Page 84 of Stitches

“I’m not really on his side. It’s important to know that too,” Asylum continued. “I honestly want to kill him. So do many others. I’m just there biding my time. I can’t do it until the time is right.”

“The time is right fucking now,” Church snarled. “He needs to die.”

“And he will.” Asylum shrugged. “But, again, now isn’t the time. There’s much he has yet to do before we reach that bridge. Also, he’s pretty fucking untouchable at the moment. You know that, Dante. The guy is a fucking fortress. He needs to be weakened. I’m working on that.”

“How do we know we can even trust you?” I called out.

“Because we have a shared interest. Sirena,” he said solemnly.

“What interest do you have with her?” Church asked.

“You already know the answer to that. I love her,” he replied without an ounce of remorse on his face. “And I will have her.”

“Like fuck you will.” Church got to his feet.

“Listen, this is how it works. I’ve seen things. If you want her safe, you need to listen to me.” Asylum got to his feet this time too, which in turn put both me and Ashes on ours in case they tore into one another.

Sin hadn’t moved a muscle and continued to stare down at his hands from his spot on his bed. I supposed in the grand scheme of things, he was the odd man out without really a side to fight for.

“What have you seen?” I looked at Asylum. “Because if you’ve seen all of this shit until this point, that makes you just as fucking bad as the assholes doing them.”

“You’re right. But you’re also wrong. I don’t get to see an entire path many times. It’s just glimpses. I take what I can get and use intuition for the rest of it. And a few well-placed spies.” He gave us a wry smile. “I see the end with her and you. But I also see her with me.I see us.So you need to understand that it’s a big possibility. My visions aren’t usually wrong.”

“They are in this instance. I’ll never let you have her.” Church glared from Asylum to Sin. “And there isn’t a fucking chance in hell he will ever lay his fucking hands on her again.” Church jerked his thumb in Sin’s direction, a sour look on his face.

“I won’t,” Sin said, finally looking over at us. “I won’t even touch her again if it’s what you want from me. I won’t ever speak to her. I will do what you ask of me because it’s you asking me. I want her safety, and I’ll die to make sure she has it.”

Church said nothing as he glared at him.

“Are you sure about that?” Asylum frowned.

“Dead serious,” Sin said. “If Dante and the watchers want me to remove myself completely from her, I’ll do it without question. I’ll stand by and protect her if that’s what they want. She will be safe, or I’ll hand them the knife to gut me themselves.”

“I’m agreeable to that,” Ashes said, eyeing Sin. “I’m still pissed at you though so really any infraction could earn you a good stabbing.”

“I think you’re a piece of shit.” Church glared at him. “But I need all the fucking hands on deck I can get. If you’re doing this, then the rules are simple. You never fucking touch her. You don’t speak to her unless it’s warranted. You are to be seen and not heard in pretty much all cases. Not felt.Nothing.If I find out differently, you’re dead. It’s that simple.”

“Bit harsh,” Asylum muttered.

“Same goes for you. I don’t care what the voices in your head have told you. You keep her fucking safe if you love her so much.” Church turned his angry glare on Asylum.

“And what if I don’t? What if I decide to fuck your rules, Dante, and keep her safe and make her love me back? Then what? What will you do? It’s the price for protection, after all. I asked if you were willing to pay it.”

I cast an uneasy look at Church who appeared like he was ready to pull his knife out and shank Asylum right then and there. I glanced to Ashes and found he seemed to be in the same train of thought that I was.

We needed less bloodshed, not more, at least right now. The blood could come later.

“Then you die too. Have you seen that in your visions?” Church taunted.

“I haven’t, which makes me think I might win this round. I’m good at winning. I think we’re all becoming accustomed to it, don’t you think?” Asylum cocked his head at him.

“You’re fucking nuts.” Church visibly swallowed. “But I need you. If you fuck this up…”

“I won’t,” Asylum said solemnly. “Trust me. Trust the process. If I wanted her dead or in the hands of Everett, she’d be there. I wanthimdead. That’s my end goal. You can join in and play the game, Dante, or you can sit back and try to figure shit out on your own. I assure you thatI am the way.”

“We should listen to him,” I murmured. “He really did protect Sirena in the facility.”

Church was silent for a beat before he nodded. “Fine. What’s your plan?”

---