Chapter Ten
I woke up to the worst sensation in the world.
It was like a hangover, but ten times worse. My ears were ringing and my head was throbbing something awful. I felt sweaty and hot, like I was on fire. I could hear voices talking around me, but they sounded so far away and muffled. My chest hurt and every gulp of air I sucked in felt like a kick in the chest by a giant.
I managed to open my eyes, my eyelids feeling as heavy as a box of rocks. My vision was blurry and distorted for a moment before the constant painful blinking cleared everything and I found myself staring up at the ceiling over my bed. I looked at it, confused. My body felt numb, but painful at the same time. I didn't want to move. I couldn't move. I managed to tilt my head to the left and saw Malachi standing there with Cain, Hannibal, Adrian, and Jahlia.
My heart soared at that. Jahlia! She was alive! But she looked so nervous, and pissed. But not as angry as Cain, who was snarling something at Malachi and Malachi just snapped back at him. Hannibal and Adrian were silent, both looking uncomfortable with the argument between my brothers. The longer I stared, the more my hearing started to clear up again.
"... fucking fault," Cain was shouting, pointing at Jahlia, who gave him a dirty look, "That's why he's like this! The fucking whore wanted him to do it. And that stupid bastard was the one who drugged him! He's probably never going to wake up! And I swear to God, if you don't let me kill her--"
"Abel said no," Adrian protested now, frowning at Cain, who pinned Adrian with a glare most murderous, but Adrian managed to ignore it, "He doesn't want you to kill her. He kept saying it when you guys brought him here. We're not killing her. It's not her fault. The guy at the bar was the one who did it, not Jahlia. And you already killed that man."
"Which was such a good idea on your part," Jahlia told Cain sarcastically, making everyone grimace as Cain fumed, "Now we won't find out why he did it. That wasn't a drug to put him into submission long enough for a fuck. I've been drugged like that before. It was something else and my bets are on that Alexion dude. He probably hoped it would kill him."
"And it would have," Malachi agreed, making Cain twitch, "But you got him here in time and we managed to pump what we could out of his system. The rest was absorbed and it's best to let it run its course. He'll probably be better in a couple days, but he's going to be weak." Cain made a sound of distress, running a hand through his hair in frustration. Hannibal looked like he wanted to help him, but when he reached out, Cain shoved his hand away and came toward the bed. I shut my eyes so he couldn't tell if I was awake, but he was really good at telling if I was faking or not, so I didn't expect much.
I felt his fingertips brush my cheek and it felt like blades of ice against the fire of my skin. I was still breathless, my lungs screaming for deeper gulps of air as I tried to breath normally through all of the pain.
"Get away from him," Jahlia protested angrily, her footsteps following as she approached the bed, "He doesn't want you near him."
"I know that, bitch," Cain snarled at her, and I could just imagine the scorn on Jahlia's face, "But he's my brother. I want to kill you so badly right now that it is literally causing me pain, but Abel's never done that to me before."
"Done what?" Malachi asked, confused.
"None of your business." Cain responded automatically. For once, I was grateful that Cain didn't brag about me being a pussy. My gut churned at the thought of the fact that I actually clung to him screaming at him to leave Jahlia alone. I had already had a best friend die. I didn't want to see it happen again, especially to someone like Jahlia, who had yet to see the rest of the world.
"Guys, stop," Adrian said gently, "He's probably feeling awful and needs rest. We can't risk you guys waking him up."
"I know what my brother needs." Cain shot back angrily.
"Don't get mad at him," Malachi defended, "And how could you possibly know what Abel wants? You killed him and scarred him for life. You're the last person who should even be here. And I'm going to politely ask you to leave."
"Like hell you are," Cain snarled, "Abel's sick and I'm staying. I don't want you putting your dirty hands on him. You, the Titan, and that whore. Keep your filthy paws off him."
The more they argued, the louder they got and the more my head pounded. Their words became jumbles of snarled insults and shouting. My head felt like it was seconds away from splitting open and now my stomach was churning, slowly bubbling up to my throat until I could take it anymore. I shot up, wanting to cry out in pain as it shot through my system, but I didn't have time as I shoved Cain back and leaned over the side of the bed, choking on vomit that poured out onto the floor.
