Page 88 of Make Me A Sinner
I catch her hand, refusing to let her leave my bedside. “Whiro probably beat you to it.”Damn, who knew breathing could be this much work?“Besides, didn’t anyone tell you it’s rude to leave a patient unattended?” I pull her into me again, trying tofigure out how to get her even closer without actually dying in the process. Pretty hard to pull that off right now, especially when I still don’t know what the fuck’s wrong with me. “Is the bullet still in?” I ask, trying to piece things together.
“No. Draco took that out. But...” Serena pauses, as if she doesn’t want to tell me what came next.
Still,I wantto know what came next. “But?” I press, letting her know I need the whole story.
“But… Bronte had to revive you,” she says, her eyes glinting at me.
Did she really think getting electrocuted would shock me? Well, it didshockme, but not in the way she probably expected. “So, I was dead. That’s a first... I think. Can’t really remember my past. That's why everything hurts like hell?”
“You should get some more rest. Your wound doesn’t seem to be healing.”
“Well, I woke up, so I must be on the right track,” I rasp out the words, because it’s getting hard to even speak.Fuck.
“Don’t get ahead of yourself. You only woke up because your girl here stood up to Thanatos,” Draco says as he walks into the room. But I don’t have time for pleasantries.
“You fucking did what?” I snarl, this time forcing myself upright. I don’t even care if it fucking kills me.
Serena looks at me, guilt glinting in her eyes, and I can tell it’s true. She doesn’t even need to say anything.
“Were you out of your fucking mind? He could’ve ended you on the spot.” There are only a few things in this world I’d think twice about facing. And Thanatos is one of them. We know better than to cross him. So none of us ever does. It’s a rule older than time. None of us can stop him from a mission, no matter what that means in the end.
“I couldn’t let him take you,” Serena snaps, fully convinced she did the right thing. And maybe she did for us. She certainly didfor me. But what if he’d killed her? Human lives are worthless to us. Just mere entertainment that can be wiped out with a snap of a finger.
“She was braver than any of us,” Draco says, approaching my bed. “To be honest, I’ve never seen that look on Thanatos' face. For a second there, I couldn’t tell if he was about to laugh or just wipe us all out.”
“Fucking shit,” I mutter, acknowledging the danger, pretty convinced that Serena didn’t know exactly what she was doing. Pissing off an entity like Thanatos could lead to severe consequences—even in death.
“You’re welcome,” she says, rolling her eyes, thinking she did me a favor by almost getting herself killed. I’d rather have died than risk her. So no, she’s not getting my gratitude for that.
“I would’ve chosen to go with him before risking your life,” I say, my voice harsh enough to shut her down.
I can see her pouting, but I don’t take it back. I was serious. Nothing is worth risking her life. And she needs to understand that. “I’m not fucking Nick. You come first.” I whisper, just loud enough for her to hear me. No way I’m making this kind of confession with Draco around. I’d never hear the end of it. And judging by the light blooming in her eyes, she got it.
Her fingers glide slowly across the sheets in search of my hand—and when they find it, they don’t let go.
“So what was I shot with?” I ask Draco, hoping that he’s got something by now.
“Looks like a regular bullet—nothing poison or other substance, just an unusual metal,” Draco answers.
“What kind of metal?” I ask again, trailing my tongue against my lips.Damn, I’m thirsty.And Serena notices immediately and hands me a glass of water. I’ve never enjoyed playing the patient or feeling helpless, but I bet I’d enjoy it if she’d play nurse.
I snap my focus back as Draco steps closer, holding a piece of metal in his hand.
“Is this it?” I take the metal. It’s light and iridescent. Nothing I’ve ever seen before. But that’s not the weirdest part about it. Strange decorative writings mark its edges.
I can’t make out what it says, because the metal contorted when it hit me, but I think it’s Celtic.
“So you’re telling me the fucking Tooth Fairy shot me?” I ask, unable to find a connection between this attempt and anything else in my life lately. If this were connected to Chen’s death the markings would have been Asian.
“I don’t know. None of us does. I was hoping you had a clue.” Draco says, taking the bullet back.
“Well, I did have a few... outbursts a couple of months ago. Wiped out half of Vegas's criminal scene. Maybe a few mobsters in Italy, too. Probably pissed off the Yakuza or the Triads. Hard to keep track,” I say, but Draco knows this isn’t a valid explanation for what’s happening here. He just wrinkles his nose, probably waiting to get me alone.
He doesn’t press it. Maybe it’s not a good enough explanation for him, but it is for Serena. No point panicking her even more, especially not that I just found out how reckless she can be by taking on someone of my kind.
Truth is, neither of us has any idea what this is about. But we all feel it—there’s a new threat looming over us. And Draco understands exactly what I’m doing. “Keeping the balance, eh?” he says as if this is just a part of our job.
Despite my best attempt to keep this under wraps, Serena doesn’t dismiss the danger so easily, though. “This could happen again to any of you,” she says, looking at Draco, probably expecting him to dig into things.
