Cynthia and Belphegor (Part 2).

“I said what I had to,” Belphegor said calmly. “Again, my apologies for the trouble my choice of host gave you. I guarantee you will never need to worry about him again.”

“...And will I have to worry about you?” Cynthia asked with a careful, scrutinizing look.

“Not at all.” Belphegor chuckled and gave a short bow with a hand across his chest. “I am a man of my word. I wish there was someone left alive to vouch for me, but alas, not even my name carries weight anymore. However, I know you as a professional, a woman of business. If you want to cut ties with me, I will go, but if you wish to make use of my abilities in the future, know that I am in need of cash to live the life I want.”

“It’s always about money with you, huh?”

“Jack’s interest aligned with mine, after all. He lacked everything needed to make it, however, and look at all the trouble his actions brought him.” Belphegor shook his head in disappointment. “I had hoped to simply sit back and enjoy my retirement, but all watching him did was frustrate me and make me want to do things myself. You know how difficult it is to find good subordinates, don’t you?”

“I can agree with that, at the very least.” Cynthia sighed. “Very well. I will contact you, should I need your skills. You seem a far more reasonable man than…” She groaned and shook her head. “So as long as you treat us well, you can expect the same from us.”

“You will not regret this, Lady Evans.” Belphegor bowed.

“That said, you understand that I don’t want you in my house, correct? You are a stranger to me, and if you were still Jack, I would kick you out with even less politeness.”

“A-Ah, yes… THAT detail…”

Will didn’t see his face, but could tell Belphegor was grimacing.

“I will pay for a good hotel for you to stay in,” Cynthia said. “I will give you a month to make yourself useful to us. You can enjoy all its services and luxuries to your heart’s desire, but if I deem your contributions insufficient, you can say goodbye to my patronage.”

“Such generosity!” Belphegor gave honest praise. “I will accept it most humbly, Lady Evans.”

“If you must call me lady, then I would rather it be Lady Cynthia,” she said. She sounded tired. “I would throw it away if I could, but by now the Evans surname is more known than my maiden name.”

“As you wish.”

“Also, I will need you to attend a couple of meetings to finalize my divorce with Jack. A good bottle of liquor is in it for you if you cooperate. I promise to make it an easy and painless endeavor.”

“Lady Cynthia, you are truly a professional.”

“Enough bootlicking. We both have things we want out of the other, and this form of negotiation suits us both the best.”

Belphegor chuckled. “It is as you say, and as such, I promise I speak nothing but genuine praise.”

“I will tell my secretary down at the front desk to make you a reservation at the hotel our main sponsors use. I’m sure it will be to your liking, Mr. Belphegor.”

“I thank you.”

Cynthia glanced towards Will for a split second before she returned her eyes to Belphegor. “You will be hearing from me soon. For now, I have other matters to attend to.”

“By your leave, then.” Belphegor bowed deeply, turned and walked towards the door. Will had to step aside not to be in the way, but the former king stopped before him. He smiled. “That’s one part of my promise fulfilled, lass. Inspect her yourself if you don’t believe me.”

With that, Belphegor finally left.

Will turned to look at Cynthia. His body tense, his stomach weak and his fingers numb, he did not find any words to greet her with, none that felt… appropriate.

“Will…” Cynthia spoke. She sounded tired still, and her eyes showed it even more. Now that Belphegor was gone, her shoulders loosened, her back slumped and her brow fell. “We will speak another day. I’ve been apprised of… everything. Most of it. I can’t talk to you until I have my thoughts in order.”

His heart shrank and froze, despite this being close to what he expected. A tearful reunion was never in the cards, not when Will had used similar powers on her as her husband did. Jack wanted money from Cynthia, and when Will met her, he wanted her body. Both used their powers to get what they wanted out of her.

‘That was me, dammit. Not you.’

It didn’t matter. Not to Cynthia. No matter who it was, she’d been used for other people’s purposes. She had the right to throw him away.

“Just one thing. How are you feeling?” He asked.

“Tired, confused, angry…” She showed a wry, **** smile. “Lonely.”

A dagger to the heart.

Will nodded. “Take however long you need.”

He looked towards Aoi and Nanami. The former was stone-faced, the latter looked back at him with worry. Yet neither of them made a move to leave, and Cynthia didn’t seem to want them gone yet.

“Take care,” he told her.

Who knows. Those could possibly be his last words to her.

Will left the building after clearing some things up with Anna. She was relieved to hear Cynthia was back to her normal self, and glad that Will was unharmed. She’d be dropping by his apartment later that evening.

Will returned home. Reina wasn’t there. Exhaustion didn’t even let him wonder where she was. He dropped face first on his bed, and before he knew it, he was asleep.