Chapter 45

It's been a week since I hurled me and Hell off that cliff in a moment of madness and desperation. I know he must think I am dead. I know he must be furious at me, and I don't fucking blame him. Although it might make no sense to him, in that second and still now, it made perfect sense. Hell was ready to risk it all for me, but he wasn't considering the fact that this will not stop as long as I am still alive or with Kyro. So, I took risks too. It's only fair. Kyro will keep getting his men to hunt me down, killing innocents in his wake. It's something my heart cannot handle or carry.

This has gone way too far already. I will never truly be free. But if Kyro thinks I am dead, there is every possibility that man will think he can live his life as normal again, begging the society for forgiveness and getting away with it. He will be stupid enough to let his guard down somewhere, and as soon as that guard slips, I know Hell can make his move. I guess I started to feel like a burden.

From a distance, I stand in the dark woods at the back of Kyro's mansion and stare at the gloomy structure. The lights have been off for three days now, with no sign of life, which tells me he has upped and left his home for a while to try to win the Shadow's over or maybe plot to take Hell out in some way to stop his evident murder.

I'm here because I need answers. I need to know if Arabella is still here. If she ever were here, and if she were, where the fuck she could be. I know I am taking a big risk, but that is why I have stalked this place for three days. Before I came here, I slipped into Hell's underground chamber, leaving him a black thorned rose, giving him a hint that I am still here yet lurking in the shadows waiting for the perfect time to be beside him again. It was eating me a live at the thought that he might think I'm dead when I'm not.

After a moment of reflection, staring at my old bedroom window, I jump up without any more hesitations, catching the metal fence and pulling myself up and over it. I land on my feet with a light thud before striding through the yard, my footsteps soft as I creep around the pool's edge until I am by the back doors. I pull on the handle to find it's locked, so I continue to see if any windows are open. When I finally find one that leads into the kitchen, I climb through and enter.

The room is dark and eerily silent. Haunting memories flood back as I look around, but I push them aside, focusing on why I am here in the first place. I move sneakily, my senses on high alert, listening for any sign of life.

Making my way into the huge foyer, it is bathed in darkness, so dim that I cannot see anything other than the windows shining in the moonlight and the outline of furniture. When I come to a halt, I turn, ascending the grand staircase to the second floor. As soon as I reach the top, I notice all the doors, scanning them one by one until I spot the one where I was held captive at a far distance.

Suddenly, I hear a noise coming from down below and I duck, hiding behind the banister. My breathing picks up, my chest heaving before I place my hand over my mouth, trying to remain silent and calm my racing heart. With a shaky hand, I reach into my leather jacket's pocket and grasp the pocket knife hidden within.

As I peer through the wooden rail, I quietly flip out the blade and a light comes on in the living room. I see shadows moving around, and a few men murmuring, but neither sound like Kyro. Without warning, I hear one of them shout and all kinds of banging follow, sounds of what seems like metal swiping through the cold air, and liquid falling to the ground. Then, all goes quiet, and the light switches off. My eyes widen when I see a figure slowly emerging, and the silhouette stands still at the threshold. I try not to move until they unexpectedly decide to stroll toward the stairs, in my direction.

I gently stand, backing myself against the wall, and move along it, searching for an open door. My fingers finally grasp a doorknob and I twist it slowly, pushing it open just enough to slip inside. I close it behind me as quietly as possible and lean against it, listening intently. The sound of the heavy footsteps grows louder, each step echoing in the eerie silence of the mansion and anxiety tightens in my chest.

My heartbeat rings in my ears as I clasp my knife tighter, ready for whatever might come through the door. The footsteps stop right outside, and I hold my breath, every muscle in my body tense. The doorknob begins to turn, and I brace myself. But then, they retreat, shifting away from my hiding spot. I let out a slow, silent breath of relief and rest my head back against the door, closing my eyes for a moment.

I pull my hood over my head and wait for what feels like forever. When I finally gather the courage to get out of here and possibly come back another time, I gradually open the door, peering around the threshold from left to right. When I don't see or hear anything, I begin to creep into the hallway until I suddenly hear a soft noise behind me, and I freeze. I look back to see the same silhouette at the other end of the landing, but this time, they are looking right at me.

