“Nothing!” I snap. I don’t intend to sound angry, but I’m overwhelmed.
“I can’t take back what I did.”
I pull away, blinking so I can see him better. “Wh-why would I want you to?”
“You’re clearly upset over…” he looks at Brett’s lifeless body.
Seeing my ex’s wretched form brings me clarity. I know what I want, and it’s not sitting safely in Hunter’s safe house.
I want to take vengeance on the world. On every evil doer. On Caspian. On ever Vulture that touched me. On the ones that didn’t, because they’re surely just as bad.
But how do I tell that to Hunter?
Maybe I shouldn’t.
I can’t hold back.
“My only regret with him is that we took hours instead of days.”
Hunter nods. “You should have said something. I would have gone slower.”
I shrug. “I was a little overeager.”
He brushes my hair away from my face, and I see real concern lighting his eyes. He cares for me. On some level, this is more than just sex.
“I don’t understand why you’re upset,” he says.
“Of course you don’t.”
“Could you please explain?”
What do I tell him? That I’m terrified I’ll be next? Or that I’m scared he’ll leave me?
Saying either could seal my fate.
Saying nothing could do the same.
I could confess the dark seed growing within me.
What would he think of me? Would he still want me?
“I’m just…scared.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re probably going to leave me.”
I wasn’t supposed to say that.
“You think I’m going to leave you?”
“Or kill me.”
I wasn’t supposed to say that, either.
“Why do you think I would do that?”
“Because you’ll grow bored with me. You’re not the nurturing type, and I doubt you’ll want to take care of me for long.” I wipe away my tears and suck in a jagged breath. “I can’t even read, or at least not well.”
