Page 84 of Make Me A Sinner
We stop in front of a large mansion, light flowing on every pillar, making it that more imposing, but I don’t linger to take in the architecture. I just try to keep up with Draco and Whiro as they carry Set inside.
We walk through long marble hallways until we reach a bedroom where they lie Set on the bed, and Draco drags a tall floor lamp over him so he can get a better look at the wound.
“Where the fuck is she?” Draco calls out, more to himself than Whiro, leading me to believe he’s expecting someone. Then he turns to me, a dangerous expression carved into his face. “How did the guy who did this look like? Tattoo, weird clothes, anything stand out?”
“I couldn’t see… it all happened so fast. There was so much panic... I couldn’t focus. All I know is, the guy was dressed in all black... Doesn’t help, I know.”
“No, it doesn’t fucking help,” Draco mutters, going back to inspect Set’s wound while he grabs his phone.
Whiro gives me a look to stay calm. Getting into a fight with a god doesn’t seem like the best idea, and he’s only stressed because of Set, so I can understand where the attitude is coming from.
“Serena, go downstairs. Ask one of the housekeepers to give you a drink,” Whiro says, motioning toward the hallway, probably trying to spare me from Draco’s wrath.
“I can’t leave him. I don’t want to leave him,” I say, holding my ground, no matter what that would mean. I’m not gonna leave, no matter what god or devil asks me.
Draco raises his eyes and shoots me a glance, but just then, the person on the other end picks up. “Fucking shit, where the fuck are you?” he grunts into the phone. “I don’t have a fucking hour. I don’t know if I’ve got ten minutes,” he hangs up, then looks at Whiro, as if searching for a solution. “Bronte will be here in an hour. Set doesn’t have that long.”
For a second, there’s a loud ringing in my ear, which convinces me I’m not hearing things right.
He can’t die. He just can’t.
And it seems Draco agrees with me. “He’s lost a lot of blood, which also means a lot of regenerative power. I need you to get on a chair, Whiro. I need to give him some of your blood and try to keep him alive until Bronte gets here.”
I have no idea who Bronte is, but if she or he can save him, they need to move their ass. Fast.
Draco calls for one of the housekeepers, who brings him an empty blood bag and an IV stand. Obviously, this isn’t the first time doing something like this. Still, I suspect it’s the first time he’s done it for family.
As soon as he sets things up and hooks Set to Whiro’s blood, he disappears for a few moments, then returns with an armful of ancient books. They look so old, they could’ve come straight from the Library of Alexandria. But I don’t have time to marvel before he throws one on the bed, right next to me. “You probably won’t understand the writing, but focus on the pictures. We’re looking for anything about metals, or anything else that couldhurt a god. Maybe it’s some kind of poison. I can’t tell. I’ve never seen this shit before.”
I nod and start going through the books. He’s right, I can’t figure out what the writing is because it’s so ancient. I’m not sure even historians could. But there are drawings on almost every page. Things that put my imagination to the test. Maybe things no human was ever meant to learn about.
Most of them seem to tell stories of horrible deeds committed by demons. Some pages are covered in occult symbols and strange shapes I’ve never seen before, while others describe the powers of various entities. And while there are images of the entities killing each other, none show a weapon doing the damage. They’re killed by powers, bursts of energy, explosions, things like that. But no metal. No blades. No swords. No guns.
Draco gestures for me to grab another book as soon as I finish mine, and he does the same, skimming through pages, hoping to get to the bottom of this.
Whiro joins in as soon as he’s done giving blood, replacing Draco as he goes to check on Set. “Let’s just hope he holds on until she gets here.”
I think they’re talking about Bronte. They mentioned that name before, but there’s no time to ask. I just keep flipping through the books. The images vary, but they all revolve around the same themes. Powers, body descriptions, events in the past, but still no weapons, potions... nothing that could kill a god.
Draco returns with more books that prove to be just as useless as the rest. I can hear both him and Whiro snarling with frustration, no closer to answers.
Draco checks his watch, calls over one of his maids, and sends everyone home, then looks at Whiro. “Take her to the basement. Bronte’s almost here.”
“What? No! I’m not going to the basement. I’m staying here with Set,” I oppose, rising from where I’d been kneeling besidethe bed. I lock eyes with him, letting him know I won’t back down.
But it seems he won’t back down either. “If Set pulls through, I doubt he’d appreciate seeing you fried beside him. Bronte is the Goddess of Lightning. And I fucking need her to jump-start him if things go sideways when I pull out the bullet.”
My breath gets caught in my throat, and I freeze. “Jump-start him?” I barely get the words out.
He’s not a damn car battery.
“A defibrillator won’t work on him. Won’t be strong enough. He’ll probably need a full-blown thunderstrike. And if you’re in the room with us when that happens, you won’t survive it. So get to the fucking basement and stop wasting my time.”
“Come on, let’s just do what he says. It’s for your own good.” Whiro comes next to me, expecting me to follow him.
And this time, I don’t think I have a choice.
forty-two
