Page 21 of Origins

I tipped my head to the side as I listened to the thoughts streaming through his mind. Images of leather, ball gags, and bruises filled the spaces that weren’t occupied by how dumb I was for walking. How I could have gotten kidnapped, or mugged, or raped, and no one would have been any wiser.

“I didn’t mean to get you in trouble.” I shifted from one foot to the other. “I just wanted to make sure he was okay.”

He let out a low, grumbly breath. “Sweetheart, I know you wanna go home. But you gotta come inside with me.”

“Sweetheart?” My nose pinched. “I don’t even know your name; I’m not coming inside with you.”

If Jace had greeted me, I’d probably have accepted. But this man looked like a villain.

His forehead wrinkled in confusion, and his thoughts shifted to being shocked that I resisted.

“I’m just trying to keep you safe.” Some of the edge left his voice, but the gravel remained. “My name is Kane. I’m Sulien’s roommate. I’ve been here every time you’ve visited, just... staying out of sight in my room.”

“Every time?” I challenged, crossing my arms.

It seemed impossible that a man as large as Kane could hide without a trace.

He nodded. “The first night you came over, Jace saw you and said you looked like some prep-school princess, and I didn’t want to spook you.”

His mind echoed his words, and I felt a little safer.

“I don’t scare easily,” I said with a smile despite the lingering uneasy feeling in my chest. “But thank you… and you’re right, it’s probably better if I stay.”

Relief washed over Kane’s rugged features as I allowed him to guide me into the apartment.

I’d been here a handful of times by this point, but I’d never really looked around. Usually, I made up some excuse about wanting to cook so that I knew Sulien would eat that night. Then we’d eat in the kitchen, have sex in his room, and he’d take me home.

So, I took this opportunity to look around, and honestly, the apartment wasn’t much. Mismatched furniture all looked like it’d been pulled off the curb, cigarette burns on the carpet, and walls were in desperate need of a fresh coat of paint. Did Sulien really live like this?

“You seem tense,” Kane said as he ventured into the kitchen.

“Not tense… just a little surprised.”

My attention stayed focused on a high-backed chair in the far corner of the room. No light seemed to venture over there, and after a moment of staring, Kane appeared in the chair as if pulled from the depths of that shadow. His massive frame seemed to materialize out of nowhere, tendrils of black smoke curling around him like a sea of serpents—almost as if he were part of the darkness.

I blinked away my confusion and reminded myself that not all powers looked the same. While everyone in my family had what could be considered typical hero powers, that wasn’t always the case.

“Sulien doesn’t bring people over often,” Kane admitted, crossing his legs as he cracked open a bottle of water. “He’s willing to do anything to prevent himself from looking like a villain, and well—” Kane gestured to the dilapidated apartment with a wry smile. “Heroes don’t live here.”

A pang of sadness hit my chest as I wondered if people would really think Sulien was a villain based solely on where he lived. Then I remembered how Sulien was treated at school, how no hero center wanted to touch him with a ten-foot pole because of his reputation: a reputation Sulien had done nothing to earn, nothing other than being Necro’s son.

“Well—I don’t think he’s a villain,” I promised, venturing into the living room and folding myself onto the couch.

“Good, because he’s not.” A dark laugh filled the air before vanishing into a soft whoosh. Before I could even process what happened, Kane’s hands materialized on my shoulders. “But I am.”

His grip wasn’t painful, but it was enough to send a jolt of fear down my spine as shadows wrapped around us, making the already small space feel even tighter. Any protests I had dried in my mouth like sand as my pulse thrummed in my ears.

“And, seeing as we’re alone, that means I can do whatever I want with you.”

Chapter 7

Sulien

I staggered down the hallway of my apartment complex, the weight of the past two nights heavy on my shoulders. Normally, I wasn’t much of a drinker—one or two beers after a shift, and I was good. But my goal tonight wasn’t to unwind. It was to forget.

To forget that I’d been ready to kill Jack. To forget that my future hinged on a showcase performance where I was partnered with him. And most of all, I wanted to forget how Callie made me feel. She was supposed to help clean up my reputation, but she’d taken up residence in my mind, clouding my judgment and skewing my sense of justice.

As a hero, I was supposed to act for the greater good, but the darkness within me clawed to the surface whenever I thought about how Jack had hurt her. I’d been ready to turn him to ash, not for justice, but for revenge. If being with Callie could pull that darkness out of me, then I had no choice but to break up with her.

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