Page 24 of These Monstrous Ties
“You trust her?” the guy called Cain asks.
The one in the white tank turns around, his eyes narrowed on me. I see he has an inverted cross tattooed on the side of his face, by his baby blue eyes. “I trust her,” he volunteers. “She’s too tiny to fuck us up.” He leers at me.
Lucifer turns his head to glare at him. “Keep your fucking mouth shut about her, Mayhem, if you don’t me to sew your lips together when you sleep tonight.”
Then he turns and pulls me through the door.
My eyes widen when we stand in what used to be the foyer. It’s high-ceilinged, and there’s fucking torches in the wall like we’re in the medieval times or some shit. Torches.
And for a crumbling building, the inside isn’t half-bad.
There’s another plastic table stacked with drinks and Lucifer lets go of my hand while he walks toward one, flipping two black cups over, scooping out ice and pouring vodka. I hear one of the Unsaints through the barely-there door talking, calling out what sounds like names.
And I hear Ria’s name, paired withMayhem.
God help her.
Lucifer shoves a drink in my hand. “You ready?” he asks me.
I shake my head but takes a gulp of straight vodka. “No,” I answer honestly after making a face. It doesn’t even burn that much anymore. It kind of tastes good, which means I’m drunker than I feel.
Lucifer doesn’t laugh. Or smile. “Good answer.” He tips his cup back and finishes it in seconds. Before I can say anything about it, the four other guys come inside, four girls trailing behind them.
“Time for the Death Oath,” Atlas says with a grin. He checks the black watch on his wrist. The skull on his t-shirt catches in the torch light and it almost seems to morph, eerie and unnerving. I drink more, letting the vodka burn away my fear.
I see Ria, and she comes to stand beside me. For some reason, this causes the guys to look our way. But I ignore them and loop my arm through Ria’s. Because this shit is weird and it’s probably only going to get weirder.
“No use in bonding, girls,” a deep voice says. It comes from a guy that’s shorter than the rest of them, but built, and still taller than me and the other four girls. He’s got dark brown skin.
All of the girls have their arms wrapped around themselves but with smiles on their beautiful faces.
“You’re going to be separated soon,” the same guy drawls.
And sure enough, Lucifer plucks the drink from my hand and pulls me toward him, away from Ria, who watches me with wide eyes. I glance beside me and realize I’m the only girl standing by the drink table. The rest of them are still crowded around the door, with Ria in the middle, and the rest of the guys on either side of me.
“Not how it works, Lucifer,” the guy with the deep voice says. “Put her with the rest.” He nods to the girls. “Get on your knees.”
I stiffen and spin around to face him. Lucifer’s hand clamps down on mine so hard I have to bite down on my tongue to keep from crying out at the pain in my bones, but I don’t cry out. I look at the guy with the deep voice.
“Excuse me?” I spit at the guy, my anger barely contained. First Lucifer fucks up my plan to kill myself, then I almost get kidnapped by a merry-go-round, and now these fucking idiots want us on our knees.
The girls are silent.
Everyone is silent.
But the guy holds my gaze and a slow smile forms on his lips. “Lilith?” he asks, as if he knows. Lucifer must have told him. “You clearly have no idea how things work around here, so I’ll enlighten you.” He breaks rank with the guys, and Lucifer again squeezes my hand.
“Ezra,” he snarls, the name a warning.
Ah. The missing piece of the six.
Ezra ignores Lucifer and comes to stand in front of me, his arms crossed. “You don’t get to ask questions, Lilith.” I can feel his body heat in front of me, and Lucifer’s beside me. “This isn’t the night for that. I don’t know how Lucifer found you,” his eyes flick to Lucifer’s at my side, “but it’s too late for you to turn back now.”
“Ezra,” Lucifer says again. “Back the fuck up.”
Ezra laughs. And he doesn’t back up. Instead, he steps closer, his chest nearly brushing my shoulders. “You might have to kill her when this is all over, Luce, you know that, don’t you?” Even though he directs the question to Lucifer, he keeps his gaze on me.
I look to Lucifer. Surely this guy is joking. SurelyI’mjoking. I set out tonight with the intention of taking my own life. Now I’m scared of this bonehead?
