Chapter 254: Jealousy
They say jealousy is troublesome to others but a torment to the one who feels it.
So what happens when it is experienced not by one, but by two people whose powers are capable of destroying everyone and everything in the vicinity?
Well, that didn’t happen but... almost.
When a devil who had been devoid of emotions for as long as he could remember finally tasted that ugly emotion to the brim, things spiralled exactly the way Cillian had predicted.
The moment Aliana dived into the water, it was as though the calm switch within him had been violently flipped, leaving behind nothing but utter chaos.
His powers reacted instantly.
Dark clouds churned overhead, the wind rose with terrifying force, and dust was ripped from the ground, swallowing the open venue in a strong dust storm. Within seconds, everyone who had been staring at Aliana had their eyes forced shut.
Panic erupted as no one could see a thing.
To make matters worse, the carefully arranged décor around the venue began crashing under the violent winds, sending people scrambling in every direction with panicked cries.
Those in the pool were in no better condition. The water rippled violently beneath them as powerful gusts whipped it into their faces, making it nearly impossible to keep their balance or even see who was beside them.
"Fuck! Why is it so stormy all of a sudden?!" Cedric shouted as he struggled to see through the swirling dust, but the fierce winds forced his eyes shut.
"Ced!" Gwen blindly reached out for him before finally grabbing his arm. "We need to get out of here!"
"Everyone, get inside! Move!" Cedric roared.
The staff desperately tried to guide the guests towards the mansion, but the storm had already thrown everything into chaos. Visibility had dropped to almost nothing, and before long, people were separated from one another, stumbling through whichever entrance they could find.
Jade barely had time to react before Cillian wrapped a protective arm around her shoulders, shielding her from the flying debris as he guided her toward a quiet path through the garden, away from the shoving crowd and the flinging decor.
Weaving through the storm effortlessly, Cillian spotted a small, heavy wooden door tucked away in the shadows of the mansion’s outer wall. Without missing a beat, he shoved the heavy oak open and pulled her inside, letting the door slam shut behind them.
The moment the door shut, the roar of the cutting wind vanished, replaced by an eerie, sudden stillness. Cillian leaned his back against the door, his chest rising and falling as he kept Jade securely in his arms.
As the adrenaline began to clear, Jade fluttered her eyes open, her breath catching in her throat as she gasped, "Bloody hell! What on earth just happened out there?!"
Cillian looked down at the petite woman pressed so tightly against his chest and for a fleeting second, he stilled at the feeling of her hands clinging to his shirt.
When Jade raised her head in the dark space, he offered a low, smooth reply. "I told you, didn’t I? There was a storm coming."
Jade replied in sheer disbelief. "I thought you were being poetic! Oh god, Ali! She’s still out there in the pool! We have to go back and get her!"
She made a sudden move to find the door handle, but Cillian’s grip tightened around her to hold her firmly in place and caused her heart to give a sudden, erratic flutter.
"There is no need to panic," he murmured with absolute certainty. "Gavriel would never let anything touch her."
Jade tried to gauge his expression, but the small space was completely enveloped in pitch-black darkness. Yet there was something in the quiet, unshakeable conviction in his voice that made the knot of anxiety in her chest slowly begin to unravel.
Releasing a breath she hadn’t realised she was holding, she let out a soft scoff, shaking her head. "What a complete, utter mess."
When her heart rate slowed down a little, only then did she realise just how close they were, still standing wrapped in each other’s arms.
Her cheeks flushed a deep red, and she suddenly became acutely aware of his breath brushing against her forehead. She could only be thankful that it was pitch black and that he couldn’t see the colour rising in her face.
Or so she thought.
Because Cillian could see everything perfectly in the dark.
Clearing her throat, she gently pushed herself away, and he let her.
Trying to fill the awkward silence, she asked nervously, "Where exactly are we?"
She took another step backwards, but instead of solid ground, her foot met empty air.
A startled gasp escaped her lips as her body tilted backwards.
Before she could fall, Cillian caught her wrist and yanked her back against him.
"What the fuck!" Jade gasped, clutching onto him. "Where the hell is the floor?"
Cillian let out a quiet sigh before pulling his phone from his pocket and switching on the flashlight.
The beam illuminated the space, and for a fleeting second, their eyes met as they both realised just how close they were standing, with their breaths brushing against each other.
But before either of them could speak, Cillian’s gaze shifted over her shoulder and his dark eyes narrowed into slits.
Jade slowly turned her head, following his line of sight, and the flustered warmth on her face vanished, replaced instantly by a deep scowl.
....
Meanwhile, back at the pool, Aliana had dived deep beneath the surface, trying to calm herself. She hadn’t even realised that it was her own powers, reacting to her emotions, that had violently churned the once-calm water and sent everyone scrambling out of the pool.
She must have been underwater for only a couple of seconds before deciding to emerge. As soon as she broke the surface, her eyes widened at the sight of the chaos as people shoved past one another and ran for shelter from the raging storm.
Seeing that most of them were already off the pool, she swam to the edge to get out, not realising that not once had dust or debris touched her.
Just as her hands gripped the wet tiles at the edge of the pool, a pair of pristine shoes came to a halt directly in front of her.
Slowly, her eyes travelled upwards, and she swallowed hard at the sight of a... very pissed Gavriel.