Page 86 of Bad Demon

I didn’t want to be here anymore. I knew Relic. He was good; he was a good male. I’d convinced myself that he’d abandoned me, but that was what that place did to me—it broke me down and made me doubt everything and everyone. But now, I was back. Now that I’d seen him, I knew the truth. I believed him. He would never have left me if he’d had a choice.

But right now, I didn’t care what happened in that forest, where Relic had gone or why. I just needed to get away from this place. I wanted to scrub my skin, the poison, the twisted sickness off of me.

Relic was suffering because of me. This thing between us was dangerous, toxic. I was toxic. I didn’t want to taint him; I didn’t want to spread my filth all over the only place I’d ever felt safe.

“Please … I need to leave,” I said to the female.

“You can come with me.” She squeezed my hands. “There are others like us. We have a safe place. You’re more than welcome, Fern.”

I nodded, and she helped me get off the bed. I didn’t bother hiding my body; it didn’t even feel like a part of me anymore. I felt disconnected from it, like it belonged to someone else. That was how it had been while I was with The Chemist the first time, and when Grady took me back, I slipped back into that numbness like an old, worn coat. It had surrounded me instantly, protected me.

“You are not fucking leaving, Fern,” Relic said, voice vibrating. “I won’t let you go.”

The female helped me dress and gather my things. I couldn’t look at him while he raged and fought.

“Go with them,” Warrick barked at Jagger. “Make sure they get there safely.”

Jagger nodded and ushered us from the room, but I stopped beside Relic.

“Thank you,” I rasped. I owed him that—and so much more. More than I’d ever know how to repay him. “For coming to get me. For saving me. But this thing between us—whatever it is—it’s not good, Relic, and it’s … too much. I’ll find a way to release you. To break our deal—”

“Fuck the deal. You are not fucking leaving me, Fern.”

Why did this hurt so much? I guessed this was how people must feel when they broke up with someone. I’d never had a boyfriend, or even a best friend, or any kind of real relationship. What I’d had with Relic for that short time was the closest to those things I’d ever had, and I’d forced him into it. How fucking pathetic was that?

“I’m sorry … for doing this to you.”

“You didn’t do anything to me,” he bit out. “Do not fucking leave,” he demanded.

I’d stolen his soul—that was why he was acting like this. It was the only reason he wanted me around. After all I’d put him through, there was no way he’d want me here otherwise.

“If you’re leaving, you need to do it now,” Warrick growled, his beast shining in his eyes.

The female wrapped her arm around my shoulders and led me away while Relic roared my name over and over again, shattering me into a million pieces.

ChapterTwenty-Two

FERN

Coven Ashborne was small,but everyone had been so welcoming, despite the pain they were in. I found out The Chemist had killed two members of their family while he’d searched for someone to replace me, and the guilt of that was a weight I’d never be able to shake. Sutton had reassured me that no one blamed me, but I still felt that guilt.

Unlike other covens, they all lived together in a big, old mansion. It had seen better days but still managed to feel warm and had a really good vibe. I’d liked it here instantly. It’d turned out Agatheena was right; there were more of us with mixed demon and witch blood than I’d realized.

I’d been here for four days. Their house was safe, the wards incredibly strong. Sutton and Phoebe—another witch here—had taken me through the process of creating a ward myself. It was my first magic lesson, and I’d felt power course through me when I completed it.

Something had happened in Relic’s den, had been set free, when Sutton cleansed me of The Chemist’s magic. I felt the power inside me growing with every passing day. But as exciting as that was, and as much as I liked it here, something was missing. Something felt out of place.

I walked to the window and looked out onto the street. My heart thumped hard.

Relic. He was still down there, leaning against his bike. He looked up then, like he could sense me watching him, and straightened.

I missed him—so fucking much. Jagger had explained when he’d brought us here what happened when Lucifer summoned them to Hell. That Relic couldn’t stop it from happening and how time worked differently down there. Even though Relic had come back almost instantly for me, days had passed here.

I chewed my lip. He’d been calling and texting, and I’d forced myself to ignore them all. I hadn’t wanted to, but I didn’t want to make this harder on him—or me. The connection between us was so incredibly intense.

After the way it had affected him—gods, controlled him—I was never claiming another being’s soul for as long as I lived. I’d never do that to anyone ever again.

My phone chimed.

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