Page 13 of Fallen

The metal windowsilldug painfully into his knees as he crawled into the living room. His slight body ached, his hair matted with sweat, his arms and legs itchy from the bushes. He needed to see them. He had to see them. The monster under the bed wasn’t real. Maybe this one wasn’t either. Maybe his parents were waiting to scold him for running away from home. He hoped desperately that they’d be there waiting for him, that it was all a bad dream. Any punishment would be better than the horrors he’d seen.

Blood coated the floor, slick on the wood and soaking into the rug. Four bodies were spread out on the floor, their blank eyes staring up at nothing. It would be a long time before he recognized the pattern. He fell to his knees beside them, unwittingly completing the pentagram, screaming so loud that pain shot through his throat. Blood-soaked carpet stuck to his legs. He was stained with it. Couldn’t get it off, couldn’t get it off.

Nathan’s hands were on his shoulders, trying to get him to turn away. Wait, no, that wasn’t right. Nathan wasn’t at this one. Panic clawed up his throat. Where was he? Whose bodies were these? He turned away?—

There was another living room. Another pentagram. More bodies, more blood. Nathan stood in the middle of the circle.

“You’re too close to this,” he said, his eyes soft and worried. There was blood on his boots.

“You’re holding me back, don’t you see?” Alex cried.

One of the bodies sat up. His mother, her hair matted with her own blood. She met his eyes and sucked in a wheezing breath. “Trust in God’s plan, Paladin Hawk.”

“No, fuck God’s plan!” he screamed. “God shouldn’t have let you die!”

He whirled away.

Everything went dark. Crimson light reflecting off the mirrored walls. The body in front of him was warm, and he clung to it, breathing hard as the panic ebbed like the tide. It would be back, but for now he was safe.

“Tell me your story, little bird,” a familiar voice crooned in his ear, and strong, leather-clad arms wrapped around him, drawing him away from the cool wall and into solid heat.

“No.” Alex closed his eyes, burying his face in the warm neck before him. “I don’t want to tell it.” He was so tired of thinking about it, dwelling on it, letting his anger rule him. He needed a reprieve, and here in the darkness, it couldn’t reach him.

‘Even the other demons were too afraid to go near him.’ That was what the bartender told him. Maybe Talon could keep his personal demons at bay, too.

“Then don’t tell it,” Talon said easily, like he could hear everything Alex wasn’t saying. Fingers carded into his hair, and a mouth brushed the swell of his cheek.

“Why were you nice to me? We’re supposed to be enemies.” Alex angled his head back, and lips grazed his.

“Do you want me to be your enemy?”

“Do you always answer a question with a question?”

Talon’s answering smile was animalistic. “When it amuses me to.”

Alex pressed closer. “Tell me the truth.”

“Which truth, little bird?”

“The only one that matters.” He didn’t know what he was saying. Everything around him felt fuzzy and unfocused.

Fingers grazed his cheek, and Talon swam back into focus. “Stay with me, little bird. I’m not ready to lose you to dreamland again.”

“What were we talking about?”

“Truths, and their elusiveness.”

“Tell me, then.”

“What I told you in the bar is the only truth that matters,” Talon said. “You are perfectly safe with me.”

“Why?”

“Because you are mine. You just don’t know it yet.”

Alex blinked. Everything was hazy again, but he felt warm and… safe. “What does that mean?”

Talon leaned in, his dark eyes filling Alex’s vision. Talon’s body pressed harder against his, and long fingers curled around his throat. He should fight, but it felt sogood. He didn’t feel trapped or held down. He felt cradled, protected and wanted. His body arched into the touch, baring all of himself for Talon to take, surrendering to the will of another. Perfect weight settled between his legs, giving him something to rock against. A tongue invaded his mouth, hot and slick.

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