Page 148 of Bones
"The only people who knew what I could do were Juck, Vulture, and a man named Grip. After Grip died, Vulture started wantin' more—more power, more control. Normally, Juck would've shut that shit down right away, but he couldn't cause Vulture knew my secret and he wasn't afraid of threatening to reveal it. It started gettin' real tense between the two. Juck tried to get him killed a couple of times, but Vulture survived. So Vulture got real friendly with the gang. He was good at that—bein' charismatic and charming to get what he wanted. It reached a point where Juck knew if he killed him, the gang might revolt. And I?—"
I sucked in a shaky breath. Trey’s arms tightened around me, his head dipping to press a kiss to my shoulder.
"Vulture wasn't a good person, but he'd been less cruel to me than Juck. So I figured if I was gonna pick a side, I'd rather it be his. So I started sneaking out to see him." My eyes burned, ashamed to admit the next part. "I did the same thing as before…with Rally, that boy I ran away with. I told him whatever he wanted to hear and did whatever he wanted to do. But Juck caught us together one night." My voice trembled, remembering the panic and terror of that moment. "He dragged us out of Vulture's tent. He was so fuckin' angry, I thought he was gonna kill both of us. Instead, he had his men hold me down while he got some metal fencing and bent it into a 'J.' He put it in the fire until it was red-hot and then he made Vulture watch while he burned it into my chest so no one would ever forget that I belonged to only him."
“Gods, Bones.” Trey sounded stricken and his arms tightened around me again.
“I passed out from the pain.” I felt numb as I recounted the story. “While I was out, he beat Vulture nearly to death. I don’t know why he didn’t kill him. Maybe he thought I loved Vulture so he could use him to control me or maybe it was the other way around, I dunno. I woke up in so much pain, and he drugged me even though I was beggin’ him not to. And, well, you know what happened next.”
“How much time passed between that night and when the revolt happened?” Trey asked, his voice dark and quiet.
“Four days.”
“So then Vulture told everyone about your powers and they all started fighting each other?” When I nodded, he continued. “And then Juck shot Vulture and tried to get away and that’s when you stabbed him?” I nodded again, trying not to remember the blood coating my hands. “Was Vulture conscious when you left?”
“Yeah. He watched me kill Juck. He thought I did it to help him win. When he realized I was leaving him to die—" I could see the rage and the betrayal on his face as if it'd happened yesterday. "If he's alive, he's someone we don't want to run into."
"He's someone who doesn't want to run intome,” Trey growled.
“I’d prefer to never see him again,” I said, my voice faint.
“Well the good news is, last we heard, the few Reapers left were heading south. Hopefully for good. If he’s still alive, he probably went with ’em.” He pressed a kiss to my temple, then lingered there, speaking low and soft in my ear. “Thank you for tellin’ me.”
We sat in silence for a while, just soaking in the warm water. The sick feeling in my stomach from talking about that awful day began to fade. My head rested back against Trey’s shoulder, and his arms held me against his chest. I could feel his heart beating.
“We should try to get some sleep,” he eventually said, and I agreed.
Entwined together in the bed, his hand carded through my damp hair. I'd never experienced the intimacy of laying skin-to-skin with someone after being vulnerable in a different way than just sex. It still scared me, but it felt…it felt likehealing, as though Trey had his own kind of healing power that flowed through me, piecing together all the broken parts of my soul.
23
The next morning, I woke to the soft sunrise shining through the curtains. Trey slept beside me, one arm draped over my hips. I propped myself up on one elbow and just gazed at him for a while, admiring his long lashes and the way his wavy hair framed his sleeping face. I remembered waking up with him in the clinic all those months ago and fleeing as if I could somehow outrun my feelings for him. It was selfish, but I was glad it didn't work. I didn't want to run from him ever again.
“You keep starin’ at me like that, and I’m gonna have to kiss you,” he murmured without even opening his eyes, one corner of his mouth curling up.
I smiled. “Is that a promise?”
He cracked his eyes open, a lazy grin spreading across his face. “Itisa promise.”
When he grabbed me and pulled me on top of him, I let out a little shriek of surprise, but then his lips were on mine, and I melted. I would never get enough of this, of him.
He groaned against my mouth as I wiggled my hips. We were both still naked and I could feel the hardness of him against my body. I grinned and did it again, and his eyes opened, dark with want.
“We should probably get up and get goin’,” he murmured.
“We probably should,” I agreed, dipping my head to gently bite his collarbone.
His fingers tightened on my hips, another groan escaping him. “Gods, Bones.”
“Or we could see where this goes,” I countered with a grin.
“I like that option better,” he said, pulling my head back down to kiss me again.
* * *
A few hours passed before we managed to get dressed and leave that peaceful little room. I wished we could stay and take our time. Maybe someday we could afford that luxury.
Zeke smiled when we came down the stairs. “Mornin’. You folks sleep alright?”
