Chapter Twenty-One
I woke up to the worst headache ever.
It made a hangover feel like paradise. I moaned low in my throat, squeezing my eyes tight against the throbbing that seemed to explode in a symphony of pain. My ears rang for a while before the sound faded. I felt myself leaning against cobblestones, very cold and damp, just like the floor. I tried to move my hands, but found them wrapped tightly around me and I took a wild guess that it was the god restraints that Hannibal had stolen off Alexion.
My eyes flickered open and sure enough, through the haze, I could see the dull glow of the ropes tied tightly around me and my ankles. I lifted my head off the wall, hissing slightly at the pain of moving. I blinked a few times to clear my vision and found myself looking at the wooden door of a closet. I frowned at it in confusion until I heard a low groan from beside me.
I snapped my head to the side, cursing at the pain it caused me to do that, then felt my eyes widened as I found myself looking at Cain. He was tied up tight by the gold restraints, around his hands, around his torso, around his ankles. He was wearing one of those fancy red military style corsets with a small jacket that was torn on one shoulder, the knees of his leather pants split open to reveal his bloody knees that looked like someone had taken a hammer to them.
I frowned, watching Cain shift on the dirty floor of the closet, his head resting against the wall. He slowly lifted it away, blinking at the pain that was probably thundering in his skull too. He squinted in the darkness until he saw me and he blinked a few times, sitting up straight.
"Abel?" He demanded. I didn't know what to say. The last time Cain and I spoke was my freak out session. I just swallowed and looked away. I didn't bother tugging at the ropes. I couldn't break them before, this time would be no different.
"Abel," Cain protested angrily, shifting to try and get closer to me, but I scooted closer to the door, glaring at him, "Abel, I've been trying to contact you all fucking day, but Malachi set up a barrier and wouldn't even let me call you!"
"Yeah, well," I drawled, not looking at him now, staring intensely at the door, "Good for you, but I had better things to do."
"Like avoid me?! Abel, what the hell is going on? One minute I'm falling asleep and the next I wake up with you standing over me with my dagger! Do you have any idea how stupid that is--"
"Ohhh my god," I snapped angrily, turning to glare at him, watching his eyes glint dangerously, "We can discuss my stupidity and your insanity later. Right now, we have bigger problems. Hannibal's kidnapped us both and tossed us into some kind of closet, it's cold as fuck, I have to piss, there's no light, except from these damned ropes, and oh yeah, Hannibal's probably going to capture the rest of our brothers." Cain scowled at that, tugging uselessly at his ropes.
"Why the fuck would he kidnap the others? He doesn't give a shit about them. He only kidnapped us for some sick twin fantasy." He said angrily. I glared at him.
"He won't kill them if it means killing me, you dope. That defeats the purpose of the twin fantasy theory. He's probably going to get everyone together and get them out of the way so he can get into Tartarus and open the gates. We need to warn the others and we're not doing anything helpful from in here. So let's do the world a favor and concentrate on trying to get our asses out of this situation." I explained menacingly. Cain glared at me, but said nothing more as he started to tug and squirm against the ropes. I rolled my eyes, looking away as I scanned the door for any signs of a weakness. Even with my legs tied, I could kick the door out. What happened from there? Who the fuck knows? I was better at improvising.
"Don't bother," I told Cain under my breath, making him shoot me a dirty look, "They're called god restraints for a reason. Your god blood prevents you from using your powers, which is why your broken knee caps aren't healing." Cain seethed at that, squeezing his eyes shut before he took a deep breath, probably to try and calm himself down, but it obviously wasn't helping because he started arguing again.
"This wouldn't have fucking happened if you had just stayed with me, where you belonged."
"This wouldn't have happened if you weren't born either, but I'm not into the what if thing anymore. Shut your mouth. I'm trying to find a way out of here."
"Don't tell me what to do," Cain snarled viciously, making me glare at him for a split second before I stretched my feet out to feel along the side of the wall, rubbing my cheek against the cobblestones in hopes of finding some way out, "You're not the boss of me, you little shit."
"Wow, we really are twins, because I've been repeating that same thing about you all these years." I answered dryly, then paused when I felt a loose wooden board under my foot. I gave it a push and it creaked softly under my foot. I started to push on it again when I heard voices outside the door.
"And you know what--"
"Cain, shut your big fat mouth before I kick it! There's someone outside the door." I added sharply. Cain glowered at me, but finally stayed quiet. We both listened to the sound of shoes moving outside the door, a good ways away, but we could hear pretty well. It sounded like a woman's heels clicking and a couple of men's boots thumping, one heavier than the other.
"Really," A woman's voice drawled, "This is such a waste of time. We could just kill them off no problem. Kill one and the rest of them die." I slowly began to recognize the ancient accent as Rara's. And it was soon followed by a man's voice that I recognized as Prometheus.
"Then Cain would be left," He advised, his voice grew hard now, "And Hannibal wants the twins as a set." Only a short silence followed, and I could only guess that Hannibal wasn't replying and just remaining quiet, not wanting to start an argument with his brother.
