Page 177 of I Will Mend You

EIGHTY-THREE

AMETHYST

I stare into Xero’s eyes, trying to ignore the volume of my pulse pounding into my eardrums. They’re black pools surrounded with the barest traces of blue that crackle with the white heat of his fury. I’ve never seen him so angry.

“Burning down a church won’t save Camila,” I say.

His fingers tighten around my throat, cutting off my air.

“Do you think I’ll let you throw your life away so easily?” His voice is a dangerously soft rumble that makes my blood run cold.

Every instinct screams at me to drop down on my knees and beg for forgiveness. My vision blurs, but I hold my ground, forcing myself to breathe through his crushing grip.

“Let me do this,” I say through clenched teeth. “Don’t forget, I knocked you out, set the basement on fire, and left you for dead. You brushed over that like it was nothing when you should hate me.”

His eyes narrow into slits. “Hating you would be like hating my own heart. Since you don’t believe in forgiveness, then you will take this punishment.”

My breath catches. “What does that even mean?”

He releases his grip around my throat, leaving me swaying on my feet. Gasping for air, I stare at his broad back as he advances toward the torture table, wondering if burning down the church is a metaphor for something else.

But when he bends down and picks up two canisters of gasoline, my instincts kick in and I step backward, not knowing what the hell he’ll do next.

“Xero,” I whisper, my voice hoarse from being choked. “What the hell are you doing?

He sets both canisters on the table with a jarring clink. Without looking in my direction, he snarls, “Giving you the chance to make amends.”

Dread rolls in my gut like thunder I struggle to understand his twisted logic. “I didn’t mean meeting Delta alone. I’ll be the bait, but you and the others will be a few feet away, watching my back.”

He slams his fist on the table, making me flinch. “Never.”

My mind races, trying to comprehend his madness. Xero’s sisters are the only positive part of his childhood. Why would he risk either of them for a woman he’s barely known for a year? He can’t dismiss an opportunity to save Camila just because it puts me in danger.

When he rips off the lid of one canister, I take another step back and bump into something solid. Barrett’s unconscious body swings from the ropes, still streaming blood from multiple cuts.

Flinching, I turn back to Xero. “What are you doing?”

Ignoring my question, he unscrews the second canister and walks both of them around the altar’s perimeter, pouring out a stream of gasoline onto its wooden floor.

I stiffen, my veins surging with cold fear. “Xero, please... don’t do this.”

“You asked for punishment. Now, you will receive it.” He jumps down from the altar and strides along the far side of the pews, spilling more of the flammable liquid on the floorboards.

“Untie me,” Seth croaks from where he’s hanging. “It’s not too late for me to take you?—”

A knife whizzes past my face and lodges in his chest. Jumping back with a yelp, I turn to the other side of the church, where Xero picks up his canister and continues dousing the floor with that infernal liquid.

“He’s bullshitting,” Xero snarls at me.

I swallow over and over, wondering why the hell I’m not getting through to Xero. Maybe he’s right. Maybe Seth is saying whatever can buy him an opening to escape. I can’t think straight with my psychotic boyfriend creating a ring of gasoline.

Turning back to Seth, I say, “Xero has lost his mind. Give me something and I’ll at least stop you from burning to death.”

Features tightening, he strains against the ropes. His head dips, and he chokes a sob before meeting my gaze. “Cut me down. Please.”

Xero’s laugh reverberates through the church, a manic sound that chills me to the bone. Despite everything, the sight of him burning down a building with us inside is strangely captivating.

“If he knew something, he would have said it earlier. Now he’s just desperate.”

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