Page 35 of Raine

Walking out of the bedroom, I pay no mind to Acheron and Angelite speaking in the kitchen and walk straight out the door. I amble down the front steps only to hear stamping feet behind me.

“Raine!” Acheron bellows, but I keep moving until I reach his car.

“Did you find out if Angelite needs anything, and did you give her the extra supplies?”

He nods his head, pressing the fob on his keys to open the door, annoyance flickering over his dark features. I slip inside, and he does the same. Balling my hands into fists, my body vibrates with pent-up rage. I don’t divulge to Acheron about Jelitza being one of the girls; I’m not about to rehash this twice. The rotting wound is too raw.

“How the fuck did Justyce find them? It’s not like Avernus to leave a trail behind on his fucking conquests.”

Acheron starts the car and pulls out of the driveway, waiting for the gate to lock before he speeds off. “He left them bloodied and weeping in the basement of Arcane. He wants us to know he is still a part of this, still watching our every move.”

My blood feels like ice shards scraping through my veins. Jarvis has always given me the creeps, but Avernus, that man is fucking insane. I’ve never seen evil like him, and I’m well aware the boys have sheltered me from him and his nefarious ways. But I have heard the whispers about him, and none of them were nice.

“This is fucking bullshit!” I yell, punching the dash.

“Raine,” Acheron growls, “did you learn nothing from our earlier… encounter?”

“Fucking hell, it’s just a car; I’m not going to hurt it.”

“The next time you take your frustrations out on my car, I’ll be taking mine out on you.”

Tingles flutter around in my belly and nosedive toward my pussy, and I hate the way the traitorous bitch reacts to him.

Instead of indulging him, I roll my eyes and feign nonchalance, hoping he didn’t notice how I clenched my thighs together while he spoke.

“Whatever. What are we going to do?”

Acheron glances at me, then focuses back on the road. “We wait until we get home and speak to Justyce.”

We’re silent the entire drive; no words are exchanged, which is fine with me. I’m too lost in my own head anyway with what I just witnessed at Justyce’s safe house. Those poor fucking girls.

I flick through my phone, cycling through apps and avoiding Acheron at all costs. A time or two, I feel his eyes on me, but for the most part, he focuses on driving us to Justyce’s.

Pulling up at the front of the monstrosity of a house Justyce calls home; Acheron opens the gate, and the garage slowly rolls open. He parks in the empty space, and I am ready to open my door, but his hand grabs my arm.

I don’t even turn to look at him, my feet dangling out of his open car door. “What do you want, Acheron?”

He’s silent for a moment, and I scrunch my face up.What is he doing?

Curiosity latches on to me, and I turn my head over my shoulder to look at him. His black dress shirt is rolled up at his elbows, and his free hand is cupping the back of his neck awkwardly.

He looks up, his lapis hues snaring me in their depths.

“Fuck,” he groans, “this is uncomfortable. Are you… are you ok? You know, after seeing the girls?”

Pulling my legs back into the car, I lean back on the seat with a small smirk on my lips.

“Is the big, bad, scary Acheron Hexino asking me how I am?” I make a show of looking around. “It’s definitely going to storm today.”

He groans, releasing me. “Forget about it.” He exits his side, and I rush out the passenger side.

“Ach!” I call out, and he hesitates at the door that leads into the house.

“What?”

“Thank you.”

Craning his neck, he glares at me with an uncomfortable look on his face that pulls at his scar. “You’re welcome. Now get the fuck inside so we can brief the others.”