Page 162 of Finders Reapers

Everything hurt.

Why had I thought this was a good idea?

I hadn’t realized I was screaming, as a horrible shrieking filled the air. I managed to fling myself from the vehicle, leaving blood stains on the car door.

The men on the side of the road looked like they had been struck in the head by a swift kick from a cow. Their heads moved in unison as they turned towards the soul in the distance, being corralled by Rome, then back to me. Bloody and screaming.

“Do something!” I screamed as I began to pat down the body and search for the wounds. Eventually, I pressed my hand to my head, which was swimming. “Cazzo! Che schifo!”

Maddox stepped forward first. “Valentina?” He whispered.

I had no idea why he was talking about his ex, so I waved him away. “Get me out of this thing,” I barked. “My head is killing me.”

Maddox’s face blanked as he turned to the others.

Fletcher shrugged. Jamal crossed his arms over his chest.

Rome trudged back to the road with the soul trailing after him. He was limping. “A rattlesnake bit me.” He grumbled before turning to me. His eyes widened. “That body was dead.”

Maddox’s brows arched, and he gave Rome a meaningful look. “Yes.” Maddox enunciated the word harshly.

“Who is that?” Rome frowned.

“Why don’t you drop that soul at Quietus, and we’ll meet you back at the suite?” Maddox said pointedly.

Rome turned to me, then back to Maddox. “Do you want to tell Charon about this? Do you think it’s a demon or a rogue soul?”

Maddox shrugged, affecting disinterest, though I could see the muscles in his neck standing taut. “Sure.”

Before Rome trudged down the road with the soul on his heels, Jamal and Fletcher exchanged glances.

Once he was out of sight, Jamal stepped towards me, and the movement startled me enough that I stumbled back.

The pain had lessoned, but it hadn’t gone entirely.

“Are we going to tell him?” Jamal asked.

I didn’t understand the question.

“Not until we’re sure,” Maddox replied.

We quickly got back to the Bellagio, though Rome took his sweet time coming home from dropping the soul off.

Without being heard by anyone, years of silence meant that my nerves were in full force. I wanted to jump up and down and scream for joy that I had hands. I could speak. I could touch things. I could feel them as well.

None of the guys seemed to understand what a big deal this was for me. Instead, they treated me like a criminal—which was fair enough. I had technically stolen a body after all.

I stood around, rocking on my heels, as Jamal went behind the bar to get a bottle of water and a first aid pack. I had watched my guys sit on the stools or stand sentry, but I didn’t know how to move my new body enough to trust that I could emulate them without one of my limbs falling off.

I felt better than I had when I had slipped inside of the corpse, but not by much. My head had stopped aching, but the bone poking out of my elbow was as disgusting as it was distracting. I tried to poke it a few times, content in my own company as the guys puttered around and debated the situation.

Jamal rounded the bar, and when he laid a hand on my shoulder, I couldn’t stop myself from screaming in shock. I hadn’t felt the touch of another person in… well, I didn’t exactly remember how long.

All I remembered was waking up in the suite at the Bellagio and following the four men around like I would cease to exist if I let them out of my sight.

“Do you want a drink?” Jamal asked gently.

“A drink?” I replied dumbly.

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