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CHAPTER 35
A faint murmuring arose, a rustle of fabric, a hiss of steam.
From somewhere out of sight, footsteps muffled by soft soles padded against a hard floor.A curtain, thick and heavy, stretching from ceiling to floor, obscured my view. A wood-panelled wall, through which the wormhole had materialised, stood behind us.I was frozen to the spot, with Ethan's hand clapped firmly over my mouth.Concealed behind the curtain, he held me against him, and I could feel the rapid rise and fall of his chest on my back, his hot breath on my ear.He was pissed - seriously pissed – and somewhere inside, I was sure it probably wasn't a good idea to antagonise a demon, even if demons weren't quite what we had been led to believe, but I really didn't see what choice I'd had. Ethan didn't really have a choice either, and I'd known that.Used it.I'd learned a long time ago that if people wanted something badly enough, they'd do literally anything to get it. Drugs.Related chapters
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 36
I grimaced and the stout man in front turned to shoot Ethan an irritated glare, thankfully oblivious to the fact we'd joined the party much later than everyone else. Ethan just returned his stare with an apologetic smile and a shoulder shrug, gesturing to me as if I was the one causing the disturbance. I elbowed him in the ribs, spotting the first sign of a smile creeping back into his face, not that I was about to relax into this again. I doubted very much that he'd forgotten our deal.We followed the party through the underground maze and I did my best to pretend to pay attention to the tour, with Ethan pretty much attached to my waist and knowing we were one step closer each time to reaching the Vaults.Finally, we turned a corner into another tunnel, where the party had congregated to listen to the guide as he whirled the pointer around again, jabbing it towards the two mausoleums on the right. He had a touch of over-dramatic out-of-work actor about him, more intereste
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 37
Breathe. Breathe.'Are you okay?'Fuck. Just breathe. Stop staring. Do something.'I - I...'I couldn't get the words out. I could see them in my head. I remembered how to form words on my tongue, how each one sounded, but I just couldn't say them.'Oh dear,' said the Erelim, frowning. 'Are you unwell? Can I get you something?''What?'Of all the things I could have said, and the only word I could push out through my tightened throat was what . It didn't even sound much like what either. More like a mouse-like squeak that vaguely started with the letter W.What's wrong with its eyes?The Erelim's eyes looked, well, just like eyes. Normal human eyes, with crow's feet puckering the skin at the edges. Whatever the Hell Ethan had meant by not screaming when I saw the eyes, I had no idea, because I was looking right at them, into them , and I was seeing nothing terrible or freaky. They were just eyes, albeit eyes filled with a weighty concern.
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 38
Once the tea was made, the Erelim - now known as Albert - brought the cups to the table, his hands shaking slightly, the cup clacking against the saucer. Placing mine in front of me, he sat in the other chair, staring at me in wonder and cradling his own cup in his hands, almost as if he had forgotten it was even there.'Drink,' he said, finally. 'I do hope it's to your liking. Please say it is.' There was such a desperation to please in his voice, that I almost felt sorry for him.I sipped at the fragrant liquid, smiling my appreciation, even though I hated the taste. Coffee would have been better. Vodka preferable. A fuck load of vodka.'Thank you,' I said.He hadn't stopped looking at me. Hadn't taken one sip of his own tea. I was getting creeped out. Seriously, creeped out.'So... Albert...' I began. Talk shit to it, Ethan had said. Talk shit . Like it was easy. Like sitting here, sipping tea with a creature that kept the amputated hands of demons in jar
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 39
As the first wave of Powers surged through the forcefield, Ethan sent bolts of energy at them so strong that not only did the power of his assault stop them in their tracks, it literally blinked those first warrior angels out of existence. They were there - faces contorted with pain, mouths wide open with screams that would never be heard – and then they were simply gone .The Powers that did make it were already crawling over the ceiling, down the shelves, hovering in the air as they swerved each thunderous bolt. Like the Cherubim, there was something vaguely human-like in their appearance. Despite the slavering grins, the scarred flesh that stretched over their angular cheekbones, the hands that ended in savage talons and the angel wings that beat at the air, I could see a similarity with the race they were so desperate to rule and control. They were like human hybrids, a breed cooked up in a nightmarish laboratory, an experiment to make war machines that had gone horri
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 40
'The wormhole is up there. I knew it was here somewhere.' He looked pleased with himself, a smugness creeping into his features, despite the fact we had a whole army of very pissed-off Angels on our tail.'You expect us to climb up there?'It was high. Really fucking high. I didn't have any particular fear of heights, but I also didn't spend my days hoping I could climb up the tallest bookcase in existence without a safety harness. He had to be kidding about this. Had to be . I stared at him with a hope that died a quick death as soon as I saw the look in his eyes.'Well, unless you're about to grow a pair of wings and fly us up there, yes, I do expect us to climb and I expect us to do it as fast as we bloody can before a Cherubim swoops in here and rips our hearts from our chests.''Cherubim?' My mouth went desert-dry. 'You never said the Erelim had called the Cherubim.''I have no idea what's coming, but whatever it is, it's pissed as fuck. So, if you want
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 41
From my very first taste of Ethan, I'd known I was hooked.I was an addict, after all, and it had never really mattered what it was - booze, boys, drugs, danger – I always just knew when I'd found what I needed, and that first hit was always everything . There's a wave of emotion that lifts you up to the Heavens and drags you all the way back down into Hell, and then you get addicted to that too. To the high andthe low, because as deep as your addictions can bury you, you know that the next time you rise up, it's going to be spectacular. Euphoric.The best fucking hit of your life .I'd never really been that bothered about trying to deny my addictions before. Why would I? They were the fire in my veins that set aflame the ghosts of my childhood. With each pill, each line of coke, I watched the ghosts burn. With each sweaty, grubby moment of passion with a nameless guy that couldn't get enough of me, I rejoiced as the fire consumed everything. With every d
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 42
Of course, he had nothing to be self-conscious about.I raised myself up a little higher on my elbows, drinking in the sight of him, desperate to satiate this thirst that was consuming me. I'd never wanted anyone like this before. I'd never felt so much like my whole body was screaming with desire.Holding out his arm out straight to one side, he dangled his jeans and boxers in the air, letting them drop from his hand onto the floor. He was enjoying this now, letting the demon take over, but I didn't care. The teasing was a turn-on. The way he was looking at me was a turn-on.Dropping to his knees at the bottom of the bed, he crawled up until he was over me, his hands positioned either side of my shoulders. Leaning down, his lips found mine again, and he kissed me deep, hard, licking his lips afterwards as if he was savouring the taste just as I was. Again, and again he kissed me, and my hands snaked into his hair, holding him there, not wanting him to stop. I tried t
Her Worst Nightmare CHAPTER 43
I awoke to the sound of running water and the smell of freshly-baked bread.On the floor, next to the bed, there was a white carrier bag with EATALY printed on the side, and poking out of the top, was a generously-sized olive-topped focaccia that smelled like Heaven, or at least, my idea of it. My stomach, clearly feeling neglected, grumbled angrily. I hadn't eaten a thing since the pastries Ethan had given to me before our trip to the Basilica and I was struck then by the realisation that I had no bloody idea at all how much time had passed since.So much had happened. Our journey through the wormholes. Getting inside the Vatican. St. Peter's Tomb. The Vaults. Here. Ethan. Me. Us.It felt like we'd lost hours in this room, wrapped up in each other, attempting to satiate a hunger that never seem to dissipate no matter how much we fed it. If anything, the hunger just seemed to grow, all vulnerabilities and all fears cast aside until it became something wild and untamea
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