So fucking empty

RONAN

To err is human, to forgive is divine.

It’s a good thing I’m not fucking named divine.

The gates to the Langford estate groan as they open.

Malachi and I step out of the car in silence. No words are needed. There’s a weight pressing on both of us—rage, guilt, years of torment, and the bleeding image of Sarah’s almost lifeless body in Jaxon’s arms.

Now the last one I can never forget. No matter what. It’s tattooed permanently in my brain. It’s a horror I’ll never get over or forgive myself for.

I take the lead. The closer we get to the underground room where Abel promised to keep him, the stronger the stench of blood becomes. It’s thick. Metallic. Almost sweet.

No. It’s really sweet, because I know whose blood it is.

We step inside, and there he is.

Chained. Stripped from the waist up. His skin is a beautiful canvas filled with red marks and purple bruises, some parts of his skin still ooze out blood.

His arms are stretched tight above him, with his wrists chained to the c