Samael raised his eyebrows and sighed. "I guess I'll have that glass of wine later."
"I'm sorry, Samael. Do my commands bore you? Are you not fulfilled by your duties and powers? You’d rather live as the humans, maybe even become one yourself?"
He swallowed, then shook his head. "Not at all. Let's hunt the despicable humans who deserve our fiery vengeance."
The tone of his voice, flat yet somehow disdainful, made me pause.What is going on with him, and why does he seem to have lost his hatred of their kind?
It was another problem for another day. Right now, it was time for me to slake my thirst for retribution. Humans had always deserved my wrathful judgment, and tonight, I knew just who I'd start with.
Chapter 21
Anna Sill
Present Day
"MyGod,Anna.Ican't believe you can see again. It's unbelievable," Jason said as he held me out at arm's length.
I'd always known he was taller than me, but to see his face for the first time sent my head reeling. I didn't know if he was considered handsome when compared to everyone else, but to me, everything and every person shone beautifully.
Ryan hugged me from behind. He smelled of cigarette smoke and tic-tacs. "You know what this is? A miracle, just like the one Jason and I experienced at school all those years ago.
My senses were overloaded. It was overwhelming trying to adjust to all the information my new sight was feeding into my brain. The colors, the sharpness of lines, the amazing brightness—I could barely handle the sensory input.
I felt like the small child I'd been before I'd lost my vision, exploring a world that was new, sweet, and overwhelming.
"Jesus, don't bring that up, Ryan." Jason placed a kiss on my cheek and let me go.
His skin, a deep brown, contrasted with his shining irises.
"Oh, come on. Don't start with the'It was just a hallucination brought on by the pot we smoked that day. There's no such thing as the devil.'You and I both know it was no dream. That…demon…was evil incarnate. We were extremely lucky to escape with our lives."
"And that's why we've protected Anna all these years," Jason said. "We learned the errors of our ways and have repented ever since."
"What are y'all talking about?" I closed my eyes for a few seconds to shut out the noise of all the images and information bombarding my head.
The darkness I'd lived in for so long greeted me like an old friend.But I have a new lease on life now. Lucian had given me the greatest gift I could have ever received. Now, I could paint not just from touch, but from actually seeing the world. No more creating the image in my head and hoping it translated to the canvas by the texture of my paint. True authenticity would shine in my future works, and I could even make a living one day doing what I loved most.
I wish Lucian hadn't left in such a hurry.I'd wanted to introduce him to my roommates and then go somewhere private so I could just stare at his beauty.
"You remember when we used to call you, Mole?" Ryan's voice broke through my thoughts, and I opened my eyelids. His cheeks flushed fiercely.
"Yeah, that's not something I could ever forget." They'd tortured me nonstop until that day in the library, when Lucian had come to visit. I'd been desperate to be normal, to be like everyone else, to see like everyone else.
"I hope we've made up for all the bad things we did to you." Ryan turned to Jason and took one of his hands into his own.
Jason gave it a squeeze and nodded.
"You have." I smiled with reassurance. "I don't know what changed, but I've always been grateful for your friendship and protection."
"I wish I could say we changed because we wanted to be better people, but in truth, we changed because we were scared shitless."
I laughed and sat down at the card table we used for a dining area. The cream-colored surface caught my attention, and I glided a hand over its top, watching my fingers as they caressed the smooth plastic. This was the first time I'd seen my hands since I'd been five or six. No longer were they child-like. Instead, my fingers were long and straight, with a smattering of freckles dusting the wrists.
How amazing our bodies are—not just in function, but in aesthetics, too.
"Well, I don't really know how to say this without sounding batshit crazy, but here goes." Ryan held up their laced hands and kissed Jason's knuckle. "This fuckin'…I don't know what you call him. A demon? An angel?"
"Satan," whispered Jason.
