Page 136 of Chasing Ruin
My heart stutters.
Theo’s awake.
Relief surges through me so violently that it almost hurts. It’s gone just as fast because suddenly, I can’t turn my head when I try.
Scar’s fingers dig into my jaw, forcing me to face him.
My pulse roars in my ears.
His gaze darkens as he leans in, voice dropping to something colder. “Hellfire made me a promise, you see—” he says, studying my face. A small, eager smile on his face.
Then he speaks again, quietly. But loud enough that I’m sure Theo can hear him.
“—that I can take his long-lost daughter for a spin.”
FORTY-ONE
Charlotte
It isn’t until the piercing clang of the bars punctures the silence Scar leaves behind that I finally manage to turn my head.
I know what I’m about to see.
Theo.
But the sight of him still leaves me shaking with utter relief.
His eyes, red-rimmed, are studying every inch of my face. Pain, fear, and sheer terror stare back at me like a mirror held up.
He’s no longer sitting with a slackened frame. His whole body coiled tight with something that looks like fury and helplessness.
I finally make my way to him with a slow, abating crawl.
My hands are clutching the bars in a tight, grueling grip like I can break them away.
The moment the overhead bulb shines over me, his gaze dips to my chest. More specifically, the torn fabric of my hoodie.
His eyes darken, but there’s something else there, too. I can see him struggling to stay in the moment because I know his imagination is running wild now.
He finally meets my gaze again and his chest jerks on a sharp, ragged exhale. “Charlotte.”
His rough, frayed whisper reaches my ear. And something warm and soft warps around my heart.
But my mind immediately conjures up the sound I heard earlier.
The splintered whisper of a broken man beside us.
‘Delilah…’
The man is unconscious now. It makes me wonder if he’s faking it. If he’s out, then they wouldn’t dothatto her. Right? He’s needed conscious. Awake. Enough so he can endure the destruction—right?
For a moment, I wish Theo weren’t awake because every shadow around me feels like a prolusion to the sickening truth of this place.
I can see Theo watching me anxiously. Understanding dawning on him. But neither of us can do anything about it.
“I… I thought…” I whisper, my cracked lips stinging. “I thought you died.”
His eyes fall shut with something heavy. When he opens them again, the pain I see there is almost unbearable. “I w-won’t,” he croaks, wincing when he tries to shake his head. “I won’t d-die on you. I promise.”
