Page 54 of Touched By Sin
Something snaps inside me. I launch myself at my wings and tear into them, ignoring the sharp bite of pain while I rip my feathers out. “Stupid, fucking white feathers.” I rip, tear, pull, and yank, smearing my wings with red blood.
When the strength finally leaves me, I sit in a cloud of floating, swirling feathers. They land around me, decorating the ground in white, like a sheet of snow. The pain is excruciating and my tears won’t stop falling. It’s hard to breathe through this sadness inside me. It holds me in its grip and refuses to let me resurface for air.
My head shakes in denial. I’ve not been banished from my home. I’m not sitting here in a fucking torn-up, feather pillow of confetti because Eden spat me out and refused me re-entry. As if that’s not enough, I can’t fly anymore now that my wings are plucked. The pain is too much. I release an almighty scream, and I don’t stop until my lungs burn with something other than despair.
Silence descends again, thick and heavy. Now I understand why they call this Hell. I’ve killed a girl, and now I sit here, covered in blood, after plucking my own fucking feathers like a distressed, caged animal. My throbbing incisor teeth sink into my bottom lip. I didn’t even know I had those until recently. I’m a monster with white wings. A terrible deception.
That’s how the boys find me—broken and curled up in a pile of my own destruction outside the gates of my former home.
“Holy fuck,” Ronan exclaims, staring down at me and the sea of feathers. Daemon doesn’t say a word. He simply scoops me up and cradles me against his chest. Then we’re off, flying back toward my caged prison.
ChapterFifteen
AURELIA
Life moves on whether we want it to or not. The sun rises and sets. Only here, it’s always dark. A week has passed since my escape. Daemon won’t speak to me, and Alaric and Ronan keep close as if they worry I might try to escape again. Though we all know it’ll be a while before my feathers grow back in. In the meantime, I get to look even more like a freak in this world of black.
I can’t seem to move past the fact that my home rejected me. I’m a shadow of my former self, walking the hallways with my gaze down. I should pay attention in class. Especially now that it’s becoming abundantly clear that I won’t ever return to Eden. I need to learn all there is about life in Hell, but it’s hard. I don’t even have the strength to feel jealous when Daemon brings girls home.
I sit on the couch, squashed between Ronan and Alaric, while a girl dances sultrily for Daemon in her panties and bra. My gaze burns a hole in the carpet. Is this my life now? Stuck here? In this world of despair, where we feed on others' suffering? Why else would he pull her down on his lap and spread out like a king while she rolls her hips against him?
Ronan nudges me. “Earth to Angel.”
I drag my eyes away from the worn carpet and gaze up at him. His dark hair curls at the ends and his brown eyes, framed by dark lashes, search mine.
He snaps his fingers in front of my face and says, “She’s about to fuck him. Aren’t you going to do something? Launch yourself at her for the most epic catfight of the century? Stake your claim?”
My eyes wander over to Daemon, and I watch as she slides down the straps on her bra and bares her small, perfect breasts. “It’s only fair, isn’t it? I fucked his cousin.” I rise to my feet and walk out. Daemon follows me with his eyes, but his attention soon gets drawn back to the girl when she throws her head back and bares her slender neck.
I’ve barely made it upstairs before Ronan grabs the back of my neck and shoves me into his bedroom. Alaric follows us in, kicking the door shut. A king-sized bed with gray silk sheets takes up most of the space. The window behind it is ajar, and sheer, black curtains move in the slight breeze. There’s a large desk with a pile of books on it, one of which lies open. It smells of Ronan in here—woodsy and mysterious.
He drops down in his chair, reaching for a joint on his desk, while Alaric walks past me and sinks down on the edge of the bed.
Confused, I look between them. “Why am I here?”
Ronan lights up his joint, puts his feet on the desk, and crosses them at the ankles. “We’re hanging out. The time for moping is fucking over. So they didn’t let you back in, big fucking deal. Now you get to hang with us out here and have fun.”
“Fun.” I taste the word on my tongue as I walk to the bed and lower myself down next to Alaric, then lie back and stare at the ceiling.
“Yeah, fun,” Ronan says while Alaric looks down at me.
“What do you miss the most about Eden?” Alaric asks, his tone curious instead of mocking, and Ronan groans.
“What?” Alaric questions. “It might help her to talk about it.”
Ronan smokes his joint, waving a dismissive hand in the air. “Whatever.”
“Go on.” Alaric nudges my bare knee.
I keep my eyes on the ceiling as I think of what to say. “I miss not feeling.”
They both give me a weird look, so I try to explain. “Everything is stable in Eden. We don’t experience anger, jealousy, bitterness, or even high levels of joy. We’re justhappy.”
“If that’s the case, how did you end up outside of Eden?”
I shrug. “Curiosity mainly. I felt drawn to the gates.”
“You couldn’t have been happy all the time, or you wouldn’t have defied your elders and snuck out.”
