Short of blowing his own brains out, nothing could stop it, and he’d been close to trying that before he’d discovered the harder stuff. It worked, not stopping the pain entirely, but enough that he could breath. That he could live.
Now that could become addictive, the feeling of nothing. Pain free.
Something popped, a hairline splinter cracking the beaker. “Shit.” Axel turned off the flame, but it was too late, the glass shattering as the molten hot liquid gushed out. “Fuck!”
Black smoke burst from the shards, the fire alarm singing seconds later.
Opening up the closest drawer Axel shuffled through the contents, only finding empty packets and vials. Crushed hogweed, nettles and other herbs lay forgotten on the bottom. Mostly dried, but the ingredients that had been fresh had started to decay. The stone mortar and pestle were filthy, and Axel couldn’t even remember what he’d last crushed in it.
Desperation forced him to grab it, his tongue flicking out to lick the sludge at the bottom. The taste was vile, acidic. The tiles cracked when he threw it across the room, landing in the long unused bathtub. It clattered, knocking against some of the measuring cylinders he had stored there.
Panic gripped his lungs, and already he could feel the slight echo of pain at the back of his skull. He would need to find a dealer, and hope they had strong enough stuff to keep him going for a while. Dragging a hand down his face he sighed, his fingers spasming as he pressed them harder.
Chapter6
Axel
Axel’s boots ate up the few steps to the townhouse. It hadn’t been hard to find the residence, so decrepit that it was almost a neon sign that said ‘drugs sold here.’ He wasn’t unfamiliar with the place, and he ignored the curious stares of the few men and women who sat against the walls, hypodermics sticking out their arms. Dirty mattresses, drink cans and broken needles littered the floor, what was once carpet ripped up to reveal the cushioned underlay or concrete.
“You’re new here,” a man grunted as Axel moved further inside the derelict house. “What do you want?” He crouched in the corner by a large rucksack, cap pulled low over his brow. He watched warily, muscles tensed as if ready to bolt.
Axel swallowed, fists clenched as he approached. “Brimstone, or anything that’s strong.” His skin stung, a thousand needles stabbing into his pores. He didn’t care what it was, he just needed something. Anything that could help him for a few hours until he could sort himself some more medication. He had the herbs to try, he just needed the base.
“How do I know you’re not from the Met?”
Axel reached into his back pocket, pulling out a fifty-pound-note. “I said I wanted brimstone.”
The dealer sucked air through his teeth, taking his time to slowly open the rucksack at his feet, revealing a pile of clear plastic bags not too dissimilar to the ones he’d left in his drawer. Each was filled with various powders and pills, all the colour of dirty white, as well as a few illegal charms and vials of blood.
“Axel?”
Axel turned at his name, his heart a rabbit in his chest at being caught. Hunter stood at the base of the stairs, his face pink as if he had been crying.
“Does Kace know you’re here?” he immediately asked with a growl. “This place isn’t somewhere for a kid.”
Hunter’s upper lip curved into a snarl, the pain that was in his eyes disappearing under a flare of anger. “Does Red knowyou’rehere?” he snapped back, calling Kace by his fighting name.
“I told you to get out of here!” a feminine screech came from the floor above. “If you’re not buying, get the fuck out, Hunt.”
Hunter flinched, shoulders tightening. “Red doesn’t control what I do. I can do what the fuck I want.” He went to take a step towards the door, but Axel caught him by the arm. Yanking up his sleeve Axel checked for track marks, releasing a breath he wasn’t aware of holding when he saw clean, unmarked skin. Usually on a shifter any evidence of using would be healed when they changed to their animal, but Axel knew Hunter had been refusing to shift.
Hunter jerked out of his grip, his jaguar teasing the edges of his Prussian blue eyes. “Don’t touch me.” he growled.
“Your ma told you to leave,” the dealer said, standing up from his crouch. “Don’t come here and distract my customers, boy.”
Axel shot the dealer a glare, his voice dropping in warning. “This isn’t your concern.” Returning his attention to Hunter, he grabbed the front of his hoody, dragging him down the steps and back to the street. “Go wait by the car, I’ll take you home.” Releasing his grip before Hunter could scratch down his forearm, he pointed to the adjacent road, his SUV parked a few minutes’ walk away.
Hunter’s slim jaw clenched. “You didn’t answer my question.”
Patience wearing thin Axel growled. “Kid, go wait by the fucking car.”
“I’m not listening to an addict, I’ve been brought up amongst them and I know none of you can be trusted.”
“I’m not an addict,” the words came out before Axel even thought to respond. “I’m nothing like the –”
“Says the man buying drugs.” At Axel’s silence Hunter continued. “Can you even go a whole day without taking anything?”
“You know nothing, you’re just a kid –”
