Kapitel 361: brutally honest
Jos swallowed hard, glad for the first time during the trip up that Arei had come with her as Triton's cold eyes followed her through the door. She leaned into Arei, letting his comforting embrace shield her from the cold, blue-eyed gaze.
"You're early. I hadn't expected you until tomorrow." Triton's gruff voice reflected no emotion as he followed them in.
"You're here!" Chary popped up from the massive saltwater pool in the center of the expansive living room with a wave.
Arei waved back as he replied. "We didn't want to keep you waiting."
Triton arched a thick brow. "In that case." He held his hand out toward the stairs. "Shall we?"
Jos turned to Arei with questioning eyes as she chewed nervously on her lower lip.
He smiled down at her, rubbing his thumb over her lip. "It's going to get chapped if you continue biting it like that." He bent and placed a tender kiss to her lips before releasing her and giving her a gentle nudge toward the stairs.
Jos worried her hands as she followed Triton up the stairs. She sent Arei several nervous glances as she made her way to the second floor and across the balcony overlooking the bottom floor. He waited until she'd made her way into the upstairs office before, he strolled over to the pool and took a seat. "How was the trip?"
Chary shrugged. "Dad brought us."
Arei looked around. "He still here?"
She tapped her index finger to her chin. "He may still be upstairs… but I doubt it. The new council selection has him incredibly busy of late." Her eyes sparkled as her smile widened. "How was your trip?"
Arei let out a heavy sigh as he leaned back in the chair. "Not great… but could have been worse, I guess…"
"Did you make up?"
It was his turn to shrug. "Hell if I know…"
Her smile fell and her brows knitted. "How could you not know?!"
He rocked his head from side to side against the headrest of the chair as he blew out a groan. "How? Because one minute she's screaming at me and yeeting me into the fucking Tampa Bay and the next clinging to me like her life depends on my mere existence."
"Hum… seems confusing."
"You don't say." He muttered. He lifted his head. "Where's Scylla?"
Chary nodded toward the far end of the pool. "She decided to take her swim outdoors. You know how she loves the cold waters."
Arei involuntarily shivered as he thought back to the many cold dips he'd taken the last time he'd been here with Jos. "Hard pass!"
"Agreed!"
***
Jos fumbled nervously with her hands as she waited for Triton to adjust the large projector screen. With a few clicks of the controller in his hand, the image of her in a cute frilly dress and pig tails was pasted across the screen.
"Do you recognize this image?" He asked coolly.
Jos nodded. "Yes… it was our mission from the other day."
"Yes… And you understand that you are here to have the mission evaluated and to have it determined whether this role is a fitting job for you?"
She nodded again, her anxiety growing.
He pressed play, standing silently as the full video played out. Once the footage had ended, he crossed his arms and turned back to her. "How would you rate this if you were to judge it yourself?"
She swallowed hard, her eyes darted to the door and back. Though his likeness was very much like Arei and Ry, something about the massive man was more intimidating… and almost frightening. "I… I would say there were some mistakes made…"
"There were. Where do you think you make the first mistake?"
She swallowed past the lump in her throat. "I… I… I'm not entirely sure… Probably drawing out the torture too long…"
His cold eyes pierced into her. "Wrong." He turned to the screen and backed up the footage. "Here. You coerced the suspect." He sped it up. "Here as well. Their identities were not yet verified, and you'd already began your games."
"I… I wouldn't call it a game…"
A rugged brow lifted. "Really? I'd say it was nearly identical to a child playing with her food rather than a trained agent seeking information." He nodded toward the screen. "This one was so traumatized from your administrations we were unable to get the locations of their other victims from him… the other is still in a coma."
"I… I lost control toward the end…" She admitted, tension coursing through her entire body at his cold scrutiny.
"You were informed during briefings that the suspects would have to be brought in and interrogated, were you not?" He waited for her to respond. When she only nodded, a nerve twitched in his jaw. "Yet you rendered both men completely useless." He shook his head. "These are serious matters. I do not believe you are fit to perform the assignments required for this position."
Jos's eyes bugged. "Does that mean I'm… fired?"
"More or less." He turned off the projector and placed the controller on his desk.
"Wait! Is that all?" She sprang from her chair but restrained herself from touching his arm.
He glared down at her. "It is. Was there more you expected?"
She knitted her brows. "I expected a second chance to write my wrongs in this case."
He crossed his arms back over his thick torso. "In this line of work there are no second chances." He was silent for several moments as he studied her. "Even so, all the chances in the world would not have you fit for this role. You are too out of control and too immature, Miss Decker. Perhaps it is why you prefer the form of a child."
Her mouth dropped at the blatant insult. "I-"
He lifted his hand. "My decision is made. You may see yourself out."
Jos didn't waste any time as she sprinted toward the door. When she saw Arei leaning against the railing of the second floor, she flung herself into his arms. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she buried her face in the soft fabric of his button up.
"Didn't go well, I take it?" He stroked the back of her hair with one hand as he held her tight with the other.
Jos shook her head against his chest. "He basically fired me."
