he held you hostage so I’d bring his daughter to him. Any of that ringing any bells?”
“Look, I get it. Seth is bad news. I see your point, and I accept it.” He slides some food off the plate and into the trash. He puts the dish in the sink and grabs for another one. We are having a very domesticated argument.
“So you aren’t planning on doing anything stupid with him?” I’m hoping for Lucien to turn around and give me a very firm no. To look me straight in the eyes and deny anything going on between the two of them. After all, Seth has to be Heaven’s most wanted. If not for him, Gracen would’ve never been made, the Hell gate never would’ve been opened, the sun would be out, and everybody would be going on with their little lives not knowing that one girl could have killed them all.
I want this to happen.
It doesn’t.
“No, I’m not working with him. Are you crazy?” Lucien doesn’t turn. He doesn’t look me in the eyes. He doesn’t do anything I need him to do. I can tell he’s lying. I could always tell. Well, not as good then, but I can now. One thing I’m pretty good at is reading people, and I can read Lucien like a book.
He’s lying to me.
My heart starts beating so hard in my chest that I feel like I’m going to pass out. I can hear the thumping in my ears, and I start to feel dizzy. This isn’t supposed to be happening. He’s not supposed to be teaming up with Seth.
It’s him and me against the world.
Or so I wanted it to be.
At one time.
My breathing becomes labored.
I can’t handle this.
Why does the human body have to make you feel so much worse about things? Why does it like to fight against itself? Because that’s stupid. You’d think your body would be with you. Would fight the good fight. Keep you calm. Keep you sane and normal and centered. You wouldn’t think that it would go off on a tangent by making your chest feel heavy, your throat feel dry, your heart beat in your ears, and every part of your skin want to just run in different directions.
That’s how I feel right now.
It’s a stupid feeling.
It’s an incredibly powerful feeling.
Hart the big bad demon… reduced to this.
I don’t close my eyes because I don’t want Lucien to know I’m having a little mental breakdown. I do take a few deep breaths, though. I breathe in. I breathe out. I breathe in. I breathe out.
I picture myself in a field.
Our old field.
At our old house.
I imagine being there with Gracen like in our dreams.
I imagine the sun on my face.
I imagine a cool breeze making everything okay.
I imagine my brother is not working with a crazy angel.
I imagine my girlfriend is not the most evil thing in the world.
This isn’t helping.
“You’re working with him.” It isn’t even a question. It doesn’t need to be. I have no doubts in my mind.
“No.” He scoffs and wipes another plate of scraps into the trashcan. I’ll kick that trashcan when all of this is over.
“Don’t lie to me.”
He slams a dish so hard into the sink that the bubbles come up and water splashes on the floor. This will go well.
“I’m not lying to you, Hart.” He spins around and his angry eyes meet mine.
Oh yeah, buddy, we are fixing to have a fight.
Game on.
This has been building for years.
Not just with the whole Seth and Gracen situation, not with the I-shot-him thing, not even with the Colleen thing. It’s been going on for as long as I can remember.
That’s what happens when a mother obviously favors one child over another.
I love my brother.
I do.
But there’s always a breaking point.
We’ve reached ours.
“Yes you are! I know you are.” I stand because I can’t handle sitting anymore. The stupid panic attack has taken me over, making me feel really vulnerable, really irritated, and really ready to either run or kick a wall… or both.
“When would we have made this big plan? You’ve been with us the entire time!”
“No!” Why didn’t I think of it before?
“Look, I get it. Seth is bad news. I see your point, and I accept it.” He slides some food off the plate and into the trash. He puts the dish in the sink and grabs for another one. We are having a very domesticated argument.
“So you aren’t planning on doing anything stupid with him?” I’m hoping for Lucien to turn around and give me a very firm no. To look me straight in the eyes and deny anything going on between the two of them. After all, Seth has to be Heaven’s most wanted. If not for him, Gracen would’ve never been made, the Hell gate never would’ve been opened, the sun would be out, and everybody would be going on with their little lives not knowing that one girl could have killed them all.
I want this to happen.
It doesn’t.
“No, I’m not working with him. Are you crazy?” Lucien doesn’t turn. He doesn’t look me in the eyes. He doesn’t do anything I need him to do. I can tell he’s lying. I could always tell. Well, not as good then, but I can now. One thing I’m pretty good at is reading people, and I can read Lucien like a book.
He’s lying to me.
My heart starts beating so hard in my chest that I feel like I’m going to pass out. I can hear the thumping in my ears, and I start to feel dizzy. This isn’t supposed to be happening. He’s not supposed to be teaming up with Seth.
It’s him and me against the world.
Or so I wanted it to be.
At one time.
My breathing becomes labored.
I can’t handle this.
Why does the human body have to make you feel so much worse about things? Why does it like to fight against itself? Because that’s stupid. You’d think your body would be with you. Would fight the good fight. Keep you calm. Keep you sane and normal and centered. You wouldn’t think that it would go off on a tangent by making your chest feel heavy, your throat feel dry, your heart beat in your ears, and every part of your skin want to just run in different directions.
That’s how I feel right now.
It’s a stupid feeling.
It’s an incredibly powerful feeling.
Hart the big bad demon… reduced to this.
I don’t close my eyes because I don’t want Lucien to know I’m having a little mental breakdown. I do take a few deep breaths, though. I breathe in. I breathe out. I breathe in. I breathe out.
I picture myself in a field.
Our old field.
At our old house.
I imagine being there with Gracen like in our dreams.
I imagine the sun on my face.
I imagine a cool breeze making everything okay.
I imagine my brother is not working with a crazy angel.
I imagine my girlfriend is not the most evil thing in the world.
This isn’t helping.
“You’re working with him.” It isn’t even a question. It doesn’t need to be. I have no doubts in my mind.
“No.” He scoffs and wipes another plate of scraps into the trashcan. I’ll kick that trashcan when all of this is over.
“Don’t lie to me.”
He slams a dish so hard into the sink that the bubbles come up and water splashes on the floor. This will go well.
“I’m not lying to you, Hart.” He spins around and his angry eyes meet mine.
Oh yeah, buddy, we are fixing to have a fight.
Game on.
This has been building for years.
Not just with the whole Seth and Gracen situation, not with the I-shot-him thing, not even with the Colleen thing. It’s been going on for as long as I can remember.
That’s what happens when a mother obviously favors one child over another.
I love my brother.
I do.
But there’s always a breaking point.
We’ve reached ours.
“Yes you are! I know you are.” I stand because I can’t handle sitting anymore. The stupid panic attack has taken me over, making me feel really vulnerable, really irritated, and really ready to either run or kick a wall… or both.
“When would we have made this big plan? You’ve been with us the entire time!”
“No!” Why didn’t I think of it before?
Similar Books