I panted for breath in between spurts of barf. My throat burned and screamed, the foul taste on my tongue making me shudder and want to puke even more. My body felt even hotter now and the sweat poured down my face. I almost fell over the side of the bed and into my vomit, but Cain came back and pulled me onto the bed again, but laid me on my side, so I wouldn't choke to death on my own vomit.
"Abel? Can you hear me?" It sounded like Cain, but it was difficult to tell.
"Kay." Was all I could muster, my teeth chattering. I curled up, grabbing at the blankets, but someone pulled them over me. Even that didn't ease the chills I was getting. I was so hot, and yet, I was shivering.
"He's burning up," Someone said angrily, and my guess would be Cain since he was so pissy today, "Get something to cool him down! Hannibal, get a cold pack or something!" I just laid there, trying to catch my breath and grimacing at the awful taste in my mouth. I blinked my eyes back open, but it was so hard to keep them open and unconsciousness was settling back in. I felt my eyes slowly falling shut again as someone reached out and ruffled my hair.
Mmm, that feels good...
I woke up a few hours later, still laying in bed. The drug or poison or whatever it had been was beginning to fade, but I still felt queasy and sore. I didn't want to move. Even worse was that I couldn't use my powers. They refused to budge.
So I laid in bed while Jahlia, Tayo, and Adrian took care of me. It pissed me off to no end. I wanted everyone to leave me alone. I felt miserable. It didn't help that they were taking care of me as if I were an infant.
"I'm not hungry." I told Adrian past clenched teeth as he pushed the cart in beside the bed with all this fancy health food Tayo had made. Adrian frowned, folding his arms over his chest, looking down at me.
"You have to eat, Abel. You're still weak and you need to get your strength back." He ordered. I pinned him with a glare.
"Then I'll do it myself."
"You can barely make it to the bathroom half the time."
"Then leave me here so I can wet the bed and starve." I growled out in irritation. Adrian glared at me impatiently, then finally gave up and left, but left the cart of food behind. The smell of it just made me nauseous, but I didn't want to puke in the bucket Malachi put next to my bed. I shoved the blankets back, struggling to get up. My bones felt like they were made of glass. Every move I made sent rockets of discomfort and pain through me. I managed to push myself up and used the cart to support myself as I stood, bringing a sheet with me to hide my nudity in case someone randomly came in.
Because thanks to Malachi, I now had a door to my room that gave people admittance into my room whenever they damn well pleased. I wasn't getting any privacy and I didn't want a door to my room because then certain people could just walk in and, oh, I dunno, kill me maybe?
I shook my head in disgust, trying to make my way over to the bathroom, but the world abruptly tilted to the side and I stumbled, reaching out to catch something to gain back my balance, but my hand went through the air and the next thing I knew, I was smacking into the hard floor.
A groan escaped my lips, my cheek pressed against the cold hard floor. I laid there for a couple minutes, breathing hard and fighting the nausea that was bubbling into my throat. I held my breath, swallowing it down as I pushed myself up onto one arm. I kept one hand to my chest, gripping the sheets. I tried to lift myself up, but my body was trembling and numb.
I was about ready to give up and just lay on the floor and swim in my own vomit when someone caught me under the arms and pulled me to my feet. I tilted my head and froze, seeing Cain standing behind me, at my back. Fear and anger rocketed through me and I tried to hit him, but he shoved my arm away and swung me up into his arms bridal style.
"Get off me!" I spat, shoving at him, but it was a weak shove. I couldn't muster up enough strength to send him flying, which pissed me off. I couldn't do anything, but dangle there as Cain carried me into the bathroom and set me down in front of the toilet. I wanted to yell at him again, but the vomit flooded into my mouth and I hunched over the toilet, retching into it violently. My head spun at that and my throat burned. I panted, resting my chin on the toilet seat, cringing in pain.
"You should've called someone if you needed help." Cain deadpanned. I twitched, a rush of anger rushing through me and I opened my mouth to yell at him, but instead heaved up the rest of the contents in my stomach. Once I was finished, I managed to find my voice.
"Fuck off." I spat hoarsely, breathing hard. Cain scoffed, folding his arms over his chest as I sat back against the wall by the toilet, glaring up at him past my hair. He looked so pompous standing there, but it was so weird to see him in regular clothing instead of his usual skin parade. He wore a navy turtleneck under a plain black corset, matching his leather pants and tall boots. Boots that would seriously hurt if he whacked me in the head with them.
