Tears of frustration stung my eyes. “No, it’s not okay. You told me not to trust this guy, and I did. Now look at where it’s gotten us. He’s probably going to keep us here until nightfall, then have the cult come and get us for their freaky ritual.”
“That’s exactly what’s going to happen, lamb.”
With my whimper, Titus swiveled his gaze back to me. He pressed a finger beneath my chin, tilting my face so our eyes locked. His one white eye burned into me through the dark. “Hey. None of that. You’ve been a total badass throughout this entire thing. Don’t go acting like a scared little girl on me now.”
“But I’ve fucked everything up.”
He gave a one-shouldered shrug. “You’re human. It’s in your nature to trust other people of your kind in certain dire situations. It’s the whole pack-mentality thing. You wanted to trust the old man, and, if he were human, chances are he would have helped us.” His one white eye slivered. “Too bad he turned out to be like me…”
Sensing the hurt in his tone, I reached up to cup his head in my hands. “You’re human too, you know. I think that’s why you indulged me. You like seeing all my human idiosyncrasies. You’re learning to be more human, learning to trust more. It just…bit us in the ass this time.”
The half-devil gave a slow nod. “Yeah. I guess. Maybe I’ve been too obsessed with the fantasy of feeling human,beinghuman. I’ll never be fully human. And I’ll never be a full devil.”
I frowned at him. “So what? What’s so horrible about being a little bit of both?”
He blinked at me, seeming caught off guard by the question. “I don’t belong anywhere.”
My heart ached at the unguarded pain underscoring his words. My lips feathered over his in a gentle kiss. “You belong with me, Titus. Nothing else matters.”
The hours crept by on their hands and knees as we watched the light die outside the cellar window. Soon, it was pitch black. The full moon was just visible over the treetops.
Titus now stood beside the window, an undesirable expression carving his features. He was as beautiful as ever with the silver light flooding through the window, painting his face in strips of shadows cast from the bars.
“The fog is thick tonight,” he whispered, more to himself than to me. “He’s awake. He’s coming.”
My insides quivered. My nerves were a fucking wreck, but for some reason, I wasn’t scared.
If anything, I felt ashamed for being so blindly trusting. “The second they let us out of here, you should try to run. Leave me behind. You’re fast. You can escape, especially if you use me as a distraction.”
For the first time in what felt like hours, Titus turned away from the window, and his intimidating glare pinned me down to the stack of newspapers where I sat. “This was never about me escaping Bishop. If it were, I would have left long before your trash mother ever dragged you to this godforsaken place.”
“Then what is it about?”
“It used to be about avenging my mother.” His gaze softened, almost looking pained. “Now that I’ve done that, all I care about is being with you.”
Muffled voices suddenly sounded from outside. Amber firelight flooded through the window, painting the wall with Titus’s demonic figure, making him appear even more intimidating. His wings flexed behind him, and his gaze grew distant. “The Ritual. It’s begun.”
Chapter Fourteen
Lore
Thenightairhungheavy with the taste of smoke and loathing.
As several robed devils guided us out of Titus’s uncle’s basement—at gunpoint—their murderous intent was palpable. Everyone watched us through the slits in their masks as we marched to the roaring bonfire that had been lit in front of the house.
There were so many of them. At least three dozen, maybe more.
The little flame of hope in my chest flickered and died. There was no fighting our way out of this one.
Titus shuffled closer to me, his claws lacing through my fingers. “Do you remember what I told you back at the house?” he whispered, his white devil’s eye glittering in the dark.
I did remember; I’d never forget. But I wanted to hear him say it again anyway. “Remind me.”
“Whatever human emotions are weighing you down—fear, trepidation, whatever the fuck they are—they are not your burden. They’re mine. Because I own your heart, little lamb. And after tonight, I’ll own your soul too.”
A heady coalescence of anxiety and excitement shimmered through my veins. “What if the Jersey Devil beats you to it? What if he kills you first? What if he kills both of us?”
“Then your soul will be tethered to mine, and we’ll burn together.”
