Chapter 16
Rory
My fucking scar still burns on my hip. It hasn’t stopped since yesterday. I’ve tried everything. A cold compress. A warm compress. Now I’m sitting in the bathtub, letting it soak. But nothing is working.
I groan in exasperation. When I can’t get Ryven off my mind for an unexplained reason, the stupid X on my hip burns like fire.
It’s been nearly a week since those double murders and just as long since I’ve seen Ryven. He hasn’t reached out or shown up out of the blue. It’s almost like he is avoiding me. Or worse… gone.
It’s driving me insane. I hate how much I notice he’s gone.
I grab my phone and call him, but after the second ring, he sends me to voicemail. “Asshole,” I mutter. At least I know he’s still alive.
I feel like I need answers for his last killing, though. What did she do that made him torture her like that?
I let out a breath and stand from the tub. After drying myself off, I get dressed and grab my keys hanging by the front door. It’s time to confront Ryven.
“Why are you in the middle of the woods at eight at night?” Thomas’ voice grumbles through the speakers of my vehicle.
“Why do you know where I am?” I park nearby and turn off my lights, then I remember something. “Goddammit, Thomas. That tracker was for emergencies. Code-only. You break the rules again, and I rip it out myself.”
He clears his throat. “I was just checking in on you, Rory. That’s all.”
He gives me the creeps. Always hovering. Always watching. I turn my location off. He probably already knows where I’m going. But that doesn’t mean I’m going to make it easy on him.
“Come on now, Rory. Don’t be like that,” he whines.
“It’s called personal space, Thomas. Have a good night.” I click end and pocket my phone.
He is going to have to learn some boundaries.
I let out a sigh and climb out of my SUV, marching into the forest. Eventually, a large black church comes into view on the other side of the woods.
I’m not sure how long I’ve been walking, but it’s been a while.
The church hasn’t changed since I was a kid—still towering, still wrong, and somehow that makes it worse.
Its tall pointed steeples are so high. I don’t see how anyone wouldn’t spot this building from miles away. I don’t think the cult cares much about hiding, though. They run this district, so who do they have to hide from?
Glancing around the grassy area, only one truck is parked in the driveway, and it’s Ryven’s. I’m hoping that means he’s here alone. I’m not supposed to be anywhere near their lands.
I walk toward the building and climb the black stone steps slowly.
I’ve always hated this church. It gives me a bad feeling, like something inside it is watching me back.
It doesn’t take away from its beauty, though.
Its gothic style and trim work is phenomenal.
Even monsters keep their shrines pretty. This place is immaculate.
Once I’m on the top of the staircase, I press my ear to the door. Silence. Heavy and absolute. I check the handle, and the door slowly creaks open, sending another shiver down my spine.
“Ryven,” I whisper into the dark sanctuary. My voice disappears into the vast space, swallowed by shadows and silence. When nothing answers me, I step farther inside, the faint smell of old wood and extinguished candles hanging in the air.
The door slams shut behind me, and my heart jumps into my throat.
I spin toward the sound, stumbling back until the hard edge of a wooden pew digs into my thighs. “Jesus Christ,” I groan, catching myself before I fall.
“Careful now.” Ryven’s voice cuts through the darkness, and relief hits me before fear.
I gasp and lift my gaze.
“You might burst into flames using the Lord’s name in vain like that.” He steps down from the raised platform at the front of the sanctuary, boots echoing softly as he descends the narrow set of wooden stairs leading from the stage.
I cross my arms over my chest, suddenly too aware of how exposed I feel in the open space. “I thought you guys worshiped the Dark One in here anyway.”
He chuckles. “They are one and the same most days.” Each step he takes toward me feels deliberate, predatory, like he’s stalking his prey between the rows of pews until he stops only a few feet away.
His head tilts to the side as his expression hardens.
“What are you doing here, Ro?” His tone isn’t playful; it sounds like a warning, and it sends a shiver down my spine.
“I came looking for you since you don’t know how to answer your phone.”
