Page 65 of Devoured

He pulled the wrench away.

I released his hand, gasping. Deep tooth marks showed dark against his skin, already healing too fast to be natural.

He set my foot down gently and turned to my shoulder, pulling the sheet aside without asking.

“This one’s deep,”he observed, examining the wound. He grabbed gauze from the nearby medical cart and worked quickly, wrapping the injury with quiet efficiency.

“Not here,”he added. “It needs to be looked at properly.”

“Why... Why did you come for me?”I asked, watching him.

“Why did you leave the chamber?”he countered, not looking up.

“Because I was bored!”The words came out sharper than I intended.

“In your boredom, you killed Mawkeepers,”he stated. No judgment, just fact.

So that’s what those fuckers were called.

I nodded. “Yeah. I did.”

“You killed a Sanctified. You triggered the alarm,”he continued.

“I didn’t know there were rules—”

“There are always rules.”He stayed on one knee before me, the heat from his body warping the air. “You learned three important things today. One: this place has layers. Some are more dangerous than others. Two: the Sanctified can be killed, but it requires commitment.”

I found my voice. “The Mirror Eater. What was she?”

“One of the Judge’s favorites. The Sanctified.”He tilted his helmet slightly. “The Sanctifieds are not victims. Not cursed. Monsters, true monsters who fed on suffering. The Judge perfects them. Gives their cruelty purpose.”

“Are there more?”

“Yes,”he confirmed. “They don’t stay dead. The Judge brings them back... unless someone with real authority ends them.”

My throat went dry. “And the third rule?”

“The third rule is that I will always find you,”he stated simply.

“How?”My voice cracked. “How did you know I was in danger?”

“Because I never left,”he revealed.

The words hit me like a punch.

I froze completely. “What?”

“I was watching. Testing. Waiting to see what you’d do when you thought you were free,”he explained.

He said it so simply. Like he was describing the weather. The rage hit fast, hot and blinding. “You son of a bitch.”My words shook. “You let me fight them alone. You let me get hurt.”

“Yes,”he acknowledged.

Just that. No apology. No excuse.

“Why?”The word broke on my tongue.

“Because you needed to know you could survive without me,”he explained. “And I needed to know if you would come back. Will you? Or do you want to explore this place alone?”