I gasped.
Riley yawned.
“He rescued me.” Her voice faded away and she shook her head. “But he was foolish. He should’ve known making a deal with evil would only create more evil.”
At this, Riley stiffened.
“So what happened?” Cole asked.
“Well, I was banished from heaven because I fell in love with a human… a human that basically made a deal with the devil… and despite his hellhound status, I loved him anyway.”
She looked at me and I nodded. I knew exactly what it was like.
“But because my greatest crime was falling in love, I was sent to Earth instead of being sent to hell. I was stripped of my wings, but still able to keep some of my powers. I have dedicated my life to seeking and destroying evil.”
“But what about Callum? Where is he?” Logan asked.
Gemma was silent a moment. “We were happy for a while. But after he changed… he was different. The goodness in him had fallen prey to the binds that held him to hell. I was trying to help him, to deny the darkness in him, but Beelzebub wouldn’t allow it. He showed up one day with an amulet”—she fingered the pouch at her waist—“keeping Callum from shifting, from being able to defend himself and then he killed him.”
Finished with her tale, Gemma looked up. Anguish stole over her features, and for the first time, I truly understood why she was so reluctant to let anybody in.
Cole cleared his throat. I wanted to reach out to him, but I didn’t think he would let me and I didn’t want to draw attention to the fact this story was breaking him. But then he did something beautiful. Instead of focusing on how crappy he felt (it was all over his aura), he reached out to Gemma and put a hand on her shoulder and squeezed. “I’m so sorry you had to go through that.”
Gemma cleared her throat and then looked at him. “Thank you.”
I didn’t know what to say. She risked everything to be with the man she loved and then he was killed and she was left alone to walk the earth forever.
“Such a sad tale.” Riley drawled, drawing all of our stares.
“How does this relate to Riley?” I asked.
“Callum was my grandfather,” Riley replied.
My eyes widened in shock. Even Cole seemed taken aback.
Gemma nodded. “I had known Callum had a son, and after he was killed, I checked in on him from time to time. When Riley was born, I kept a close eye on the family because I knew the hellhound gene would surface in him.”
“Because of the deal Callum made with Beelzebub,” I said, looking at Riley with new eyes. What must it be like to know that his grandfather had made a deal that literally took away some of his humanity?
“Yes. I always watched them from afar, until the summer Riley turned ten.”
Riley’s mouth flattened.
“He had no idea what was going on with his body or how to control it. He was so much like Callum…” Gemma’s voice faded away. Cole finally became restless and got to his feet and wandered off, but stayed close by.
Gemma watched him, no doubt wondering if she should go after him.
“Give him a minute to cool off,” I said.
Gemma nodded. “It took a while, but I made friends with the family and I tried to spend as much time with Riley as I could. I taught him about what was happening and how to control his movements. I didn’t want someone to use one of those amulets against him like they had Callum.”
“And I turned into a killer. The end,” Riley said, getting to his feet.
“Not a killer, not right away,” Gemma said. She looked at me to explain. “Like Callum, Riley struggles internally… There’s a part of him that’s bound.”
“We’ve heard enough,” Riley growled, cutting off her words.
I began to worry that he was going to take off. Killer or not, I needed him. “I think you better talk to Cole,” I told Gemma.
She nodded. Before she went after my brother, she grabbed my arm. “Be careful. You cannot trust him.”
Riley made a sound and I shook off her arm. “Thank you for telling us this.”
Gemma glanced toward Cole. “I never meant to hurt you or to keep this from you. I just never knew how to say it.”
“It’s okay,” I said, meaning it.
When Gemma was out of earshot, I turned to Riley. “I don’t care if you’re a killer.”
His dark eyes affixed on me. “Until I try and kill you.”
“You wouldn’t do that.”
“Does Sam know you found me?”
I swallowed. “No.”
“How come?” He took a step closer to me. I held my ground.
“I don’t want to worry him.”
“Because he would be worried if he knew that you were with me?”
“I’m not sure,” I hedged.
“Yes, you are. He ran Casey and me out of town because he didn’t want us anywhere near you. Why do you think that is?”
I didn’t want to think about that.
Riley took another step closer, his warm breath brushing over my face. “Because Gemma is right. I am a killer.” As if on cue, his eyes flashed silver.
“I’m not scared of you.” My voice was strong.
He lifted a brow. “Don’t ever think you know me because I’m a hellhound like your boy. Sam and I are nothing alike. I’ve done some very bad things.”
“Is killing one of them?” I met his gaze straight-on.
“Why do you think I had to swim to catch up to the ferry last night? I stayed behind to take care of a few things.”
I gasped. “You killed those men?”
“Not all of them. Just the two who threatened you.”
“Why would you do that?” I searched for any indication he might be lying, but all I saw was truth.
“Better them than you.” He shrugged. Did he have so little value for human life, then?
“I took care of them. Of myself.”
“I thought the message you sent wasn’t strong enough.” He stared into my eyes, almost challenging me. Was he talking this way just to get a reaction? Was he trying to scare me away? Was I going to let him?
I stood there for a moment, not once looking away from his cold stare. Then, I shrugged. His eyes narrowed at the small movement.
“I don’t care.”
“You don’t?”
“Nope. As far as I’m concerned, having a killer on my side will only help me get Sam back.”
“Who says I’m on your side?” he said very quietly, almost a growl straight from his throat.