AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Twelve.”
Her stomach dipped. “Manny put you in the pit attwelve?” His words from the dream came back to her.I’m a bad man, baby girl. What the fuck, Manny?
“It was good training,” he said, voice devoid of emotion. “I started falling asleep in school. When I came home, Dad had me beaten to toughen me up.”
A chill traveled up her spine. She couldn’t align Manny with the monster Gavin was describing.
“Dad kept putting me in the pit. I had nightmares for years, but I got past it. I had the same stuff you do now— panic attacks, hallucinations, and fear.”
He walked toward her, and she took a step back. His jaw clenched, but he didn’t stop until he was directly in front of her.
“Am I a bad man?”
She jerked. “What?”
His eyes bored into hers. “Am I a bad man?”
“You can be,” she said.
“To you? Am I a bad man?”
“Sometimes.”
“And the other times?” he asked with an edge to his voice.
“You’re a dream.”
He reached out slowly and cupped her cheek. His thumb stroked her skin as he said, “I didn’t grow up in a loving home. I didn’t grow up with a mom or siblings. I went to school during the day, and when I came home, I was trained to kill. I put my life on the line once a month. Every time I stepped into the pit, I had to know I was gonna win. It’s all in your head. If you’re the best, then you are.”
She understood what he was saying in his Gavin way but, “I’m not the best.”
“You’re stronger than you think you are. You think you’re broken, but you’re not.” His hold on her firmed. “You will get better.”
She gripped his wrist. “I believe that, but I still want time.”
His eyes hardened. “I’m not going to let you hold us back.”
“We aren’t being held back. We’re living life and enjoying it.”
“You want Nora to have backup? She needs siblings. They’ll protect each other. Family is everything.”
“But it’s not over.”
“It is,” he ground out. “Vega’s dead.”
“What about Lucifer?”
His eyes narrowed. “Don’t worry about Lucifer. I’ll handle him.”
Lucifer saved her life, yet he was also the catalyst behind Steven’s deranged plan. She couldn’t wrap her mind around Lucifer’s motives. He was, in turns, abhorrent, logical, childish, and insane.
“Why would he double-cross Steven to make a deal to visit us once a year? It doesn’t make sense.”
This talk was long overdue. They hadn’t discussed what happened in Hell, and she’d been happy to ignore it, but it was time to bring it out in the open.
“Blade convinced him that you’re unique.”
She blinked. “Unique, how?”