Arei frowned. "He can't fire you. Only father can do that… But his report will be taken under heavy advisement." When her arms tightened around his waist, he curled himself around her. "I'll have a talk to him and father both, alright… don't fret." He held her out at arm's length, studying her tear-streaked face. "Is this job really that important to you?"
Jos nodded. "What else could I do? What else would I be good at?" She whimpered.
His brows tented. "You could go back to art, could join Shelly in curating the new museums and galleries…"
"But this was something I thought I'd be good at… A way I could use my powers for the betterment of mankind…" Her sad features dropped more. "But he said I was still too violent… to immature in my actions… and maybe I was… but…"
Arei laced his fingers into her hair and tugged her face back to his chest as he glared at the door. "I'll talk to him. If it's something you really want to do, then I'll support your decision."
Jos nodded and pushed away from him. Her eyes shimmered as she sent him a weak but thankful smile. "Thank you. It means a lot."
He studied her as he caressed the silken strands of her hair. "No problem, kitten." He nodded toward the lower level. "Go hang out with Chary for a bit, and I'll find you when we're finished talking."
Her smile brightened a little. "Ok, thank you." She pressed up onto her tiptoes and gave him a quick kiss.
When she went to push away from him, he tightened his hold. His lips lowered back to hers, drinking her in languidly as he held her tight. When he did finally break their kiss, he whispered softly against her lips. "I'm not doing it for free… Let me stay with you tonight, too."
Jos bit into her now sore and swollen lower lip as she thought it over. She finally let her lip roll out from between her teeth as she nodded. "Alright…"
He smiled widely down at her. "Good. Now go on downstairs I'll be down in a few minutes." He let his hands slide slowly away from her body, then watched as she made her descent down the stairs. Once Jos made it to the poolside, she sent him a wave. He smiled down at her, waving back. When she turned her attention to Chary, his smile faded. He straightened himself and righted his shirt as he walked into the office. His eyes instantly found Triton. "That was a bit harsh, don't you think? And highly unlike you."
Triton didn't bother looking up from the paperwork he was filling out. "I was simply giving an evaluation…"
Arei huffed out a sarcastic laugh. "I bet you'd not speak so directly to any of your other subordinates."
Triton's narrowed eyes met Arei's stern gaze from over the reading glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. "What are you trying to say, little brother?"
Arei walked over and planted his palms firmly against the top of the desk. "I'm saying you are judging her harshly based solely on bias and personal dislike."
Triton set back in his chair and removed his glasses, folding them neatly on top the papers he'd been filling out. "Why would I have a bias or dislike for her?" He didn't give Arei time to answer as he continued, holding his brother's gaze stoically. "One brother is on a foolish mission to break her curse as we speak. I've not heard from him, have you?" When Arei went to reply, he lifted his hand. "She has wrecked one of my beloved brother's lives on more than one occasion now." His brow arched. "Would you deny that as well? Deny the pain written on your face as you stand here. Tell me, are you still fighting others for her affections?"
Arei gritted his teeth. "My welfare is none of your concern, as Ry's decisions are his own to make as well. Now stop playing."
Triton sighed as he pushed up from his chair. "Alright, fine. Say I grant her a second chance… what then? The two of you will be separated again, she will go back to mindless torture and killing without change and will be putting Chary and Scylla in danger as well."
Arei pursed his lips. "I'm fairly sure Scylla and Charybdis can handle themselves."
"Are you in so much of a hurry to see her off once again? I thought you'd appreciate my refusal." He said as he walked over to the windows and gazed out over the rough waters of the North Atlantic. "I know if I had a second chance at keeping those I held dearest close… I'd take it in any form it presented itself in."
"Tell me, how has forcing your will on those loved ones worked so far?"
Tri didn't say anything immediately, instead, his gaze stayed focused on the rough waves. "You mean to prod me into an argument, but I'll not be baited so easily." His voice was gruffer with emotion as he added. "You don't understand what it is to be a father…"
Arei let out a frustrated sigh. "And with any luck, I never will. Give Jos a second chance." Triton turned to respond, but Arei lifted his hand to stop him. "I'll see myself out." As he turned to leave the room, Triton's low, stern voice caused him to pause.
"I could not save Pellas or my children's mothers. I could not stop Triteia from leaving any more than I could you or Athena… and could not stop Ariel from falling in love with the wrong person any more than I can you right here and now." When Arei only glared back at him, he continued. "I will not change my judgment here today, but I will speak to father about something a bit different for her… If she means that much to you."
"She does… and I thank you." Arei paused once again, his hand resting on the doorknob. "I know well enough how much pain love has brought you over the years, but I'm not you… and I'm not Ariel. Don't use your trauma against her… or me."
Triton's expression hardened. "Very well, little brother. But you must realize, you can't have it all."
Arei nodded. "I'm well aware."
AUTORENGEDANKEN 
Jacquia_comics
Jacquia_comics The antidepressants/anxiety meds are really helping... I feel like the chapters might be a bit better now than they have been since returning from hiatus.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
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