"If you're finished, I'm taking you to your bed." He told me, reaching down to grab me, but I slapped his hand away and bared my teeth. A shock of pain went through me and I hissed, reaching back to grab my lower back as my tail decided it wanted to come slithering out and fell across the floor. I grimaced, glaring at it. I waited for my legs to decide to show up, but much to my relief, they remained normal.
"You can't fight me," Cain drawled, sounding pleased, "So just hold still and let me take care of you."
"You're a few centuries too late, jackass." I seethed past clenched teeth, spitting in the toilet. God, it tasted awful. My mouth burned with the taste of leftovers. Cain shrugged me off and reached down, pulling me up to my feet and even though I wanted to rip his hands off, I was grateful to be on my feet again, even though I was wobbling. My tail twitched and coiled behind me to get away from Cain, not that it mattered. He couldn't cut that off, but he could probably cut me.
My eyes swept over him quickly to see if he had any weaponry on him, not that it would matter. He could probably conjure whatever the fuck he wanted.
"You need to eat something besides crackers and Cheetos." Cain commented, stepping aside as I took a step toward to walk by myself, but my knees buckled and I almost hit the floor if he hadn't of caught me. I wanted to rip his arms off and shove them where the sun didn't shine, but I also didn't want to faceplant on the floor again, so I grudgingly let him pick me up into his arms again, my tail dragging on the floor as he walked.
"I don't want that soapy tasting soup or any other of those nasty health foods. And who the fuck are you to tell me what to eat?"
"Your brother."
"My brother died a long time ago."
"No, but you did." Cain responded flatly. I glared at him and reached up to hit him, but he dropped me on the bed before I could. Pain exploded in my back and I groaned, rolling over onto my side. My tail curled around me before reaching for the blankets, lifting them on top of me. I sighed in relief at the warmth. My room was freezing!
I waited for Cain to leave, but much to my displeasure, he stayed and spooned some of Tayo's nasty ass soup into a bowl, setting it beside my bed. Instead of eating it, I pushed it over the side so it splattered all over the floor.
Yeah, it was a childish move, but I was feeling childish, so fuck the world.
"Real mature, Abel." Cain muttered dryly, stooping over to pick it up. It was weird seeing Cain do things for himself for once. He usually made Hannibal do it and enjoyed watching Hannibal do it. If someone asked me what a bitch was, I'd give them a picture of Hannibal.
"Yeah, so was killing me a hundred times for no reason." I muttered against my pillow, watching Cain clean up the mess and refill the bowl. As if I'd want a second bowl after the first one. But instead of putting it by my bed like last time, Cain sat on the edge of the bed and lifted a spoonful toward my mouth. I grimaced at the horrid stench of it and turned my face into the pillow.
"Get that garbage away from me." I growled. Cain put the spoon back, emptied it, then whacked me in the head with it. I hissed, baring my fangs at him.
"I'm sick, you asshole!" I snapped angrily. Cain glared at me.
"But you're not a baby, you assclown. So fucking eat the soup or I'm going to force feed you." He threatened. My stomach churned at the thought. He would do it too. It wasn't an idle threat. None of his threats were idle. And even though I wanted to challenge that threat with one of my own, I wasn't stupid. I couldn't even walk, let alone fight Cain off. At the same time, I didn't want to eat that horrible crap. It'd just make me sick again and I was tired of vomiting.
"I reeeally don't want to eat that." I grunted at last. Cain frowned and for a second, I expected him to dump the soup on me, but instead, he set it aside, folded his arms over his chest and one leg over the other... and waited. I scowled.
"What are you doing?" I demanded. Cain shrugged, looking around the room with obvious disinterest.
"Waiting until you decide to eat."
"Then go away."
"Ah, no. I'm gonna stay here."
"Ah, no. No, you are not."
"Ah, yes. Yes, I am." Cain responded casually, reaching out to pick at a lose thread on my blankets. I scowled and my tail shot out from under the blankets to smack him on the hand. He caught my tail in his fist and I hissed, sinking my nails into the sheets as he held my squirming tail.
