Page 34 of Hunted By Fear

“Oh, someone’s feisty today.” The smirk on his lips makes me want to remove it by force. Instead, I ball my hands into fists at my side, my nails digging into my palms.

I’m not sure when this happened. This desire for violence—I’ve never felt it before, but something about Rome seems to bring out the worst in me.

I might not have all the details, but I know that whatever he did to Aeri was enough to make her leave everything behind and run for it.

And now he’s brainwashed her.

I haven’t been able to talk to the guys in days, seeing as I can’t enter without Lucifer's assistance, and they have zero cell service down there. All I can think about is the way she looked in my arms when I handed her over to pass into Hell.

Fragile, tiny, mortal…

Fuck, I shouldn’t care the way I do; I know that. Yes, she’s my charge, but this is more than that. Even if I don’t know what it is exactly, I know that.

“Where is she?” he asks again as I push up off the floor to stand before him.

I tower over him. His slight frame doesn’t lack muscle, but with the size difference, he appears less than.

He’s not.

His power level far surpasses my own, considering the fact that he’s a seraphim.

“I don’t know who you're talking about.” I turn away from him, unwilling to play his games.

‘Tell me where she is or I’ll pry the information from your mind myself.’His voice rings in my head.

I know it’s not an empty threat, but still, I refuse to answer him, refuse to sell her out even if it’s impossible for him to get to her.

‘Remember, you chose this.’

I feel him as he sifts through my mind; pressure builds behind my eyes, and pain throbs behind my temples the deeper he digs.It’s not painful at first, just a dull ache I can ignore, but I know that won’t last.

Before I can make it to the car, my legs give out, and my knee hits the floor as the pain builds to the point that it’s all I can feel or think about.

Rome sifts through my memories and emotions, and I feel his anger growing by the second, no longer even attempting to take it slow.

His hand closes around my throat, and when I peel my eyes open, I’m not surprised to find he stands before me. I hadn’t even realized I’d closed my eyes against the pain, but that doesn’t matter now.

“Aerilyn is mine!” he spits as he leans in so that we're nearly nose to nose. My breathing comes in short, labored pants as he continues to press further, digging for the answer I’ve carefully buried deep in my subconscious. “You can’t keep her from me. Even if you love her, that’s not enough. None of you are enough. The contract is binding!”

I can’t answer even if I wanted to, which is fine because I have nothing to say one way or the other.

As quickly as it starts, it’s over, and I sag forward, my hands hitting the cold concrete floor at the last moment before I faceplant.

“Hell?”

I look up through my lashes at Rome, where he stands over me, unable to find the strength to move. Not much can harm me, but high-rank demons and higher-rank angels will do the trick. It’s been centuries since I‌ last felt the effects of someone riffling through my mind the way he just did.

Back when God cast Lucifer from Heaven.

Through the pain, I watch as Rome’s anger begins to turn to panic as he realizes what Asta did by bringing her there.

He made her untouchable, not only for me but for Rome and anyone else he might have had in his pocket, on either side.

Rome takes a step back and then another as I finally get my breathing under control, my head no longer feeling as though it might be pulled apart.

“No, she’s mine.” He’s not talking to me now. I’m not sure if he even realizes I’m still here anymore. “If I can’t get to her, I’ll just have to make sure she comes to me…” He runs a hand through his hair, pushing it back out of his face. I see the determination in his eyes, and I know one thing for sure.

Rome will never give up on Aeri, and that’s a terrifying thought.