Page 23 of Desecrated Saints
I stare into her irises, lit by the flames. “What about him?”
“You love him, Nix.”
“So do you.”
The corner of her mouth lifts. “How does this work? I love all of you. I’m not afraid to say it anymore; it’s time I grew up. I’m in love with every single one of you. I can’t exist in this world without you guys. I refuse to.”
“No one ever expected you to choose,” I offer. “From day one, we fell into this messy, fucked up family without coming up for air. We need each other to survive. It’s that simple.”
“But how is this fair?”
“We get you. That’s enough. We get you, and you have us in return. None of us want to live without this family. We’ve all been lost and this… this is what it feels like to be found. I love you, and Eli and my brothers.”
Despite everything, Brooklyn manages a laugh.
“Generous.”
“Shut the fuck up, firecracker.”
“You started it.”
I bend my knees, dipping her low to the ground, before I sweep her back onto her feet. Brooklyn squeals, a brilliant smile blossoming on her lips for the first time in days. It takes my fucking breath away.
“I’ll prove it to you,” I whisper in her ear.
“How?”
“We’ll burn the whole world and every last motherfucker in it to ashes if that’s what it takes to get our revenge. I don’t care anymore. Fuck everyone else. They will hurt like we do.”
“You promise?”
“I promise. We’ll take Incendia down or die trying.”
Before she can say anything else, I seal the promise with a final, heart-stopping kiss. Everything I have is poured into the declaration, a goddamn irreversible stamp on my heart that I will proudly boast for the rest of my life.
Somehow, I’m grateful for Blackwood.
It taught us to grow up, and it showed me the truth. While the pain is temporary, family is forever. No matter what happens next, we’ll go down in flames… together.
CHAPTER 6
BROOKLYN
DOOMED - BRING ME THE HORIZON
Leaving Phoenix and Eli spooning in the double bed, I throw a discarded shirt over my head. Watching them as they sleep for a moment, I smile to myself at the sight.
Phoenix is stretched out on his back, chest bare and arms folded behind his head. Eli is curled up by his side, head splayed across his pectorals and leg hitched high on his waist. He still sleeps in a t-shirt to hide his scars, even from us, but they both look so at peace with each other.
Padding into the kitchen, I hit the switch on the coffee machine. The sun has risen, but no one else has stirred. Kade is asleep at the kitchen table, drooling on his stacks of paperwork. He and Sadie were up late again last night.
Going to grab a blanket from the living room to drape over him, I startle when I realise someone else is awake. In one of the armchairs, huddled in a quilt and staring out the window, I find a pale, skeletal shadow of a man.
Conscious.
Blinking.
Breathing.