*Present time*
*Nessy's Mansion*
"Yes, you are right," he started, glaring at her. "I want Nessy and all of her, but the problem now is… you are not my Nessy," Geb said, sending shivers down her spine.
Nut's heart jumped to her throat. Did he really find out she wasn't truly Nessy, or was it just his instincts telling him? Her eyes darted around in confusion, but she dared not blow her cover before him. Maybe he was just trying to test her.
"What are you saying?" she asked nervously. "What do you mean by 'I am not your Nessy'?"
"I mean what I said, and I said what I meant. YOU ARE NOT MY NESSY!" Geb roared, grabbing her arm.
"Stop, Geb! Aaaah, you're hurting me!" Nut cried as she felt the pain from his squeezing grip. "Please stop, Geb! Stop this, please!!" she pleaded.
"What are you doing here, Nut?" he demanded. "And where is Nessy? What have you done to her?"
Nut still couldn't believe he had really found her out. Was he convinced she was Nut and not Nessy, or was he simply testing her? Besides, Aposis had promised her that he wouldn't find out if she acted innocent and pure like Nessy, and didn't let her emotions take control. *Dammit!* she cursed inwardly as she realized she had been carried away by her lust and need for him, forgetting she was pretending to be someone else—not herself.
Geb must have found out by her actions, even without his quick wit, that she wasn't Nessy. And the only one who acted like that toward him was she—Nut. *Oh my!* she gasped inwardly. She had blown her cover despite all the warnings Aposis had given her. She was truly a dummy, just like she'd said.
Nevertheless, she pressed on, hoping to convince him otherwise.
"Nut?… Who is that, Geb? I don't know who you're talking about. Geb, please let go of my hands—you're hurting me," she shed crocodile tears, hoping to buy him with her words. She really didn't want to lose him now, after all she'd been through just to be with him. She now regretted losing control of her thoughts. *Oh my, what have I gotten myself into?* she thought, fear gripping her.
Geb was stunned. She still had the guts to continue the act. Maybe she thought he was joking.
Without wasting time, he grabbed her neck in an attempt to strangle her. His huge palms squeezed her slim long neck.
"Geb, what are you—" she tried to say but was losing breath, feeling like she was dying. She tapped his hand, signaling him to let go, no longer able to speak. *Was he really going to kill me? No!... Or was he… Yes, he was!* she thought in terror as he tightened his grip.
She thought fast—if she didn't act quickly, she would die a painful death by Geb's hands. Her thoughts raced, and within seconds, a bulb lit in her mind. *Yes! That's what I'll do!* she thought joyfully, relieved to finally have a way out of death's clutches.
"Ge…b," she struggled to pronounce through his grip. "K…ill m…e a…nd you… w…ill… n…e…v…er f…i…nd h…er," she forced out, each word hurting her throat.
At this, Geb jolted from his rage. His Nessy. How could he have forgotten she must have done something to the real Nessy—something dangerous only she knew about? Immediately, he released her and stepped back, letting her catch her breath. Then he grabbed her hair and spoke close to her face, anger and desperation evident in his voice.
"Where is my Nessy?" he demanded.
Nut coughed repeatedly, struggling for air. She still couldn't believe that her Geb—her twin brother and lover—could do such a thing to her: try to kill her. She looked at him helplessly as he showed no concern for how she fared. Yet, inside, she rejoiced over one thing: she had something he didn't—something he would kill for. Not yet, but she knew where to find it.
She smiled slyly to herself at the thought, but instantly winced when he dragged her arm and spoke again.
"Where is my Nessy?"
Though Nut trembled at the rage in his voice, she couldn't help but notice the desperation beneath it. She gave him a sly smile and said, "Kill me, and you will never find her!"
Geb's annoyance and fury surged. He yanked her up by her hair, then leaned close to her ear and whispered softly but dangerously, "Maybe I don't have to kill you. All I need is to suck your brains out and get what I want."
Nut shivered. Could he really do that? Had his will increased so much that he could extract any information by sucking someone's brains dry? *He can't,* she thought desperately, hoping it wasn't true. She didn't want to die in his hands, but she refused to show submission.
"You're bluffing," she said confidently, a taunting smile on her lips. "You can't do that, Geb. Besides, I'm under an ancient power and force wielding the will to prevent you from infiltrating my mind. You're powerless if you try to attack me mentally." Her smile turned to a mocking laugh.
'Dammit,' Geb cursed inwardly as he realized she was right. Only an ancient will could make her a perfect replica of Nessy with no difference. If her acting weren't so flawed, he would have truly been fooled and lost his real consort.
He cursed more when he found he couldn't infiltrate her mind—the will was too powerful to break. His only way to get information was to make her speak it herself.
"I may not be able to infiltrate your mind, but I'm very capable of infiltrating your flesh—with pain more than you can imagine—and I'm convinced that will make you talk."
Nut studied him intently to see if he truly meant it, and to her surprise, he did. She felt no doubt as his hazel eyes radiated rage in the most intense way.
She could never have believed, in all her life, that Geb would one day despise her so. She knew he didn't love her as much as she did him, but he never stopped caring in their time. They were inseparable. But what changed? The only cause she could point to was the Supreme Father. If he hadn't felt his ego bruised by their so-called sinful affair, Geb would still be in their time—together in love and pleasure, maybe even married by now, with her as his consort. She would have loved that. But Ra ruined it all and brought chaos to their once peaceful lives.
"Geb," she called softly, "I don't know why you despise me so now, but I love you very much and would never despise you like you do me. I know you lost a lot because of our love, but I did too. I forsook much just to make our love living and everlasting. Please, Geb, don't reject me like this. Stop pushing me away," she cried desperately, but he looked at her with disgust.
"Really, Nut?" he began, rage in his voice. "You claim you lost a lot too because of our sinful love, like you lost half of what I did? No, Nut, you didn't. You lost nothing like I did!" he roared.
"I understand, Geb. I really do, I…" she tried to say, but he cut her off.
"You don't understand anything, Nut! No, you don't! You weren't the one banished from the time of the gods with an ancient hourglass! You weren't the one left confused in a world you knew nothing about! You weren't the one whose annual ritual was annulled!" he spat bitterly.
"Tonight is the day of my supposed annual ritual, but it was denied—all because of you and your stupid love!" he yelled angrily, stepping closer, his every move radiating danger, the air tense.
"And the only light you brought into this dark world you've put me in—you dare take that away?" he said, grabbing her neck again, but not squeezing—yet.
"Where is she?" he demanded, fury burning in his hazel eyes.
"Right where she belongs."
"Aaaaaaaah!" …