"Let go!" I seethed. Cain ignored me, rubbing his thumb up and down the sensitive layer of scales, making me squirm. He pulled on it so he could look closer at it. I tried to rip it out of his grip and smack him in the face, but he refused to let go.
"You know, tails are kinda gross." Cain commented. My heart clenched at that, but I refused to let him get to me as I glared at him.
"I don't care what you think."
"Liar." Cain replied flatly. I glared at him, but didn't say anything, watching him stroke my tail. Chills erupted up my spine and tickled my insides. I held my breath, my eyes locked on him intently. I wasn't worried about him cutting my tail. It was a hydra tail. It couldn't be destroyed. I just didn't like the way he stroked it after calling it gross.
"But somehow," Cain muttered, giving my tail a squeeze and making me hiss, "You make it look incredibly erotic." I blinked and shot him a suspicious glare. He loosened his grip on my tail and I took my chance to whip it back under the blankets to avoid having him grab at it. He smirked and reached out to touch me, but I ducked under the blankets, making him snort.
"You're acting like a child."
"And you're acting like a pervert, so that makes you a pedophile."
"Now you're just being stupid."
"You're stupid."
"What? Running out of comebacks?"
"I almost died. Cut me some slack." I grumbled. I was answered with silence. I frowned and peered over the blankets to see Cain frowning at me. I waited for him to say something, but he remained silent. I rolled my eyes and snuggled back down with the blanket. Nobody said anything. I was really just waiting for him to leave, but he didn't. And the more I laid there wondering what happened to make like this, the more curious I got and awkward silences were just that-- awkward.
"So what happened anyway," I grunted, making Cain glance at me out the corner of his eye, "How'd I get this sick if it was just alcohol?" Cain gave me a withering stare.
"It wasn't just alcohol, you dweeb. That oh-so-charming date of yours was sent by Alexion to poison you. He slipped you something that was apparently supposed to kill you, but you didn't get enough of it into your system. He was probably gonna finish the job once you left the bar. You're lucky I showed up when I did." He added, looking away all proudly and cocky. I wrinkled my nose.
"Oh, my hero. What do you want? A kiss for the toad so he turns into a prince? Buuuull." I mocked, making Cain twitch and glare at me in irritation. I looked away from him, closing my eyes and fighting down another wave of nausea.
"You should be grateful," Cain sneered, "I saved you."
"And you killed me three times. Sorry, you're gonna have to do better than that."
"I'm not trying to apologize."
"Good, because I don't forgive you." I responded tightly. Cain rolled his eyes and looked away. We were quiet again. It was so uncomfortable and awkward. I didn't want Cain to be here. I already felt like shit and his presence was just making it worse. Thankfully, the doors to my room opened and Dorean came in, then pulled up short when Cain got to his feet, pinning the imp with a deadly glare.
"What are you doing here?" Cain asked sharply, his blue eyes glinting dangerously. I scowled, propping myself up on an elbow.
"Shut up, Cain, go away. What is it, Dorean?" I asked, turning my attention to the imp, who swallowed hard, eyeing Cain warily. Dorean inched forward, making a wide circle around Cain and keeping his eyes on my twin like he was expecting Cain to jump him. I was expecting the same thing, but Cain seemed eerily cold and silent. Dorean came up to the bed and withdrew a pack of mint gum from his pocket, holding out to me shyly.
"Ah, I... thought... you would need something to chew on. Cuz, Malachi says that you don't want to eat. So, maybe you want to chew?" He asked hopefully. I raised an eyebrow, feeling oddly embarrassed by his offer. I reached out and took the gum, studying the pack before taking a stick out and popping it into my mouth. It was a huge relief to taste the mint overpowering the taste of vomit. I smirked, looking up at Dorean, who blushed.
"Thanks, imp... Dorean." I added. He beamed, looking positively ecstatic.
"Dor-- Ah, I mean, I hope you feel better. I told Malachi no party until Abel feels all better. Then we can have two parties." He responded. I was a little surprised, and again embarrassed. Jeez, what's with all this sentimentality? Did he forget all the times I was a dick to him?
"Aren't you mad at me?" I asked flatly. Dorean frowned, confused as he cocked his head like a little dog.
"Why would I be mad at Abel?" He asked in return. I raised an eyebrow.
