Chapter 34
Bellis watched Sam look at herself in the mirror and waited. He knew what was coming. Once the shock wore off he totally expected her to lose her shit, and he already felt guilty for it. He knew what it was like to exist in his “demon skin” and he wouldn’t wish that on anyone, least of all Sam. She’d already been through so much, and now look what he’d done to her. She’d risked her life for him, hell, for all Skin Walkers, and how had she been repaid? She’d been locked up, disrespected, mistrusted. Even helping kill her own brother had cost her. Bellis wanted to punch a hole through the fucking wall. He didn’t understand why nothing ever worked out for his Angel. His Angel? His eyes dipped to his halo, falsely placed around her throat. It was hard to remember that she wasn’t really his. He’d been responsible for her for so long, and then when he’d collared her something had snapped inside of him. Snapped into place.
Tears filled Sam’s eyes and he bristled, ready for the rage that was sure to follow.
He’d come to her armed with a mirror, because he knew she’d want to see for herself what he’d done to her, but when he’d gotten to her cell she was still out. The fact that she was in a cell at all was grating, but when he’d entered and scented her still-present pain, he’d been enraged. She didn’t deserve this, any of it!
He’d studied her in her sleep, and even with his inky skin covering her, she was still exquisite. She was still his Sam, just darker. The change in her made no difference to him. In fact, it only endeared him to her more.
Finally, Sam lowered the mirror and her dark, glistening eyes shot to his. “Is…is it really you?”
Fuck! She had to be legitimately in clinical shock now, because the Sam he knew would have nut-punched him and then chopped him in the throat while he was down. He tensed, as if her question was a test. “Yeah. It’s me, Sam.”
Her eyes pinched at the corners as she angled her head and gazed up at him. When she lifted her hand, he barely hid a flinch, and it pissed him off, so he barked, “Look, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen to you. I didn’t know it would, or I wouldn’t have…” His words died off, because they would have been a lie. He’d have done anything to save her, consequences be damned.
“You…you saved me?”
He looked away, because the disbelief in her voice gutted him and had emotion thickening his throat. Of course he fucking saved her! She bore his halo, and felt like his. His attention returned to her face when she lifted a hand and whispered it over the healing wound on his shoulder.
“A-are you okay?”
Her questions stunned him and he sat straighter, puffing out his chest. “I’m good.”
“Odium?”
And how in the hell did he tell her that he’d turned her into a demon and killed her brother all in one day? He couldn’t lie to her though. He wouldn’t, because they’d been through too much together and his Sam deserved the truth.
“I’m sorry, Sam, he’s gone.” More loudly, he verified, “I killed him.”
“The other Megalya?”
He jerked his head down in a nod. “Same.”
When her head dipped, his nostrils flared. He had to figure out what she was feeling, because she sure as hell wasn’t telling him. Sifting through her scents, there was relief and…
Sam’s head lifted and she gave a tentative smile. “So, it’s over?”
Goddamn it all! How did he tell her that after all she’d sacrificed, and after all she’d endured, that it wasn’t yet over. “Sam.”
Something in his tone must have let her know, because her smile slipped and her eyes narrowed. When she finally spoke, there was venom in her tone. “It’s not!”
“Sam…”
She cut him off, barking, “Find me my clothes.” She scrambled from his lap, staggering to her feet, a hiss letting him know that she was still in pain.
Bellis followed her up, confusion knitting his brows. “Why?”
“So I can go.”
Her words were spoken as if she truly believed there’d be no questions asked, no explanations needed, no reckoning, but the look in her eyes when she turned to him told him she knew the truth of it.
“You…you can’t leave, Sam. You’re,” his words faltered, and he tried again. “Fatal wants you to remain here.”
She blinked, her face suddenly tight with anger. “So he can kill me himself?”
“He’s not going to…”
“I helped you!” she snapped accusingly. “I helped you kill my…” her voice broke, and she lowered her head.
Bellis fought the urge to grab her, to hold her. She was hiding again. She was always hiding from everyone, and it was typically behind the façade of a heartless warrior, but it was clear to him that she was feeling some regret over what she’d helped him do to her brother.
When Sam lifted her head, she swallowed hard, blinking to dispel the unshed tears that glistened in her eyes. “I helped you kill Odium.” Her voice was calm and even. “That should fucking count for something.”
“It does.” Bellis nodded, then quickly amended, “It will.”
Sam frowned up at him, her tone full of disgust. “And until then I’m a prisoner, again?”
“You’re not a prisoner, Sam. You’re just being…detained.”
She snorted. “Is there a fucking difference?”
He hated when she talked like that. She tried to deter male attention by appearing unfeminine. She needed to revise her tactics, because they weren’t working. To him, she was the sexiest damn thing that walked the face of the earth. Watching her though, Bellis sensed her turmoil and he understood it. She’d helped them complete the mission. The Megalya Hive was destroyed and the monsters there were dead. Sam should have been rejoicing. Instead, she was a prisoner again, only this time she was being held by different monsters.
“Monroe is on his way. He’ll talk to Fatal.”
She snapped her eyes shut and turned her head away. In a tone full of uncertainty, she wrapped her arms around herself like a shield before asking, “What am I supposed to do now?”
“Heal!” The word came out much more harshly than he’d intended, but it was frustrating that she was once again injured and locked up, yet still ready to rush headlong into battle. He’d failed her again, and how would she ever chose him now? Fuck what Fatal said. Keepers and Skin Walkers alike would find her character alluring, her beauty undeniable, her strength staggering. She was hardened and uncared for when she clearly could have her choice of mate to pamper her. His frown deepened. Pamper. He scoffed at the word, because he doubted she even knew what it meant.
The door leading into the holding area clanged and Jenny hurried in breathlessly. “He’s here!” she exclaimed. “Monroe is here.”
Bellis looked at Sam. He wanted to reassure her, to tell her everything was going to be okay now, but he wouldn’t do that to her. He knew better where Monroe StoneCrow was concerned. “I’ll go speak with him,” he promised, but when he lifted a hand to cup her cheek, she jerked away, “Do whatever you want. I’m no concern of yours, Bellis.” More quietly, she tacked on, “Never was.”
Do whatever you want? What he wanted to do was pick her up and fuck her against the wall while whispering reassurances in her ear, but with Jenny waiting at the cell door that wasn’t happening. With nothing else to offer, he grabbed the med bed he’d thrown against the wall and righted it. He crossed to Sam in two great strides, and when she tried to back away he caught her and lifted her into his arms, then carried her to the bed and gently placed her on it before picking up her blanket and shaking it out. He settled it over her and offered her a vow. “I’m coming back, Princess.”
She looked away, murmuring, “Don’t bother.”
Her words ripped a snarl from him and he grabbed her chin, forcing her eyes back to his. “We’re not finished, Samantha. You and I are far from over.” Abruptly, he released her and walked to the cell door Jenny held open. He didn’t look back as he left, because he couldn’t. His halo on his woman, who sat injured in a cell, was too much for any Skin Walker to take, and this shit ended right now!