King of the Underworld by RJ Kane

Chapter 460

460
Sephie
I really had to hand it to the guys. They were so attentive to my needs this time. They were struggling just as much as I was about being here. They were all trying to hide it, but I could tell every single one of them was just at nervous as I was. It seemed to help them deal with that when they could be closer to me, just as it helped me. I wasn’t going to complain.
Adrik kept me close. He did have to let go of me a few times when greeting people, but for the most part, he kept one arm around me while he shook hands with literally every person in attendance. It meant I could feel what he felt when he touched people. It was fascinating.
Most people here were overwhelmingly good. When Adrik would shake their hand, it was a momentary feeling of joy. There were a few, however, that had some darkness behind them, but nothing that made any of us worry. Only once did I feel Ivan’s bubble go up. Strangely, it was for one of the hospital administrators who had stopped to speak to Adrik. He had very soft hands and an even softer handshake. The kind of handshake that gave you the creeps right away.
I happily stayed blissfully cut off from that conversation while it happened. I took the opportunity to ask Ivan if he could see anything. He showed me what he saw when he looked at the administrator. He wasn’t completely consumed by his demon, but it had a very tight hold of the man. The demon itself was clearly defined. The man was older, with a slightly bent over posture, like he’d spent hours pouring over balance sheets. Once I saw what Ivan saw, I wondered if it wasn’t the weight of the demon on his back that was causing his poor posture.
I turned my head away from Adrik and the administrator, making eye contact with Stephen as I pretended to cough. I cut my eyes toward the administrator, which meant Stephen was to find the opportunity to speak in front of him to see if we could scare the demon away. He stepped closer to us, to get a sense of the conversation that Adrik was having and interjected a question at the perfect moment.
We all watched as the man suddenly had a coughing attack, almost like he was choking. Ivan still had his bubble up around me, but he was still showing me what he could see. The demon was making a last-ditch effort to get inside, trying to get away from Stephen, which is what was causing the man to cough. His body was trying to reject it.
Stephen was standing just on the other side of Adrik, slightly behind him. I held my hand out to Stephen, who readily took it. He could then see what Ivan was seeing. He spoke a second time and even went to help the man. As soon as Stephen touched the man, Ivan could see the demon just vanish. Stephen’s eyes went a little wide, but he kept himself under control. Once the man stopped coughing, Stephen returned to stand just behind Adrik
once more.

This time, he grabbed my hand, showing me what had just happened. When he touched the man, he could feel the rage from the demon, who actually spoke to him. I could clearly hear it say, “you’ll never get all of us.” Then, it laughed as it was vanishing.
I got chills as I watched what Stephen had seen. Adrik and Ivan both felt it immediately and I was hit with a wave of fiery anger from both of them. I didn’t mean to laugh, but I did. It caused everyone to look at me. It appeared that I was laughing at this man having a coughing attack in front of me.
I cleared my throat, looking at the man. “Sorry. I laugh when I’m nervous,” I told him, hoping that was enough of an explanation to grant me some grace and make me not look like a giant a*shole.
The administrator surprised me by laughing with me. “It’s okay. That came out of nowhere, but I actually feel much better now,” he said, excusing himself as he grabbed someone who was walking by.
The guys took the opportunity to close in on me and Adrik, cutting anyone else off for just a moment. I quickly shared what we’d just witnessed with both Andrei and Misha as Ivan shared it with Adrik.
“That was different,” Adrik said. “He’s the only one so far tonight. Honestly, I was expecting more.”
Battista took the opportunity of us being mostly alone to walk to the mayor. He interrupted the conversation the mayor was having and pulled him toward us. It was good to be ridiculously wealthy, apparently.
Before they could make it all the way to us, Adrik made sure I was okay. “You’re okay now? I felt you get cold.”
“I’m okay. You and Ivan are really quick now. It wasn’t like it was with Ilya this time. I just got the chills when I heard it speak to Stephen, but I appreciate the heat boost. I’ll never turn that down,” I said, smiling up at him.
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He smiled softly at me, pressing his lips to mine once again just before the mayor walked up. The guys stepped back enough that Battista and the mayor could talk to Adrik, but made it so no one else could approach them and interrupt the conversation we’d been trying to make happen for hours
now.
Adrik’s hand was around my waist as he shook hands with the mayor. I felt a moment of joy when Adrik touched him and nothing else. Ivan shared what he saw. The mayor still had a dark form over him, but it couldn’t gain a hold of him. It was still trying. It would move when the mayor moved, but it wasn’t completely attached yet. I discreetly offered Stephen my hand so he could see what Ivan was seeing and so he’d know what to do. He once again stepped closer, paying attention to the conversation, waiting for the perfect time to interject.
Adrik and the mayor had spoken before, but they tried to keep their interactions limited. It was obvious that Battista had also spoken to the mayor before, as those two were familiar with each other. There was a level of comfort between them that only happened when you’d had several conversations with a person.
Doug, the mayor, told Adrik quietly, “I’ve been speaking with my district attorney. We’re really working hard to find something definitive on the doctor so we can charge him. Honestly, I don’t want you to turn him over to us until I know we have something that will stick. He’s wreaked havoc on this city for a very long time. If we can’t get the justice system to take care of him, then you need to.”
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