Shit.

They suddenly rush forward, and I run for my fucking life. I try to hold onto the scream that is threatening to rip from my throat, my legs feeling like they might give away as their footsteps get louder and closer behind me.

With nowhere else to go, I dash into a room, attempting to slam it closed behind me, but a foot blocks me from doing so. I jump back, raising the knife in my hand and as soon as the door is swung open, I swing my arm, releasing the knife. It embeds in their arm with a thud, and they groan, but the groan is all too familiar.

My eyes widen and he rips the knife out of his arm with a grunt, blood spurting and landing onto the wood floor below. Hell storms toward me, anger raging through him, and I back myself against a wall, my eyes squeezed shut until he stops in front of me, grabbing my throat with both of his gloved hands.

He lifts me, slamming me against the wall in an act of frustration before his lips collide with mine. Although he is strangling the fucking life out of me, I allow his tongue to enter my mouth, wrapping my legs around his waist.

He presses his big body against mine, releasing my neck and lifting me higher by my ass. I place my hands on the side of his neck, my head tilted to the side, our kiss frantic and heated. I feel the loss between us pouring from our souls and the time lost pulls us tighter together. When we break apart, our breathing is frantic and the back of his fingers slide over my cheek, his forehead resting against mine.

"I might never fucking forgive you for doing something so fucking stupid," he growls.

"Yes, you will," I whisper in response.

"Why, Noir, why the fuck did you do that? I thought…"

Tears well in my eyes as he lowers his gaze, and his vulnerability hurts me. "I'm sorry, I just wanted to give you breathing space. If he thought I was dead, I knew he would be careless."

His hand slips to the back of my neck, where he pushes on it, tilting my head back. He breathes heavily over my lips, "You could have fucking died, silly little fucking Dolly."

I try not to smile as I lift my hand to his face. "I wasn't going out like that, Hell. I was always coming back to you, and I always will." He presses his forehead against mine again, and I continue. "Have you got him?"

His one eye lifts to mine and I notice he hasn't got his contacts in, probably to be less detectable. After a brief silence and him sliding his thumb down my jaw, he gives a small headshake.

"So what are you doing here?" I ask, and he arches his brow. "The question is, what the fuck are you doing here?"

I take a deep breath, my voice steady despite the pounding of my heart. "I'm here to find Arabella. I need answers, and I need to know if she's still alive."

"Dolly…" He says before lowering me to my feet and he shows his back to me, rubbing his mouth with his hand.

"What is it, Hell?"

He pauses at my question before he turns to face me, "I'm not sure if she is real." He says with honesty and my brows pinch, "What?"

He steps toward me. "I've tried to find anything I can about her, and no one knows who the fuck she is, Noir. She is non-existent." I shake my head once and he continues, lowering himself to my height. "Are you sure you weren't just imagining things because you were so fucking traumatized? There's always that possibility…"

"No." I declare through tight teeth with tears brimming. "I know she is real."

He sighs, stroking my hair, "Did you actually ever see her? Touch her?"

I just stare at him blankly as I think about it. How I only heard her voice close to my ear or far away, only ever seeing her fully when it's in a blur of madness or in the mirror. But it felt so real, she felt so real. She got me out of there, I am sure she did. I might not have touched her, but it felt like she was there to me. The only thing that makes me doubt it is when I saw her in the death rooms, and she almost got me killed with a trap.

"I was thinking maybe you have an altar, or you were hallucinating, but…"

"Like you?" I question.

He shakes his head once, "Hellion is merely my character, Dolly. He isn't inside my head, and I cannot hear him. He is just a part of me that I let loose on Dark Night. Parts of myself that I suppress. He is not a disorder, and he cannot control me in anyway. It's not the fucking same." He admits honestly. I continue silence as he carries on. "I'm no fucking doctor though."

I nod and lower my head. "Which room, pretty girl?" he asks while standing upright.