"Considering I was a total asshole to you, you should probably be happy I'm sick." I answered. Dorean shook his head and smiled at me.
"Nope! Dor-- I forgive you already."
"You probably shouldn't forgive people that easily."
"Why not?"
"Because they can do it again." I muttered, glancing at Cain, who rolled his eyes and folded his arms over his chest, turning his back to us in disgust. I looked back at Dorean, who shrugged as he looked down at his hands, twiddling his thumbs.
"That's okay. I just forgive them again."
"But then they'll hurt you again."
"Then I forgive them again."
"You can't keep forgiving people.
"Yeah huh," Dorean replied stubbornly, making me cock a brow as he blushed, "I live veeeery long time. I learn life should not be wasted hating people. It not my fault you was mad at me. I was annoying."
"You're uneducated, that's not your fault." I pointed out. Where was this coming from? I hated the guy... For some reason. Now I wasn't sure why I had hated him, because I was right-- He didn't know what he was doing. He was never properly educated. Wind Storm kept him locked up as a sex slave in his room most of the time. That wasn't Dorean's fault. He'd been sold into slavery the moment his mother popped him out. That made me sick to my stomach.
"No," Dorean admitted with a helpless shrug, "But you was mad. Not your fault you mad." He paused at that and, even though it was done quickly, I caught the glance he passed at Cain before he met my eyes. I stared at him, surprised.
How the fuck did he know about Cain? Imps didn't read, and no one had told Dorean about Cain and I. As far as I knew. Damn, maybe he was smarter than I thought.
"Uh, okay." I said at last, unable to find anything else to say to that. Dorean seemed okay with that and beamed.
"Gonna let you rest now. Night night, Abel." He gave me a little wave, and cautiously made his way around Cain, who glared at him the whole way out the door. As soon as the door shut, Cain whirled on me.
"Who the fuck was that?" He demanded. I stared at him incredulously before glaring back at him.
"Adrian's imp. You've met him before."
"I've never noticed him before."
"Because he's an imp maybe. What does it matter?"
"What was that all about? Why were you getting so mushy with him?"
"Mushy? The kid was just bringing me gum," I deadpanned, then flopped back on the bed to take out another piece and pop it in with the first one, "And thank god he did. I was getting tired of the taste of puke." Cain twitched and went to snatch the gum from me, but I tucked it underneath of me. He fumed and shoved me over to take it, but I grabbed it again and held it out of his reach.
"What the hell," I snarled, pushing my arm against him despite the pain it caused me, "Get your own!"
"I don't want you touching anything that was touched by that dirty imp!"
"He's not dirty!"
"Since when did you like imps?!"
"I don't! Shove off, Cain, or I'm gonna rip your head off!"
"Not if I do it to you first!"
"Get off me or I'll puke on you and don't think I won't! I still have plenty of shit in my stomach ready to heave all over your face and ruin your nice new clothes!" I threatened angrily. Cain glared at me defiantly for the longest time, then let out an angry scream before he shoved at me and stormed out of the room. I watched him go, scowling as I settled back down on the bed, hiding the pack of gum in the space under my mattress, just in case he came back to take it.
Why he wanted to take it was beyond me. I had no idea what he meant by touching anything Dorean touched. The imp touched everything in the house. What should we do? Burn the house down? I rolled my eyes, munching on the gum and finding relief in it too.
There was a soft knock on my door and I looked up curiously as Jahlia came in. She was wearing a warm red knit dress with long sleeves and a turtleneck collar, over a pair of nice normal blue jeans. I kinda liked her casual outfits compared to her whore outfits. Nothing should turn a man on more than seeing a woman being herself.
"Hey." I greeted. Jahlia smiled a bit, before it melted into a frown as she came over.
"How are you feeling, pumpkin?" She asked, touching my forehead, then grimacing and removing her hand. I was still feeling hot, apparently. I hadn't noticed.
"Kinda like a coal in the fires of hell." I responded blankly. Jahlia sighed and hopped up onto the bed beside me. She nibbled her bottom lip and reached up to rub her stomach. I frowned at that.
"What's wrong? You're not sick too, are you?" I asked, sitting up. Jahlia shook her head, putting her hand on my chest to set me back down on the bed.
