Sacrifice Me: The Complete Season One (20 page)

I stared at my homework and sighed. There was no
way I was getting this done tonight. Even if I wasn’t
completely exhausted, I couldn’t get my mind off the events of
the past few days. What I needed was sleep. I would have to ask my
professor for an extension on the homework. I’d tell him I had
a family emergency or something, which was actually somewhat close to
the truth.

I closed the book with a thud, then headed back to
my bedroom.

I stripped off my work clothes and went to grab my
discarded PJ’s from this morning when my eyes landed on the
white dress shirt I’d laid across my chair.

Rend’s shirt.

I knew I should have it cleaned and taken back to
him, but right now, I wanted to curl up in it and fall asleep. I
wanted a reminder that even if I was alone here tonight, no matter
what his motivation for doing it, Rend was watching out for me. He
wanted to keep me safe.

I pulled the shirt on, breathing in the lingering
scent of his cologne and wishing he were here with me now.

I left the bedside-lamp on—something I
hadn’t done since I was a little girl—and crawled into
bed.

I am back in the hall of doorways. The sound of
flapping wings ahead draws my attention, but I can’t see
anything in the darkness. I lift my palm and concentrate on creating
light. It takes a few tries, but after a few minutes, a small spark
of light forms, allowing me to see a few feet in front of me.

"Come to me, little bird," a voice
says in a whisper.

"Mom?"

I move forward, glancing at each doorway until
I’m standing in front of the one with a crow carved into its
surface. I raise my free hand to the carving, letting my fingers
slide over the bumps and ridges of it.

Slowly, I reach for the doorknob with a
trembling hand.

Rain pelted the window and a tree branch squeaked
across the glass, ripping me from sleep.

Sweat soaked the back of my neck and my breath
came in short gasps.

I brought my knees to my chest and rubbed my eyes
with weary hands. I glanced at the clock. Four in the morning.

I’d been dreaming of the door again,
following my mother. She’d been leading me to that door. I
needed to know what was behind it.

I knew Rend didn’t want me going through the
crow’s door until we had some idea of what was behind it, but
what if my mother was there? What if she could give me some of the
answers I’d been looking for? What if she could keep me safe?

In my sleep I had tossed the covers off my body,
and I stood to straighten them. I thought about getting back into bed
and trying to get more sleep, but I’d been locked in the dream
of that door for the past several hours.

I needed a break.

I carried a blanket out to the couch and walked to
the fridge to get a glass of water, but a feeling seized me as I
passed by the large window facing the street.

Someone is out there.

My heart skipped a beat and I forced a deep
breath. Weak-kneed, I went to the window and stared out into the
storm.

Rain poured hard and wind whipped the trees from
side to side.

Cars zoomed by, their lights illuminating the
sidewalk as they passed.

That’s when I saw him.

Rend stood in the shadow of a large oak tree near
the street, his black hooded sweatshirt soaked through from the rain.
I couldn’t see his face, but I knew it was him.

How long had he been down there?

I stepped away from the window and leaned against
the arm of the couch for support. I wasn’t sure my legs could
hold me.

This was his solution? If I wouldn’t come to
the club, he would stand guard all night outside my apartment? In the
pouring rain?

I knew my life was in danger, but what I still
couldn’t wrap my head around was why my life was so important
to anyone.

Especially Rend.

If my blood was so valuable to the Devil, why not
let him have me? Wouldn’t that be easier on everyone?

I paced the floor in front of the window, anger
giving me the strength to walk again.

Was he really going to just stand out there all
night?

I contemplated just going back into my room and
going to bed as if I hadn’t seen him. Let him stay out there,
miserable and uncomfortable all night. Why should I care? It’s
not like I asked him to protect me.

But I already knew I couldn’t let this go.

I couldn’t live my life under his constant
supervision.

I'd told him I needed space and that I’d
come back when I felt like it. How dare he show up here like this?