He shrugs. “I’m busy. What can I say?” Then he turns away from me, heading back toward the stage and slipping through the narrow door tucked behind it.
Where the hell is he going? I quickly follow him. “Hey! Who do you think you are just walking away from me like that?” I stomp my foot like a child and follow him into the office.
He turns toward me with his mask on now, and I take in a steady breath. He only puts that on when he’s working… or hunting, or about to kill someone.
Something is wrong. I take a step backward. “What are you doing?” I stutter.
He tilts his head to the side and flexes his arms, but he doesn’t answer me. I take another step away and crash into a person who wraps their arms around my chest. I quickly release myself from their grip and face whoever it is. I’m met with another man in the same mask and uniform.
Then, Ryven’s voice is in my ear as he whispers, “Run.” It doesn’t sound like a suggestion.
My heart beats out of my chest as I run out of the door, brushing past the other guy and sprinting to the main door of the church. I have to get back to my SUV—and fast.
Fuck fuck fuck. I’m not supposed to be on this land. My lungs burn almost immediately. I thought Ryven was here alone, but he’s clearly not. My feet touch the top stairs of the outside steps, and I skip a few of them to race faster toward the woods.
Shouts erupt behind me, and branches snap while I run like hell. If one of the other cult members gets their hands on me, I’m done for. There is no telling the vile things they’ll do to me.
“Run, little rabbit, as fast as you can. That won't stop the boogie man.” A voice I don’t recognize comes from somewhere to the right. I have no time to stop and see who it is.
I just need to get out. I shouldn’t have come here.
Branches slam across my face, and pain rips across my cheek. I stumble, gasping. Groaning in pain, I brush myself off and continue the path I took earlier.
Footsteps echo, getting closer with every step, and it sounds like there are more of them. How many cult members are out here right now?
“You better run!” Another voice comes from my left. They are fucking toying with me, and it’s working. My adrenaline is pumping so fast right now I feel like I may pass out.
Just as my vehicle comes into sight, my foot catches on a fallen limb, and I crash to the ground. Seconds later, someone is on top of me, pinning me in place.
“No! Get off of me!” I squirm to set myself free. I’m not dying here. I just won’t.
I fight with everything I have and wiggle myself free, only to take a few steps before I’m tackled to the ground once more. This time, the body feels heavier, and the person’s smell is familiar.
“Ryven?” Relief hits briefly but disappears just as fast.
“Shut your fucking mouth, rabbit,” he growls, hand clamping around my throat. “Right now, I’m just a faceless mask to you. Listen to what I fucking tell you if you want to get out of here.”
I can honestly say that I’m scared right now. I know he wouldn’t hurt me, but that doesn’t mean he’ll stop them. Would he stop it, or would he just watch?
He kneels between my legs, and from what I can see, he’s swiveling in all directions, keeping the other members at bay. “Leave!” he roars, but the men just look at him, tilting their heads in confusion.
“We want to play too,” one of them says and takes another step closer to me.
Ryven stands and gets into a defensive position. I don’t dare move a muscle as he yells at his men again. “I said to fucking leave. Now! This one is mine. No one touches her.”
I don’t know why, but I feel a tingle between my legs at him claiming me, and I hate myself for it. Even in the midst of danger, he claims me as his own.
Footsteps begin to sound as people start to retreat back to the church, leaving Ryven and the other man who voiced his opinion earlier.
“Wes, I said to fucking leave,” Ryven growls at the man.
Instead of listening, he takes another step toward me. Then, before I know it, the man kneels next to me and lifts my head up from the ground. I yank my face away from him, but he grips the back of my head.
He brushes my hair out of my face and says, “I can’t wait to see my cum on your face while you are bleeding out.” Then he uses my head as leverage and stands to stare off at Ryven. My stomach threatens to retch. This is what they really are.
After only a moment, he huffs and walks back toward the church.
After he walks away, my entire body is shaking. For the first time, I realize just how close I came to dying tonight. If Ryven wasn’t here, I wouldn’t have made it out.