iain wasn’t in charge at that moment.
Luka stopped a mere foot from the cell, meeting the entity’s probing gaze head-on.His own inner demons stirred, watching it very carefully.
It glanced around.“If it were not for the bars keeping me prisoner, I would like it here,” it said, its voice cold and flat.“So much pain and blood and fear—the emotional echoes are strong.”
