X. A Warning

As the doors opened Hayden was standing right in front of me. I quickly stuffed my phone into my pocket, hiding that I had it with me.

“Where have you been, I thought I told you, you weren't to leave your room until I said so.” His bossiness always made me want to retaliate with my stubbornness, but I’ve began to find it flattering and cute. He cares.

“I decided to go for a walk, I feel perfectly fine. You don't need to worry, just let me come back to work.” I replied with a smile, but he continued to look serious.

“Miss Lockwood, you can't walk around without an escort I thought I made that clear when we signed the papers. You're wellbeing is at most important and you seem to keep finding ways to get yourself in danger. I would hate to break my promise to your uncle or see you get hurt.” He replied folding his arms over his chest.

“Like I said I feel perfectly fine can I please come back to work, I have nothing to do here. I was sent here to do work. Please Sir I promise I will stay out of trouble.” I begged, batting my eyelashes like a child. I could see his shoulders loosen up and he began to give into me.

“Fine. We have a new case to work on. Does Dorian keep all case files from previous Titan attacks?” Does he know? Max said he knew. Maybe he was right.

“Has there been an attack?!” I asked alarmed.

“No. there has been several sightings of Titans on Earth, Olympus and Underworld breaking into God's houses and stealing their artefacts. This behaviour usually indicates that they are preparing for an attack. They use the artefacts to give their weaker Titans more power, so they are prepared for battle.” Hayden explained as we began to walk along towards my room.

“I can go back to earth and get all the documents that you need.” I replied. I’ve missed Dorian and his stubbornness. I missed seeing people.

“No. I want you to stay right here. I can't risk letting you go alone when Titans are roaming the Earth. I will get in contact with Dorian and ask him if he can send the files to my laptop. I will need you to look through them and find as much information on the new Titans and who they might be. Maybe if we find out who is behind this, we can predict their attack.” Hayden seemed determined to find who the Titans were and predict their moves, without any real evidence that they would attack. It felt like he had been in the room with Max and I, recanting our entire conversation.

“Okay, I will get my things and meet you in your office.” I replied, nodding along and making my way to my room.

“Thank you miss Lockwood.” I went back to my room and collected a bag with my laptop. I arrived at Hayden’s office and set up my laptop at a table. Hayden was sitting behind his desk waiting for Dorian to send him over the files. His demeanour seemed cold towards me and I couldn't help but wonder if perhaps he knew where I was and that I had spoken to Max. I wanted to ask him about my mother's necklace, but I didn't have any way of bringing it up without telling him about Max. Even though I didn't know if I could trust my brother, I felt betrayed by Hayden and the fact that he knew my mother and hadn't said a word about knowing who I was. He made it seem like he hired me because I was a good worker, but I knew that it was because he knew my mother. I wondered if he had been the one to save me from the Titans when I was young. I couldn't remember the man that saved me and gave me to Dorian. I knew I needed to see Max again because he knew a lot more than I did. Maybe I could find out who was the man that saved me all those years ago. Lost in my thoughts I finally received an email with 30 files of recent sightings of Titans on Olympus, Earth and the Underworld. I placed a large notepad in front of me with a pen and began to write down as much information as I could find on the Titans. Several of the files had described somebody who resembled Max and I grew worried what would happen if they knew that he was my brother. I would probably lose my job. I continued to look through the files for several hours and I only noticed the time when my laptop began to flash that it was out of battery. We had stayed up until 1AM and hadn't even noticed. My stomach was rumbling, and I looked over to Hayden who was leaning against his chair with his head back, asleep. Although I felt angry at Hayden, I couldn't help but stare at his beautiful face. I had never really had time to examine his handsome face, perfect hair and smooth skin. I had found Hayden attractive from the beginning but had never considered him as a potential interest. Admitting to myself that I was potentially interested in Hayden only made my heart fluster more as I watched him. I got up from my seat and left the office going down to the canteen and getting us both a coffee. I walked back and he was still asleep in his chair. It made me smile to see him so relaxed and comfortable. I placed a cup of coffee by my laptop and carried his to his table. I watched his chest slowly rise and fall admiring his face. I felt the urge to touch him, but I knew that I would wake him. I sat down on the corner of his table and just watched as his chest rose and fell for another couple minutes before softly touching his cheek. Suddenly his eyes opened, and he grabbed my wrist pulling me closer to him. His sleepy eyes met mine. We both stared at each other as my mouth slowly fell open, looking for a word, any word. I couldn't think of any excuse that I could give him for having the audacity to touch him.

“I got you some coffee.” I said in a fluster as he loosened the grip on my wrist. My heart was beating out of my chest. I definitely crossed the line this time. I stood up from the table and quickly took a step back as he sat up straight in his chair.

“Thank you, Miss Lockwood. I hadn't noticed the time. You should go get some sleep.” He replied, not showing any reaction to me touching his face.

“I’m okay to continue Sir. This is an important case and I want to get as much information as I can so we can prevent the attack.” I replied with a smile and returned to my seat.

“Miss Lockwood, you continue to defy me. I need you to rest so you can do your job properly.” He replied harshly. I felt a small twinge in my heart. Perhaps he was angry that I touched him.

“Yes Sir. Goodnight.” I went back to my room and collapsed on my bed. It took me but a couple of seconds to fall asleep. For the remainder of the week we spent our time looking through the files trying to get as much information as we could and identify at least one of the Titans. I couldn't find any spare time to go back down and see Max without Hayden noticing. I hadn't decided if to tell Dorian about Max or not. I wanted to protect him but that meant risking my whole career. Working with Hayden had been a dream come true and I didn't want to give that away. I knew I had to find Star and get proof that Max was only trying to warn the Gods.