Burn (Virtues & Lies 1)

Now, he is dead.

When I look towards Leo, the pressure in my chest loosens. Brows pressing together tight like his lips, the way in which he’s looking at me makes me scoot closer to where he’s sat. My legs touch his wide open ones, and that contact alone is enough to make me feel safe.

“I thought he was going to kill you.” He murmurs breathlessly, and even through the dark, sharp edge of his words. Even through the menacing, icy depth of his voice, I can hear fear.

I have no idea why he would be scared. He wasn’t the one with the gun to his head. He wasn’t the one being touched by a complete stranger.

With eyes flitting between me and the body on the ground, Leo’s jaw clenches so tight that I know he must be hurting his teeth and bones. His muscles and tissues must be burning with how tightly he is grinding his teeth.

Is this what happened to his brother?

I can’t ask the question out loud. I can’t bring myself to ruin him anymore than he already looks. The way only a dark creature can look broken and damaged. He looks like a ticking bomb.

Tick. Tick, tick, tick.

I have no idea when he’s going to blow, but when he does, I know that he’ll take me with him.

When he looks at me with equal parts hatred and pain, I can see the answer to my silent question etched all over his face like it’s an echo from the depths of his soul.

My heart, that I thought was hardening with the cooling lava that is my every emotion right now, thuds for him. It keens in fist tight throbs.

“I thought…” he shakes his head and his hand wraps around mine on the ground. “I lost my temper and I had a gun in my hand. It seemed like the right thing to do.”

The next words out of my mouth startle me, because who am I? Who is this person thinking them?

“He deserved it.” I mutter coarsely, dryly.

Furrowing, the deep set of his eyes softens in spite of the searing, glassy fire burning there. Something like regret flits across his face and morphs into a remorseful tenderness that has me shuffling impossibly closer to his side.

“Where is she?” Christopher steps right in front of me and crouches. “You doing okay, Cass?”

Looking up at him, I can’t help but notice how he’s as cool as a cucumber in an ice bath. His brown gaze narrows on me, and there’s nothing but calculation there. He’s trying to figure out whether I’m going to freak or not.

It’s too late though. I already freaked about a lot of things, but not this.

No. The man lying on the ground is poetic justice.

“He was a monster.” I say, mostly to Leo because he’s the one that looks like he needs the assurance the most but when Casper laughs, I look up at him.

He looks completely unfazed as he looks over the body on the ground. “You’re wrong, Princess, we are the monsters.” Casper says matter of fact. It’s no skin off his nose, I detect a hint of pride in his tone.

“We’re the monsters.” I whisper.

I do it so low that I don’t think it’s possible for any of them to hear me. However, I know that’s not the case when Leo tilts his head back on the wall and turns to look at me.

There’s pity right there, in the way his eyes flutter.

“Yes, Buttercup,” he suspires, his hand squeezing mine a little harder like he’s trying to make sure I don’t run.

I look between the two men, one sitting beside me and the other stan

ding in front of me.

Casper crouches in front of me. His hands pause on my legs for a tick of a second and then lift to hang from his thighs when Leo growls beside me. He’s chuckling as he says, “We need to get the fuck out of here.”

Pushing up to his feet beside me, he hoists me up in his arms. The arm across my back brings me closer to his body so that my head is tucked into his shoulder as I sag into his body with my arms wrapped around his shoulders.

I know that I shouldn’t want to be so close to him. I know that I should put space between us. He just killed a man after all, but that doesn’t remotely bother me as much as the thought of not having him right now.