Page 26 of Hellfire

Rest that did him a world of good, blasting away the discoloration beneath his eyes and his haunted gaze.

I leaned back to study the brighter shade to his icy eyes. “I’ll stay tonight. Every night. We all will.” I smacked my forehead. “Sorry. If you want us all there, that is.”

“I do.” He stroked the back of my head. “I want you all with me. It’ll be a tight fit on my bed, but I don’t care.”

“We can alternate and camp out on the floor,” I murmured, resting my head on his chest, listening to his even breaths, appreciating that he looked better than yesterday.

“You won’t be leaving my side, sweetness.” He crushed me harder to him.

“Good. Hey, are we still on for Gable’s tonight?”

I texted him before bed to see if we could come around, and he was happy to have visitors.

Blaze’s body went harder than stone. “Sweetness?—”

I squeezed him and bumped my torso into his. “No backing out. Gable’s got a special contact with expertise in dark magick coming who might be able to help.”

“I can’t.” Blaze shifted to get free, but I didn’t let go, hooking my hands under his armpits and locking my palms on his shoulders.

“I’ll be there, and so will Talon and Cole.” I kissed his chin and neck. “We’ve got you. You won’t turn evil. I haven’t.”

Why did my encouragement feel like a self-fulfilling prophecy?

CHAPTER 10 - GABLE

Sunshine, fresh air, and an afternoon ice cream. Gravel crunched under our shoes as we completed our daily circuit of King’s Parade Park to get Mary out of the house. Locked away in the darkness of a Brotherhood cell, she desperately needed to get some sun, build up the strength in her emaciated legs, and get acquainted with this strange new world in which she found herself.

This was the third time we left my apartment after having a ceremony for my brother, and our mood was low and contemplative. I wanted to liven that up with a fun little outing.

Business was slow the past few days, freeing me up to spend more time with her, teach her little duties I perform in my business to keep her mind and body active while she stayed with me. Activities took her mind off the ghosts of her past. Packing bundles of candles or wrapping sprigs of herbs. I didn’t want her lifting any boxes when she was weak. Keeping myself occupied worked wonders for me when I escaped.

That, and I wanted to induct my sister into the business, maybe get her working shifts one day, co-own it with me, or expand into another town. All dependent on how quickly I could break down her Brotherhood programming. I hoped this gaveher a sense of direction and purpose when she never had the privilege to choose her direction in life.

I squeezed her hand and swung our joined arms. Touching me grounded her and eased her anxiety at being in a foreign environment. Ice cream melted on the cuff of her thrift store coat, which one of my former Brotherhood associates got for her over a week ago.

“You’re making a mess, Little Bug.” I wiped off the liquid with my napkin, and she smiled. “But that’s what ice cream is about, huh?”

“It tastes good, brother, thank you.” So polite, formal, and obedient. Terrified to utter the wrong word or act inappropriately and be beaten. Habits I’d help her grow out of in time.

Besides our short jaunts, we’d been practically housebound since she came to stay with me. Our food was delivered to us so we didn’t need to take a trip down to the mall. Leaving the apartment took a lot of effort and convincing. Over the last fortnight, we worked up to leaving for short walks, grabbing coffee from a shop a few doors down, and today, I rewarded her with dessert. Anything else was too much for her senses. Going to the bar last weekend to meet up with Luna and her men was a real test, and I wanted to see how Mary handled it. Besides falling to her knees to pay respect to Luna, the evening went well.

My sister’s gaze darted about, scanning for danger—something she’d never shake free of. Still to this day, I peeked out from behind my shopfront’s curtains, scouting for trouble, and releasing magical feelers to get the green light. Even then, I never felt safe, like a predator stalked my rear. After years of it, the habit became second nature, a way to dull my anxiety, and I gave up hope of seeing the end of it. I licked at my two coffee and walnut scoops piled on a cone, remaining calm for her.

“How’s your ice cream, Little Bug?” She outgrew my nickname a long time ago, but I used it as a source of comfort, and she responded well to it.

“Good.” She licked at her chocolate hazelnut, getting it all over her face, the melting cream dripping down her chin.

I wanted to laugh at her childlike innocence despite being a teenager. She had a lot to learn to catch up to speed with the outside world.

I used my napkin to clean the fresh trail, and she gave me a transient smile of appreciation.

I put on this act for her, the cocky smiles, the devil-may-care attitude, but I hurt inside just as much as she did. I wanted to burn away all her pain and leave her with a fresh start without a haunted past. But I was a realist,notan optimist, and this would stay with her for life.

She glanced up at the War Memorial Carillion, towering over us at almost one hundred feet, squinting at the sunlight splitting over the monument. Ice cream dripped on her brow when she raised her hand to shield her eyes. Brotherhood members were prone to darkness, and it would take her weeks for her sight to adjust, like mine did when I broke free.

I brushed the mess from her face with my wet napkin. “Do you want me to grab you a pair of sunglasses to protect your eyes? There’s a store down the block.”

Mary glanced at me with a blank expression. “What are they?”

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