Angel Blood

34- Common Sins

When I was a child, I suffered from night terrors.

I sigh as I splash cool water on my face. It's been at least a good ten years since they've haunted me—why come back now?

Because you know you can't deny yourself the truth anymore, something inside of me whispers. You know you're falling for the kind of monster you've spent years killing in cold blood. Convincing yourself that it's okay because you're doing the world a favor.

I startle as a sharp knock raps against the bathroom door.

"Let me in," Sin rumbles from the other side.

My feet don't move an inch as I stare up at the pale girl in the mirror. Her eyes are too wide, dark hair tangled, lips swollen like she's nervously gnawed at them for far too long.

"Calliope," Sin says darkly.

I don't even blink as the door swings open beside me. The raw flesh of my hands burn as I brace them against the cool porcelain of the sink.

I can feel him looking at me. Taking in my disheveled state.

"Tell me what's wrong," he says.

I sigh. "I told you. Bad dream."

He makes a sound of dissatisfaction but doesn't press any further.

"What time is it?" I try to wipe some of the bleariness from my eyes. Despite sleeping for a few hours, exhaustion still weighs heavily at the back of my head.

"Still early," he says softly. "Come back to bed."

At that, I turn my head and look at him. My fingers curl into my throbbing palms. "No."

"I'll stay with you." His large hand wraps around my wrist and tugs me back into the bedroom. "Just for a few more hours. You look like you need it."

I don't fight him. Despite the sweat clamming my forehead and the way my lungs tighten with dread, my eyelids feel so heavy that I know in a few hours it'll be nearly impossible to keep them pried open. "You promise you won't leave this time?"

His grip tightens slightly. "I promise."

Begrudgingly, I crawl back into the sheets, grimacing as the damp blankets cling to my skin.

Sin nods dismissively at Oliver and Theo, climbing into the space next to me.

"Might want to rethink that," I wince. "It's kinda...sweaty."

Regardless of my warning, he tugs me against him so that my head lays over his chest and his arm wraps around my waist. "I've been covered in far worse things than sweat," he says, then presses a gentle kiss to my forehead. "I'll be fine. I'll be here for as long as you need me. Sleep now, angel."

A small smile curls my lips at the endearment. My eyes shutter closed and darkness pulls me back under before I have a chance to prepare myself for what might be to come.

...

"Up," Delia says, her large hands dwarfing my much smaller ones as she pulls them back up so my arms remain straight. "Up, Calli. Never below your shoulders."

"But it's heavy," I say, but keep them upright despite the way my muscles tremble with effort.

"Hush," she says, her large brown eyes deceivingly kind-looking despite the impressive frown she sports. "No complaints. I thought you said you were big enough now. Unless you want to wait another—"

"No," I say quickly. "I'm ready. I'm sorry." I don't really know what Delia and the rest of them go at night and why they always come back in dirt and blood, but Amara told me it's because they're doing God's work. Fulfilling the duty that comes with having divinity flowing through our veins. Whatever that means.