I had to put a stop to this now. I had to let him
know I had my boundaries and that I needed him to respect that.

I threw open my door and stomped down the three
flights of stairs to the front entrance of my building. I stepped out
into the night, rain soaking my hair and clothes in seconds. I
shivered as the wind picked up. It was still late summer, but the
cold rain made it feel like fall.

My eyes struggled to find him out here in the
dark. Oak trees lined this entire street, and I couldn’t figure
out which one he’d been hiding behind.

As if he knew I was searching for him, Rend
stepped around the tree and leaned against it, one leg propped up
behind him.

I marched over to him, ready to battle to the
death about this if that was what it took. He needed to understand
that just because he was bigger and more powerful than I was, he
couldn’t just take over my life without asking me. Danger or
not, I still needed to be in control of my own choices.

“What the hell are you doing out here?”
I asked. I could hardly see through the rain. It pelted my face with
thick drops that landed, then slid down my cheeks.

Even in the dim light of the street lamp, I
couldn’t see his eyes underneath that hood. His body position
was so casual, so utterly unconcerned, that it just pissed me off
more.

“I wake up in the middle of the night to
find you lurking outside my apartment like some stalker.” I
placed a hand on my hip. “You'd better start explaining
yourself. And take that stupid hood off.”

I had to shout to be heard over the storm.

He slowly pulled the hood back from his face, and
I sucked in a breath. God, he was gorgeous. Every time I saw him, he
took my breath away.

I hated him for it.

“It’s the only way I could be sure you
would be safe.”

I tensed and drew my hands into fists. “So,
what? You’re just going to stand out here every night for the
rest of my life?”

“I’ll do whatever it takes,” he
said.

“Right.” I nodded. “And you do
this for all your employees?”

“Of course not.”

“Then what makes me so special that I get
the privilege of your company twenty-four-seven?”

“First of all, you have no idea how to take
care of yourself.”

Anger pulsed through me.

“Don’t even go there,” I
shouted. “I have been taking care of myself since I was five
years old.”

“Not against people like him.”

“No, but from what I can tell, Azure and
most of the staff there at Venom wouldn’t be able to protect
themselves against him. Even you had fear in your eyes when you were
talking about him.”

Rend pushed against the tree and moved a step
closer. I took one step back.

“Just because I’m afraid of him
doesn’t mean I couldn’t destroy him if I wanted to,”
he said.

“You’re saying that’s what you
would do? If he showed up here tonight, right now? That’s what
you would do? You would risk your own life for me?”

He stepped toward me and I backed away. My foot
caught on the edge of the sidewalk and I fell. Rend’s form
blurred and his arms wrapped around me, pulling me to him.

Breathless, I stared up at him, rain falling from
him onto me as he held me. “How did you do that?” I
asked. “How did you move that fast?”

“I told you, there are so many things about
this world you cannot even begin to comprehend.” He stared down
into my eyes and I was glad he was holding me because my entire body
turned to liquid. “You shouldn’t be out here in the rain
like this.”

I cursed my body for shivering against him, but
the wind had picked up and I was soaked through.

“I needed to talk to you,” I said.

“We could talk inside,” he said,
glancing up at the apartment building.

He lifted me and set me back on my feet, but he
didn’t remove his arms from around me.

“I’m not inviting you up,” I
said.

He lifted his chin, his lips pressed tight.
“You’re infuriating, you know that?”

“Only because you make me that way,” I
said. “And you didn’t answer my question.”

“We can talk about it tomorrow. You’re
going to get sick if you stay out here.”

“No, we need to talk about this right now,”
I said. I knew I should push away from him. My brain didn’t
work when he was this close. But the warmth of his body felt so
incredible, I couldn’t force myself away.

“Yes,” he said. His eyes moving over
my face. “I would risk my life for you.”

My heart stopped for a moment and time stood
still. Logically, I knew he didn’t mean that he cared about me.
I knew he had sworn to protect everyone who worked for him.

