"It's ok," Cassie assured him. "They won't harm you. They're friends, I promise."
"They're the evil ones."
Cassie wiped a straggling strand of hair from her face. "So am I."
His dark eyes were unwavering upon her as he shook his head. "No, you're something else."
"Maybe so, but I'm most certainly not an angel either."
The boy smiled at her and leaned a little forward. "We shall see."
Cassie frowned at him but she didn't have much time to pursue the conversation as Luther pulled Anne forward. Devon and Julian's eyes gleamed as Luther pushed Anne outside and down the stairs. Though she and Chris could still see him, Luther maneuvered Anne away from view of the children.
Cassie didn't know what he intended with the woman, or where he was taking her, until Luther drew the blade abruptly across Anne's throat. The woman cried out and fumbled with her neck as Luther callously shoved her forward. All the color drained from Chris's face, Cassie fell back to her knees and lifted her arm to make sure the child's view of Anne's body was blocked.
"Come in," Luther invited. He wiped the blade across his jeans and handed it back to Chris. Chris gawked at him as he tremulously took hold of the handle.
Devon hurried to her side and dropped to his knees beside her. "Did they hurt you?" he demanded as he seized hold of her hands and turned them over before him.
She couldn't form words right now; there were none to be found. She glanced back at where Anne's body had disappeared from view. She knew Luther would do anything for them, but she'd never seen that side of him. She could only nod in response to Devon's question as she took solace in the tender touch she cherished so much. It had been nothing but a nightmare for the past hour, but she found that the feel of him was enough to make it all at least a little better.
"Melissa requires Annabelle's more experienced medical attention and we have to gather the children. This will be a good place to stay until we can regroup," Luther stated.
Cassie met the relentless gray eyes of her Guardian. She still felt a little sick over what had just occurred, but she knew it had been no different than anything she'd done below. She'd killed for him because she loved him, and he'd done the same. Though she knew this, she couldn't shake the feeling that they were all walking on thin ice and that one or all of them was going to fall through.
CHAPTER 19
Devon gradually pulled the bandage back from Cassie's shoulder to examine the injury. The skin underneath was red and puckered, but it was healing well and within hours would be nearly indistinguishable from her porcelain skin. He peeled the bandage away to let the injury breathe for the remainder of the time. Cassie glanced over her shoulder at him as he tugged her shirt back into place.
She looked better than she had before, though she was still paler and there was a melancholy gleam in her eyes that he found disheartening. "Thank you," she murmured as she touched his hand.
"Cassie..."
"I set that woman on fire Devon."
"Cassie..."
"I killed that man." Her eyes were beseeching as she tilted her face up to his. "And I enjoyed it."
He sat beside her on the bed that had most likely belonged to one of The Commission members. The bones in her hand seemed thin and fragile as he took hold of it, but it would take a lot to break them now. "I know."
Her fingers played over his face as her eyes searched him. "Yes, you do know."
He grasped her hand and cradled it against his face. "It doesn't make you a monster Cassie."
"What does it make me then?" she whispered.
"It makes you a survivor. Do you consider Luther a monster?"
"He killed Anne to keep us safe, and I killed that woman for the same reason, but that man..." Her hands fell into her lap, she couldn't meet his gaze. "I killed him to protect us but I'd be lying if I said I didn't do it to feed the hunger. That it felt great."
He placed his hand over the spot where her heart used to beat so freely and inhaled her sweet, intoxicating scent as he leaned closer to her. He was afraid for her, afraid of what this would all turn out to be, but right now he couldn't bring himself to care. She'd almost been taken from him again today and he was lucky that she was still sitting beside him.
Her supple lips parted beneath his and she melted against him. His hand entwined in her hair as he became consumed by the taste of her. She was so giving and warm; her skin as smooth as satin beneath his touch. Blocking out the awful events of the day, he focused on the here and now as he lost himself completely to the touch and pleasure that only she could bring him.
It was hours before he untangled himself from her, and even longer before he released his hold upon her. Her lashes curled against her cheek as she slept soundly. Sleep, was one of the few times she looked at all peaceful anymore. He dressed quickly, ran his hand through his hair, and cast one more glance back at her before leaving the room.
The sun was high in the afternoon sky when he crept down the stairs. He heard the muffled voices and followed the conversation to the living room. Chris was standing by the window, leaning against the wall with his arms folded over his chest as he stared at the day. Luther's head was bent and an icepack was resting against the back of his neck. Devon didn't know where the children were but he assumed the others were taking care of them, and Melissa.
"How are you feeling?" Devon asked.
Luther pulled the icepack away from his neck to look up at him. "Like an idiot. Never saw that one coming."
"No one did," Julian muttered.
"Cassie?" Luther inquired.
"Sleeping," Devon told him.
"How is she doing?"
Devon didn't have an answer for that question.
"It was crazy in there," Chris murmured.
Devon recalled what he'd experienced while feeding from Cassie. The vivid details of what had happened to her and what they'd gone through. He couldn't deny the fact that he had no idea what Cassie had become, or what she would become. She'd killed a human now. She had a thirst for that blood, a taste of what the pleasure of the kill could bring.
"It was," Devon agreed.
Chris's gaze darted over the others gathered within the room. "No Devon, it was more than just the place itself. Cassie..." Chris's voice trailed off as the words were choked from him in the end. "Even drugged and impaired she was terrifying, and she was unbelievably deadly. More so than anyone I've ever seen." His eyes flickered briefly toward Luther. "Ever."