Chapter 30

Thirty

My skin blistered, small patches of my charred flesh flaking from Ruby's magic. My fingers picked at the burnt edges of the patches, peeling them off as my skin stretched from my body like melted cheese, tossing the torn pieces aside. "Fucking Ruby," I snarled, the rain soothing the many burning sores. "I can't wait to kill you." Hatred boiled in my chest.

Patience, dear Cain, John whispered behind my eyes. I assure you, you shall have your revenge…after I have mine.

"That wasn't part of the deal." I tore my wet shirt from my body and examined my chest for additional burns, picking at my skin. "I kept my end of the bargain." I held the knife up to my face, staring into my reflection as his eye glowed back at me. "Now it's time you do the same." I was frustrated with John. I didn't mind him using me to seek out his revenge, but we agreed I could do the same, using his power to inflict my own retribution. I didn't want to wait; I wanted my reward now.

My face dropped as he took control, my brain throbbing, the immense pain increasing with each word he spoke. You will have your time to reign chaos, but do not forget, mortal, a ringing pierced my ears, I am in control. Without me, you are nothing. Now, submit. We don't have much time, and there's plenty that needs to be accomplished.

John's power dripped through my veins, seeping into my heart as it slowly took command of my existence. He stepped into my skin, pushing my consciousness to the back of my skull, forcing me to watch helplessly as he assumed control. The feeling of absolute power and a hunger for death consumed my body, my stomach growling with a never-ending starvation. "Now," he twisted my neck and rotated my shoulders, "time to play."

Snap.

My eyes moved to the edge of their sockets, searching the darkness for movement. I listened, hearing a faint whistle pitched, followed by whispered steps as they carried in our direction. Someone's here.

The sounds increased, my adrenaline mixing with John's power, creating an overwhelmingly unbearable force boiling inside. He swung my arm, my hand beaming with fire as my knife pierced deep inside an unknown man's neck. Blood spewed from the wound, splattering John's skull and my skin as the scrawny man's mud-covered face stared back at us. John smiled, exposing my teeth as he watched the man's eyes fade away, his soul leaving this world. The man's body slumped as John yanked the blade back, his warm blood spraying his pale, dirty skin. "It seems your friends are not the only prey frolicking in these woods." He sounded excited at the added challenge.

Who is he? Where did he come from?I demanded.

John bent down, examining the dead man's body. He was thin and gangly, dressed in casual clothing beneath a makeshift Gilly suit. John used the knife to cut the front of the man's attire, exposing his dirty, bony chest closely, as if he were searching for something. His fingers traced an old tattoo, the faded black ink etched across the man's heart: a large winged skull inside a triangle.

"Interesting," John purred. He leaned close to the man's face, gripping it with his hands. "It's been too long." He patted the dead man's cheek, scoffing. John stood, noting the man's rifle that lay next to his body. "The others stalking you and your friends are no ordinary humans. No, we are being hunted, dear Cain." John grasped the gun, his hands burning with green fire as he snapped it in half over my knee and tossed it aside.

By who?

John grinned, as if he knew something I didn't. "The Triad."