Page 21 of Hellfire

Nate finally looks up from his book. His brows pinched adorably.

“Want to talk about it?” he asked, patting the railing beside him.

Sighing, I took the offered seat and looked out onto the property. It was beautiful here with the wild cypress and oak trees that lined the swamp's edge that I knew lay beyond. I shivered at what I knew lurked within the shadows.

“I don’t know what I’m even doing here,” I finally admitted after a beat of silence. Out of the corner of my eye, Nate flipped to the next page in whatever book he was reading.

“My entire life, I’ve never had a place to call home. When I was sixteen, my mom finally admitted she hated me. She drunkenly blamed me for her miserable life and couldn’t wait to be rid of me.”

“Ouch,” Nate mumbled, but still, he never looked up from his book. Strangely, it gave me courage.

“I started saving every dollar I could from my part-time job. Well, anything I could hide from my parents.” I gritted my teeth at the memories of my dad gambling away my hard-earned paychecks.

“Was it not enough?”

I shook my head.

“I had planned to run away on my eighteenth birthday and start a life of my own.”

“So why didn’t you?” he asked like he already knew I didn’t go through with it.

I sighed and turned toward him.

“My mom guilted me into staying. She promised me everything would be alright, and I foolishly believed her.”

Nate shut his book and pinned me with his emerald green eyes. I expected him to bombard me with questions, but to my relief, he stayed silent.

“When Tank said I could make a home here, I foolishly believed him, too,” I said bitterly.

Nate gave me a sympathetic smile.

“You can make a life here, Katrina, you and Leona. Don’t let whatever happened with Tank scare you away.”

My eyes pricked with tears, desperately wanting him to be right. Feeling the need to talk about anything else, I blurted out, “What are you always reading?”

A blush slowly spread across my cheeks. I seriously needed to work on not spitting out the first thing that popped into my head.

“Well, this,” he said, holding a leather-bound journal. “This is actually my journal. I started jotting down anything I found out about myself.”

I furrowed my brows in confusion.

“About a year ago, Reaper found me out on a run. I had no memories of how I got there nor anything about the world we live in. All I knew was my name.”

He pulled on a chain hidden beneath the collar of his shirt. A teardrop pendant with the nameNathanielengraved on the side hung on the chain.

“Oh my god, Nate.” I covered my mouth. My heart broke for him.

“Don’t feel bad for me, Katrina. I found a family here, and I’m slowly discovering more about my powers.” Nate blows out a breath. "its exciting and terrifying."

My gaze fell with shame.

Nate lost all his memories, and I’m envious. How can I be jealous of that?

Nate placed a hand on my arm, and warmth emanated through me. It felt like a warm summer day when the sun coated your skin and settled low in your bones. It was healing, and therapeutic.

Gasping, I asked, “What was that?” My voice a breathy whisper.

“I’m an empath. I felt your discomfort and just wanted you to feel better,” he admitted shyly, his gaze dropping to the floor.

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