Page 75 of His Untoward Hate

“There’s something important I need to deal with right now. Just tell everyone the meeting’s postponed. I’ll call for another one soon. Handle the rest.”

Without giving Kevin a chance to respond, Sky ended the call. There was no point explaining further anyway. Kevin already knew what to do in times like these. Sky tossed his phone onto the passenger seat and dragged both hands through his hair.

Where the goddamn hell was Jude Finn?

What Sky could not understand was why he was even looking for that damn faggot in the first place. Jude was not supposed to be worth this much of his time. With a groan, Sky rested his forehead against the steering wheel and clasped his hands over his head. He had been searching for nearly three hours, driving through the entire neighborhood and every place he could think of where Jude might have gone, yet there was still no sign of him.

The once-busy streets had long since emptied. The night had grown quiet. The cold wind was weaving through the darkness. Sky could not bring himself to stop searching. His concern only worsened when the dark clouds broke, scattering raindrops across the windshield before turning into a steady downpour. Sky lifted his head and turned the key in the ignition. The engine roared to life for a brief second before sputtering and dying.

“Fuck.”

Sky started it again, but it still did not function. He tried again, but it still did not work. The more he tried, the more helpless he became. Then it hit him. His vehicle tools were back at the house. Cursing under his breath, Sky shoved the door open and stepped out of the truck, preparing to face what looked like the beginning of a hurricane.

The moment Sky stepped out of the truck, a rush of adrenaline surged through his veins. His instincts had rarely failed him. The rapid pounding of his heart only reinforced the feeling growing inside him. He could feel his heart beating fast. These things were indications that he was nearby. His heart had always been like that towards him.

Thunder cracked five times in a minute, putting Sky in much more worry. The temperature had dropped below twenty degrees, yet the cold barely affected him, even as he felt goosebumps rising across his skin. Shielding his face with one arm, Sky narrowed his eyes to see through the rain. The wind howled fiercely, piercing through the darkness and disrupting the night’s eerie silence. As he pushed forward, his foot caught on a small rock, nearly throwing him off balance.

You’d better prepare yourself when I find you. Sky grumbled the threat inwardly, though it was born more from worry than anger.

The raging thunder beyond the clouds, the relentless rain pounding against the earth’s surface, the invisible wind whistling through the night, the empty, flooded growing streets, and the rustling leaves of the trees all blended into a chaotic symphony—

Then something else reached his ears.

Sky’s brows knitted together when he heard a sharp cracking sound above his head. The moment he looked up at the towering Ipil-Ipil tree above him, it was already too late. A heavy branch snapped free and slammed into the back of his shoulder before he could dodge out of the way. Sky winced as a jolt of pain shot through him. Warm blood immediately seeped from the torn flesh beneath his shirt. Though he managed to throw his arms over his head to shield himself, several smaller twigs still scraped across the side of his face, leaving shallow cuts behind.

Sky had endured far worse throughout his life. Compared to everything else, this was nothing more than an ant’s bite. Grinding his teeth, he grabbed the fallen branch and hurled it aside in irritation despite its size and weight. Then he pressed forward through the unyielding storm.

“Fuck,” he muttered under his breath.

Rain lashed against his face, and water rushed into his eyes, forcing him to blink repeatedly. For a moment, he stopped in his tracks, struggling to clear his vision before continuing his search. When Sky finally opened his eyes again, a blinding flash from the lightning pierced through the rain and struck his vision. Instinctively, he raised an arm to shield his face from both the unrelenting downpour and the blinding light. Sky narrowed his eyes through the storm, his breath catching in his throat.

And then, for a moment, the world seemed to slow.

Tug. Dug. Tug. Dug. Tug. Dug

This is fucking ridiculous. Why does everything seem to move in slow motion? Is this another side effect of the synthetic drugs I’ve been taking? Sky thought.

The rain appeared to fall in sluggish streaks. The howl of the wind faded into the background. The thunder felt distant. All he could hear was the abnormal sound under his chest.

Heart was pounding.

Legs felt weak.

Breathing hitched.

Mind went blank.

Chest ached.

Sky stood frozen, unable to find the words. The moment his eyes landed on Jude’s unconscious figure sprawled on the ground, time seemed to stop. Rain drenched Jude from head to toe, his body half-buried in the mud, motionless beneath the torrent. Sky clenched his fists until his tendons bruised, his jaw locked tight. No words could capture the fury raging inside him. It went far beyond anger. But more than anyone else, he hated himself.

Jude would never have been bullied if it were not for him. He would never have been a loner if it were not for him. He would never have been thrown out of his home if it were not for him. He would never have endured so much pain if it were not for him.

Every scar, every bully, every hardship, every moment of suffering—Sky could not help but believe that he was somehow responsible for all of it.

Jude did not deserve any of this. He did not deserve the cruelty the world had handed him. Most of all, he did not deserve people like Sky, people who had done nothing but bring pain and misery into his life.

Jude deserved better.