Page 41 of All Your Hate

Still, I can’t stop whatever this feeling is drawing me closer to him. I move my hand until our fingers thread together. He’sjust as pale as I am. I’m sure his complexion isn’t from being forcefully deprived of sunlight though.

How much time has even passed since I was taken? Weeks? Months?

I’m scared to find out.

I pull my hand away, but his fingers latch around mine, making me gasp. “That was nice,” his voice is raspy from sleep, but his eyes are wide open now, looking straight at me.

“I thought you were asleep. Let go of me.”

His grip tightens painfully around my fingers before suddenly loosening and I pull back away from him.

“Can’t sleep?”

“Clearly not,” I mumble.

He shifts closer and I move my gaze lower so I don’t have to see the fake concern on his face.

“How did that happen?” I ask, pointing to a scar on his shoulder with a tattoo of a moon curving around it.

“Gunshot,” his neutral expression doesn’t waver as he says the word.

“Is that normal for you? To get hurt like that?”

“I’d hardly call it normal, but yeah if a job goes sideways there’s a chance of it.”

That explains his odd relationship with that doctor. He must patch him up all the time.

Curiosity gets the better of me and I ask, “Why the moon—”

“I heard from the doc,” he quickly cuts me off like he only just remembered that information. “I suppose now is as good a time as ever to tell you there’s nothing to worry about. You’ve got a clean bill of health.”

“Yay for me,” I sneer, but really I’m filled with relief that there’s no lingering damage inside me.

Lifting my arm I look at some of the bruises on my skin. It will take time for these to fade, then all I’ll be left with are the nightmares that haunt me.

“It’s crazy the things you can find out from a drop of blood.” I freeze as he continues speaking. “Wynter, with ay, Nightingale. A December baby. Hence the name I’m assuming. Aged twenty-six, blood type A positive, spent a week in hospital aged nine with meningitis, parents deceased, excelled at school enough to get into college to study languages, but dropped out when—”

“Just stop! You know my name! You know who I am now, so you don’t need to rub it in my face how pathetic my life is.”

Needing space from him, I get up and pace to the window to pull open the curtains. The night sky is beautiful tonight and for a moment it serves as a distraction from the rest of the world around me.

“You made up that stupid game of choice when you knew you’d find out my name anyway, didn’t you?” I ask, without turning around.

“Yes. You enjoyed it though. Iknowyou did. You don’t come that hard unless you fucking love it. I have another idea for a game if you want to play?”

I watch Bones’ reflection as he gets up and slowly stalks towards me.

“Not interested.”

He ignores me and carries on. “I know why you want to leave so badly. You’re not some whore. You were innocent and so is your sister.”

With fury in my veins, I face him. “Don’t you dare bring her into this!”

“I’d never do that. I fucking despise people who hurt children. No, I’m not threatening you. I’m offering you a chance to be free.”

Free?

No, I can't fall for it so easily.

---