With a sniffle, I wipe the tears off my face and pass him, taking his warm gloved hand in mine. Leading Hell through the dimly lit mansion, his words and doubts linger in my mind. Every creak of the floorboards and every whisper of the wind outside seem to boom the uncertainty churning within me.

We reach the door to the room where I heard Arabella, where I believed she was. Beside mine. I take a glance at my door, a shiver running through me as each memory floods through my mind until I feel Hell's hands on my shoulders and his kiss on the top of my head. When I am ready, I turn the door knob and we enter.

I glance around the dark empty space, noticing there is absolutely nothing in here but a fireplace. There's no bed. No window. No anything. My gaze roams around the walls, trying to see if there are any chains or brackets where they would have been attached like mine were, but again, there is nothing.

Sadness washes over me, the reality hitting me like a ton of bricks. Is it true? Could she really be only an altar or a figure of my imagination? Do I officially have no family at all?

Hell's big arms wrap around my midsection from behind as tears fall from my eyes and he draws me in closer. We stay in silence for a while, until I move forward, and he releases me. I stroll around his tall frame, heading for the door and once I am outside of mine, I rest my head against it, trying to breathe through the anxiety until finally, I turn the knob.

As soon as I walk in, my watery, wide eyes dart around, noticing the makeshift bed in the corner, the bucket, the boarded-up window, and in the corner, the bracket to my chain lying on the floor. I slap my hands over my face, all of it becoming too much and I weep. When Hell enters, I hear him place something down onto the floor before he cloaks his arm around my shoulders, drawing me into his chest.

"Is this where he kept you?" He asks while looking around.

I sniff and nod, then I feel him move away from me. When I hear a liquid being poured all over the floor from a distance, I lift my head, slowly removing my hands from my face. Hell has a gasoline can in his hand, dousing absolutely everything in fuel, and the toxic fumes assault my senses.

"What are you…" I trail off as he drops the can onto the hard floor with an echoing thud.

I observe his every move until he stops behind me again and he withdraws something from his pocket. He pulls out a box of matches and when he ignites one, the flame is bright in the dark room.

"Let it go, my Little Dolly. Light it the fuck up and let it all burn."

With a shaky hand, I take the match from him, and he places his lips on the side of my head. Without hesitation, I toss the match onto the ground.

The flames climb into an inferno, a wave of fury, destroying all the horrific memories that happened here and I feel a sense of satisfaction. We wait for a few seconds longer before he guides me toward the door. I take one last look back at my childhood, my old life, burning away just as it should, then with a tense breath, I follow him, leaving it all behind me.

While standing by the fence at the back of the mansion, we watch as it disintegrates into nothing but ash and haunting goodbyes. The flames roar and the ember of the blaze fills the air. With my arms and legs wrapped around Hell, I lay my face on his shoulder, feeling the heat from the fire warming our skin.

"Thank you," I whisper, my voice full of raw emotion.

He glances down at me, his eye easing. "You don't have to fucking thank me, Dolly. Just don't ever leave me like that again, or I'll be forced to chain you the fuck up myself," he responds, his tone serious yet amused.

I gently smile and sigh, the weight of the past few weeks lifting slightly. "Don't worry, I won't," I promise.

He gazes over at the burning mansion again, the flames consuming everything in their path. The adrenaline fades, replaced by a strange calmness, and the crackling of the fire drifts into the background. I look up at Hell, his painted face illuminated by the distant glow of the flames.

"Will he know that I am at Oddity? I don't want all of that to be for nothing," I murmur.

He strokes my back soothingly with his gloved hand, then presses his lips against my head. "I'll sneak you in. It'll be fucking fine." he reassures me, "No one will know you're there until I finally kill this motherfuck tomorrow night."

I lift my head fully in shock, "Tomorrow night?" I gasp out.

"Yeah, tomorrow night. The Shadow's have helped me set him up since he raided Oddity."

A big smile spreads across my lips as he carries me away to his bike, I feel a small sense of closure.

"As I said, my pretty girl, this will all be over soon, and I fucking meant it," he reassures as I lay my face on his shoulder.