Wicked Kiss
Page 110
- Background:
- Text Font:
- Text Size:
- Line Height:
- Line Break Height:
- Frame:
I couldn’t ignore that.
“Let me see.” I said it so quietly I wasn’t sure anyone had heard me.
Bishop watched me steadily, his gaze not leaving mine for a moment. “Samantha...”
“Let me see your memories. Drop your walls completely and let me see what happened back then. This has tormented you for over a hundred years. I know it has. But I think I can help you learn what really happened.”
“What really happened?” Kraven scoffed. “He made a deal with Heaven and got a big shiny knife and a pair of fluffy wings for his troubles. I remember how that knife felt when he sank it into my back.”
It wasn’t until I looked at the demon that I felt a hot tear splash to my cheek. His brows drew together as if whatever expression was on my face was the exact opposite of what he’d expected.
“Don’t look at me like that, sweetness. I don’t want your pity.”
He called it pity. I called it empathy. “You’ve suffered all this time, too, but for a different reason. You believe the brother you loved more than anybody else betrayed you for some sort of prize. You would have done anything for him, I know you would have. Even now, you can’t help yourself when it comes to Bishop—”
“Adam,” Kraven bit out the name. “And he can’t even admit to his own damn name. Pathetic.”
“—you still want to help him when he gets in trouble. You still want to save him when he’s in danger. You can tell yourself you hate him and that you only took this assignment to get the chance to make him suffer, but you’re lying to yourself. Theme of the night—no more lies. No more secrets. You think you’re so damn tough, Kraven...”
“I am,” he gritted out.
“You are,” I agreed. “But not when it comes to Bishop. You still love him, you can’t help it. That sort of love is unconditional, even if he hurts you. Even if he...kills you.” I turned from Kraven’s now stricken expression to look at Bishop. “Will you let me see your memories? You can’t fight me on this if I try. I have no damn idea what I’m doing or even if it’ll work. It’s always been accidental before.”
Bishop was silent for so long I was certain he was ready to walk away and try to forget about this.
But finally, he nodded. “We can try.”
“This is ridiculous,” Kraven said, but there was an edge to his voice now. Something raw and pained that went miles deeper than the surface. This pain he felt toward his brother went right to the center of his entire being. “You two have your sexy little mind-meld experiment. I have better things to do.”
When I reached out and grabbed his wrist he turned a very dark look on me that once would have scared me to my very core. To be completely honest, it still did.
“No.” I tightened my grip on him. “You’re not going anywhere.”
He raised an eyebrow. “I’m not?”
I shook my head. “It’s time for the truth. Are you ready to see it?”
Chapter 33
Kraven glanced down at my hand on his wrist. “That feels kind of tingly. I like it. What are you doing now, sweetness?”
My new hunger was currently at a very controllably low level, which was good. I couldn’t let my new problem interrupt this. “Ignore it.”
“I’ll try my best.”
I took hold of Bishop’s hand. He eyed me uneasily. “So you’re going to try to be a true connection between Heaven and Hell tonight, are you?”
“It might even work.”
“You literally have thirty seconds before I’m out of here,” Kraven said, his jaw tight. “Tick tock.”
No pressure there.
I looked at Bishop. “Try thinking about back then, when everything went wrong. When your memories first got faulty.”
His expression tensed. “I’ll try.”
I nodded, holding his gaze—holding it harder than I ever had before since I knew this was so important.
If it worked—and that was a big if—this could go either way. It might only confirm that Bishop snapped and went on a murdering rampage. Or that he’d made some deal that required the life of his brother offered up to Hell on a silver platter.
What I was trying to do might possibly make everything worse.
Doubt worked its way under my skin in record time.
Maybe I shouldn’t do this. Maybe I should put it off till another night when there was less on my mind and I had more answers about Nathan...
Maybe—
Snap!
James was right. My sight’s back to normal. Hell, it’s better than normal. Walking around without thick glasses and the constant threat of going blind is an amazing feeling.
Magic. I never would have thought it’d work.
The man who helped me, who James had found through one of Kara’s contacts in the city, cost a small fortune—James has yet to tell me how much—but it worked.
Time to find my brother and thank him for saving my eyes.
I get back to Kara’s place thinking I might find him here. James and I have our own house, an abandoned one on the east side we’ve taken unofficial ownership of. We saw our mother enough before and after the jobs she sent us out on. One day we’d find jobs that didn’t require us to be indebted to her any longer. Jobs that didn’t require weekly visits to the cemetery.
