Page 150
“Someone’s going to shit flames when he sees the kitten’s gotten loose.”
“Did he really expect me to stay put like a good little girl?”
Out of the corner of my eye, I catch his gaze cruising over Lilith beside me. “Hard to say with Titus. Part of me thinks it’s your feistiness that stirs him the most.”
“Well, then. Who am I to disappoint him?” Twisting around in the seat, I scan the surroundings for him, finding nothing but open empty space. “Where is he?”
“Went to recruit a few more ladies. We’re to wait for his signal at the convent.”
“A few more ladies? What signal?”
“He said we’d know” He jerks his head toward Lilith, opening the door. “Scoot over.”
“Fuck off. I’m driving.”
His lips curve to a smile that he swipes with his tongue. “Titus isn’t the only one who likes ‘em feisty,” he says, making his way around the vehicle to the passenger door.
A quick glance shows the corner of Lilith’s lips lifted into a smile, one she’s trying to tamp down with a ridiculous looking frown as she stares toward him, while he passes in front of us.
Maybe they don’t hate each other as much as everyone thinks.
I slide across the seat between them, as he climbs into the truck next to me. The proximity of him is a reminder of how big he is. Perhaps only slightly smaller than Titus, but bulky enough to fill the space, with his knees smashed into the dashboard and his arm stretched across the back of the bench.
Crowding me.
Unnerving, when the memories of him begin to trickle in, and I’m reminded of the day I stood before him, staring down at his beaten and bloodied face, wanting nothing more than to see him hanged.
“Do me a favor, if you’re going to come along,” he says, not bothering to look at me.
“What’s that?”
“I watched my brother watch over you for days. In all the time I’ve known him, I’ve never seen him look so broken. He’s a man of few words, but it doesn’t take explanation to see what he feels for you is fierce. So don’t get yourself killed, because I’m not sure he could survive that kind of pain again.”
“Fair enough. And I’m sorry. For what happened to you. I was wrong about you.”
Gaze still cast from mine, he nods. “Yeah, well, I was wrong about you, too.”
* * *
Hidden deep in the woods, the group disperses across the south end of the convent, keeping low to the brush. Having lived in the forest, the other women seem to have a natural ability to remain concealed, many of them coated in dirt and mud that camouflages their skin. Atticus stares through a set of binoculars given to him by Lilith, scanning over the soldiers posted all around the perimeter of the convent. By the looks of their lax defense, as some play cards, while others stand about smoking cigarettes, they’ve been guarding for some time now.
“There are so many of them,” I whisper, staring down at the dozens of black uniforms crawling like big black cockroaches over the property. “Where’s Titus?”
Lowering the binoculars, Atticus tips his head back, as if listening for something.
“What is it?”
Setting a finger to his lips, he seems to focus, his eyes trailing over the surrounding woods, and he twists around, aiming the binoculars in the opposite direction.
As he peers through them, I catch the upward twist of a smirk on his lips, before he hands the binoculars over to me. Through them, I see a large horde of Ragers scrambling along the path. My heart pounds at the sight of them running freely, and the tremble in my muscles is the evidence of trauma still twisting inside of me. They move with purpose, none of them deviating from the main artery that leads to the soldier’s camp. As if driven by the promise of a meal.
Angling the binoculars toward the thick of the horde, I find a familiar face walking amongst them.
Titus.
Lilith snatches up the binoculars from me and peers through. “Jesus, he really is the God of Monsters, isn’t he?”
“The signal, I suppose.” Atticus pushes to his feet, and at the clink of metal, I peel my eyes from the horde to find the Alpha next to me dropping his pants. “Better get this over with now. I’m sure Titus will forgive me.”