"Queasy," She answered briefly, then cocked her head to study me, "I saw Cain walk out of here. He didn't hurt you, did he? Cuz if he did, I'll rip his testicles off and fry them." I grimaced, reaching down to cup myself at her description.
"Damn, woman. You could run Lucifer out of a job." I pointed out, making her smirk wickedly before it faded after a moment or two.
"Are you sure you're all right? Last night..." Her voice trailed. Heat singed my cheeks as I remembered the way I had reacted to Cain threatening Jahlia. I swallowed, looking away awkwardly.
"Yeah, I'm good. You're good. We're good. But now I want to crawl into a fifty foot hole and never come out." I responded dryly. Jahlia smiled and reached out to ruffle my hair, making me groan. She leaned back on her hands, folding one leg over the other.
"Well, what we learned last night was that you obviously attract the wrong kind of guys. Somehow." She added, making me scowl.
"Oh, sorry, I was being myself. Next time I'll pretend to be Martha Stewart." I drawled, then paused to change my voice, but Jahlia clapped a hand over my mouth, making me scowl.
"Please stop that voice changing thing. It's so creepy." She groaned. I smirked, shoving her hand away. She leaned back on the bed again, sighing.
"Well, we can try again next weekend. Right now, we just need to worry about taking care of you. Maybe next weekend we can check out some bars in Styx." She mused thoughtfully. I grimaced.
"Jahlia, I really don't think this dating thing is a good idea. I mean, thanks for the thought and everything, but you saw what Cain did to that guy in the bar. And that was before he found out the guy poisoned me. Imagine what would happen if I actually found a guy I liked." I explained, but Jahlia scoffed.
"Cain's not so scary."
"He almost broke your neck."
"Oh, please, he's a Chihuahua wearing the mask of a Doberman. He's just being a jealous, overprotective prick. But he's actually a coward."
"I highly doubt that."
"It's true," Jahlia said sternly, making me raise an eyebrow at her serious tone, "From what I've seen and heard of Cain, he's just a terrified little boy trying to look like the tough guy. He's so scared of losing you, and so scared of being hurt, that he wants to make sure he gets everyone else first. It's probably why he killed you. Maybe you said something that scared him, so before getting hurt, he hurt you first."
"Jahlia, seriously, you're giving him too much credit. And even if what you were saying is true, it's not a good excuse for killing me."
"Nope," Jahlia agreed with a nod, "I'm not defending him. He's a douchebag. Through and through, but he's a scared douchebag. He cowers behind an image of strength and cruelty. He hurt you because he was afraid you'd hurt him first. I'm not telling you to forgive him. I'm not even telling you to not kill him. Hell, if you do plan to kill him, count me in. I'll bring the knives and pitchforks... But don't let him ruin your life either. Don't hide like he does, Abel. You're stronger than that. Stand up to him."
"It's kind of hard when he has his full powers, and I don't."
"Powers be damned," Jahlia exclaimed, making me stare at her in disbelief, "Seriously, Abel. So what if he's powerful? If you keep standing up to him, he'll realize that he can't control you."
"But he can kill me."
"And you'll just come back. And that's what's probably scaring him. He knows you're going to control him eventually. And so far, you're proving him right. That he can control you no matter what. Even if he kills you again, you'll be back and you'll be as strong as ever. Don't let him beat you down. Don't let him scare you. You're Abel, damn it. You're a Son of Hades too. And a damn good one. If it wasn't for you, Malachi would have killed himself a long time ago. If it wasn't for you, Noe would have never made it home safely that night at the bar. If it wasn't for you, your brothers wouldn't know how to handle Alexion on their own. You're the glue that keeps them together. Don't flake off now, Abel. Not when you've come so far. Get better. Let us help you get better. And when you do, give Cain a piece of your mind." Jahlia declared firmly, staring at me with a fire in her eyes that actually kind of sparked something in me too. It was so weird to have someone get this worked up, over me.
And what she said made sense. Part of me was honestly afraid to believe her, but another part of me, a larger part of me, knew she was right.
"Damn," I said at last, "You ever thought of giving pep talks to football teams?" Jahlia shrugged, looking at her fingernails.
"I would, but I don't have any pep talks on how to throw balls. Just to tease them."
"God, you're a whore."
"And don't you forget it."