“Where’s James?” I ask the moment I see her.
“Let me see.” I said it so quietly I wasn’t sure anyone had heard me.
Bishop watched me steadily, his gaze not leaving mine for a moment. “Samantha...”
“Let me see your memories. Drop your walls completely and let me see what happened back then. This has tormented you for over a hundred years. I know it has. But I think I can help you learn what really happened.”
“What really happened?” Kraven scoffed. “He made a deal with Heaven and got a big shiny knife and a pair of fluffy wings for his troubles. I remember how that knife felt when he sank it into my back.”
It wasn’t until I looked at the demon that I felt a hot tear splash to my cheek. His brows drew together as if whatever expression was on my face was the exact opposite of what he’d expected.
“Don’t look at me like that, sweetness. I don’t want your pity.”
He called it pity. I called it empathy. “You’ve suffered all this time, too, but for a different reason. You believe the brother you loved more than anybody else betrayed you for some sort of prize. You would have done anything for him, I know you would have. Even now, you can’t help yourself when it comes to Bishop—”
“Adam,” Kraven bit out the name. “And he can’t even admit to his own damn name. Pathetic.”
“—you still want to help him when he gets in trouble. You still want to save him when he’s in danger. You can tell yourself you hate him and that you only took this assignment to get the chance to make him suffer, but you’re lying to yourself. Theme of the night—no more lies. No more secrets. You think you’re so damn tough, Kraven...”
“I am,” he gritted out.
“You are,” I agreed. “But not when it comes to Bishop. You still love him, you can’t help it. That sort of love is unconditional, even if he hurts you. Even if he...kills you.” I turned from Kraven’s now stricken expression to look at Bishop. “Will you let me see your memories? You can’t fight me on this if I try. I have no damn idea what I’m doing or even if it’ll work. It’s always been accidental before.”
Bishop was silent for so long I was certain he was ready to walk away and try to forget about this.
But finally, he nodded. “We can try.”
“This is ridiculous,” Kraven said, but there was an edge to his voice now. Something raw and pained that went miles deeper than the surface. This pain he felt toward his brother went right to the center of his entire being. “You two have your sexy little mind-meld experiment. I have better things to do.”
When I reached out and grabbed his wrist he turned a very dark look on me that once would have scared me to my very core. To be completely honest, it still did.
“No.” I tightened my grip on him. “You’re not going anywhere.”
He raised an eyebrow. “I’m not?”
I shook my head. “It’s time for the truth. Are you ready to see it?”
Chapter 33
Kraven glanced down at my hand on his wrist. “That feels kind of tingly. I like it. What are you doing now, sweetness?”
My new hunger was currently at a very controllably low level, which was good. I couldn’t let my new problem interrupt this. “Ignore it.”
“I’ll try my best.”
I took hold of Bishop’s hand. He eyed me uneasily. “So you’re going to try to be a true connection between Heaven and Hell tonight, are you?”
“It might even work.”
“You literally have thirty seconds before I’m out of here,” Kraven said, his jaw tight. “Tick tock.”
No pressure there.
I looked at Bishop. “Try thinking about back then, when everything went wrong. When your memories first got faulty.”
His expression tensed. “I’ll try.”
I nodded, holding his gaze—holding it harder than I ever had before since I knew this was so important.
If it worked—and that was a big if—this could go either way. It might only confirm that Bishop snapped and went on a murdering rampage. Or that he’d made some deal that required the life of his brother offered up to Hell on a silver platter.
What I was trying to do might possibly make everything worse.
Doubt worked its way under my skin in record time.
Maybe I shouldn’t do this. Maybe I should put it off till another night when there was less on my mind and I had more answers about Nathan...
Maybe—
Snap!
James was right. My sight’s back to normal. Hell, it’s better than normal. Walking around without thick glasses and the constant threat of going blind is an amazing feeling.
Magic. I never would have thought it’d work.
The man who helped me, who James had found through one of Kara’s contacts in the city, cost a small fortune—James has yet to tell me how much—but it worked.
Time to find my brother and thank him for saving my eyes.
I get back to Kara’s place thinking I might find him here. James and I have our own house, an abandoned one on the east side we’ve taken unofficial ownership of. We saw our mother enough before and after the jobs she sent us out on. One day we’d find jobs that didn’t require us to be indebted to her any longer. Jobs that didn’t require weekly visits to the cemetery.
“Where’s James?” I ask the moment I see her.
