Page 32 of Beg Me Angel

Because she didn't have to be, I wasn't going to kill her or harm her like whoever had her before me.

But knowing deep inside what I wanted to do to her was enough to send my body into overdrive. That was why I wanted to stay away from her, that was why I was trying so hard to remove myself mentally from this angelic figure of demon lust.

Because I couldn't trust myself.

But you want her to trust you?

You're ridiculous, trust is earned. You have to give her something in order to get it.

It was hard for me to accept that she wasn't aware of what I had done to keep her alive. I wanted her to listen to me, to believe in the words I was saying. Only that wasn't realistic, because only one of us was actually present for the entire thing.

And that was me.

“Trust you? How can I trust you?” Yanking her arm free, she took another small step back. “You tell me you know nothing, you tell me you found me, but you have no idea what happened. Now—nowI find a grave practically in your backyard and you ask me to trust you?”

Dragging my hand over my head, I scrubbed the light stubble on my scalp. “You don't want an answer to this, you don't want to know what was going through my head while I dug it. So yes, I need you to trust me.”

“Did you do this to me? Are you the reason I'm hurting?”

Clenching my teeth, I angrily barked. “NO.” My eyes set a blaze, burning as they rested inside the sockets, glaring at her.

Doesn't she feel it?

Can't she sense that I'm not the one who hurt her?

Teetering on her heels, she kicked some loose dirt into the hole, driving her hands deep into her pockets. I couldn't read what she was thinking, her face was blank, openly staring down into the pit. There weren't any nervous twitches, no shaky fingers or glossy eyes, just an empty shell.

You can fix this, give her what she wants. Take her there.

“Come on, this way.” Not giving her time to ask any more questions and not giving her the answer she was looking for, I took off up the hill.

I didn't bother staying quiet anymore, the time to hunt was over, our presence had been made loud and clear. Anything in earshot was probably gone, scattering in the opposite direction the moment she stormed off.

Tomorrow's another day.

Vera's feet padded behind me, her breathing picking up as we neared the top. It was crazy to me how in tune I was with her body. Every sound she made, every jerk or ripple, it spoke to me.

And right then, even feet behind me, I could tell she was drained, her mind had enough and her body was quickly following. Each breath came out harder, her pants more labored and tired. Placing her hands on her knees, she leaned over and took in a few big breaths as we neared the top.

“Down there.” Pointing with my finger, she stepped up beside me and looked off into the horizon.

“What's down there?” she asked, squinting her eyes and holding her hand up to block the sun.

“That's where I found you, right. . .” Scanning the treeline, I stopped my hand on the bush I first discovered her in. “There, you see the Birch tree that's falling over onto the other one?”

“Mm hm,” she said, nodding her head.

“Right below that.”

Watching her closely, her eyes sparked with curiosity, as I stood hoping her memory of the hole was fizzling away.

“Is there a way we can get down?” Narrowing her eyes to look closer, she glanced over the edge of the steep hill separating her from what she wanted.

Smirking, I tried to hide the smile on my face. I was happy to hear the sound of her voice, to see her eyes light up and sparkle in the sunlight.

Her tone had skipped with excitement, flaunting relief that I had given her something she might find answers in.

What she didn't realize was I wanted the same thing too. I wanted to know who had done this, I wanted to wrap my hands around their throat and watch them beg me to let them go.

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