But there was something in his eyes that defied
logic.

“Why?” I asked, my breath barely a
whisper in the wind.

Against my hands, his chest rose and fell in short
breaths.

“Why am I worth so much to you?” I
felt the door inside my heart opening to him again and even though a
part of me wanted to slam it closed, there was a part of me that
still hoped we could be something more. I realized I wasn’t
ready to give up on that hope just yet. “You barely know me.
Why take this risk for me?”

I swallowed. I was scared to go any further into
this conversation.

He didn’t say anything, but I could feel his
heart beating fast against the palm of my hand.

“I’ve tried to make sense of this in
my mind ever since you kissed me earlier,” I said, unable to
stop myself. “It feels like there could be something between
us. Something real that goes beyond you agreeing to protect me
because I work for you. But every time you get close to me, you pull
away, and I don’t know what to believe anymore. Have I imagined
this? Do you want me? Or are you just playing some kind of game with
my heart?”

He was quiet for a long moment as my heart
thundered against my chest. His jaw tensed and his fingers curled
into the skin on my back, drawing the shirt into his fist. His lips
parted, but then he shook his head, as if there was a war going on
inside of him.

He let out a breath and gripped my arm tighter.
“Dammit, Franki,” he said. “I don’t want to
feel this way about you. I wish I could stand here and tell you that
was all you meant to me. I wish I could say you are nothing more than
an employee.”

Thunder boomed in the distance and a car passed
beside us, the lights landing on the tortured expression of his face.

“I want you, but I can’t afford to
take sides. I’m supposed to be the neutral party, providing a
place for those on both sides to come and talk things out and make
deals. I don’t take sides,” he said. “I can’t
take sides.”

He released me, both hands coming completely off
my body as he stepped away and turned his back to me.

I wrapped my arms around myself, feeling that this
was the end. This is where the awful truth would come out. I would
not let it break me.

“I can protect my employees against most of
the evil that’s out there, but with the Devil, things are
different,” he said. “I can’t explain it to you
now, but choosing you over him would mean choosing sides. It would
mean getting involved in a war I’ve worked hard to stay out
of.”

He ran a shaking hand through his hair and leaned
forward against the tree. He stood there for a long moment, his body
as still and rigid as a statue.

Then, he turned back to me, his eyes finding mine
even in the darkness of the night.

He shook his head again, then walked with sure
steps to me.

My hands dropped to my side, and I looked up as he
took my face in his hands.

“Fuck it,” he said. “You’re
worth it.”

He claimed my mouth with his, tasting of rain and
licorice. His kisses were rough and unrelenting and as my lips opened
to him, he moved his hands down my neck and arms and around to my
back. He gripped my shirt in his hands and pulled me to him with such
force, it took my breath away.

I yielded to him, my heart split wide open by the
passion in his touch.

“Invite me in,” he said, finally
pulling away. His words were tortured, as if he couldn’t bear
taking the moments from my lips to speak them. “Unless you want
me to do this in front of all your neighbors.”

I nodded, my arms circling around his neck and my
body heating at the thought of what he meant by
this
.

“Say it,” he said, his forehead
pressed against mine. “I need you to say it. I need to know you
want this as much as I do.”

“Take me inside,” I said, barely able
to recognize my own voice.

He lifted me into his arms and carried me up the
stairs into my building. He took the steps two at a time, all the way
to the third floor, finding my door without ever taking his eyes from
my face.

I had left the door unlocked. He threw it open and
carried me across the threshold, then kicked it closed.

He kissed me again as soon as we were inside, the
sound of his moans making me yearn for his hands on my body. The room
was quiet after being out in the storm. The only sounds were our
heavy breaths and the pounding of our hearts.

He set my feet on the floor, but didn’t take
his hands from my body. They moved to my hips, pulling me tighter
against him. He pushed me backward until my back hit the edge of the
kitchen table.