"Fine," Rara said past clenched teeth, "But if this all backfires, we're saving our own hides, not yours, Hannibal. You're the one making this complicated." There was still no response from Hannibal's side, so Rara took that as her cue and I could hear her heels clicking as she stomped away. I frowned, tilting my head to press my ear against the door. I heard some shifting and Prometheus scoff after a while.
"You're a fool," He said, "You know this is dangerous and it's going to put the plan in jeopardy. If that happens, you can forget about me covering for you and your stupidity. It took a lot of work for me to keep Abel's memories repressed. He's stronger than we thought. Maybe even stronger than Cain. And those two are some of the most powerful beings on the planet. They were the sons of Adam and Eve, the first of their kind. If you were smart, you'd kill them both right now while you still can."
"No," Hannibal snapped suddenly, surprising me at the sudden emotion in his voice, "I told you I'd help you if you let me keep them."
"And I told you that our family would be eternally grateful for your assistance in their escape and would lavish you with whatever you want."
"You really expect me to believe that horseshit? You bastards tortured me for years. Grateful? Yeah, you'll be grateful for two weeks before you get sick of me and you'll toss me out. Cain and Abel are my insurance, and they'll be the ones waiting for me in a home that I make with my powers. I just want you assholes to leave me the fuck alone after I let you all out."
"You're stupid," Prometheus sneered, "And coming from me, that's saying something. Cain and Abel are not dogs. They cannot be tied down like Alexion. They will regain their powers, even Abel, and they will turn on you."
"I rather have them kill me than you."
"You can't possibly love them." Prometheus threw back. There was a short pause before Hannibal answered in a voice so cold that it chilled me right to the bones.
"I love Cain. And he loves Abel. I'm only keeping Abel to make Cain happy. And I'm keeping Cain to make me happy. You wouldn't understand because the only thing you love is yourself." There was another pause and the air rippled with Prometheus's power, indicating he was teleporting from the room, finished with his discussion with Hannibal. I cocked my head at that and started to pull back and continue with my escape when Cain slammed his shoulder hard into the dark, making me wince.
"Hannibal, you sick bastard! If you touch Abel again, I swear to God I'm going to break your skull open with my bare hands!" He shouted. I glared at him, amazed at his stupidity. He cared more about kicking and screaming than he did escaping, and that just pissed me off.
"Nice job, asshole!" I hissed. He didn't get a chance to say anything because the door opened and Hannibal stood in the doorway, staring down at Cain and I. Cain glared up at him and spat at him, but I just remained silent. I rather not piss off the guy who was holding us hostage.
"Stop yelling," Hannibal said at last, "Prometheus and Rara will be back and if they get pissed enough, they'll kill you." Cain sneered at him.
"You treacherous little bastard! I should have smashed your skull under my boot!" He snarled and Hannibal just sighed. He came into the closet, grabbing Cain by the back of the ropes holding him and threw Cain to the back of the closet. And remember, the cobblestone walls probably didn't feel like a fluffy pillow. There was an audible crack when Cain's skull struck the wall and I was surprised to hear a pained little squeak escape Cain's throat as he fell on his side, breathing hard. I could smell the fresh blood that was probably running down through his hair and along the back of his neck from the wound.
And for a split second, I saw agony flit through Hannibal's eyes before they hardened again to their usual stoic selves. Hannibal was always good at hiding how he felt, apparently. Hannibal tilted his head slowly, the hair falling from the left side of his face to reveal the scars there. He stooped down, reaching out to run his fingers through Cain's hair. Cain barely noticed. He looked like he was trying to blink himself back to consciousness after a moment of blacking out.
And a strange hot fissue cut through my chest as I watched Hannibal stroke Cain's hair, brushing it out of his face so as to get a better look. I narrowed my eyes and felt a growl start in the back of my throat. Hannibal paused his petting to glance in my direction, then across the floor back to Cain again.
"I never pegged you for the jealous type." He commented quietly. I curled my lip.
"I'm not jealous, asshole. Get your paws off my brother."
"That's jealousy."
"You have to have a heart to have jealousy."
"You have a heart," Hannibal replied calmly, getting to his feet and pausing to press his hand against his cheek, as if he could transfer the feeling of Cain's hair from his palm to his face, "And that's why you'll never be as perfect as Cain." I glared at him intensely, feeling another surge of anger rush up my chest.
"What were you talking about with Prometheus earlier? What memories was he talking about?" I demanded. Hannibal stared at me blankly, then reached into his pocket and took out a pair of black gloves, placing them on his hands.
"With a heart," He said, ignoring my questions, "You can feel jealousy, rage, love, hate, sorrow, happiness, agony, and loneliness. But without a heart, you don't see things in shades of gray, just black and white. That makes things so much easier. And you're white, like the light that God created for you. Cain is black, like the darkness that blankets the night in truth. You're white, like a lie. Cain is black, like truth. And no matter how pretty and bright light is, it's never as alluring as darkness. And I want truth. I want darkness. I want Cain. But to have him, I have to have you."
"We're not an outfit at Macy's, asshole," I spat in disgust, "And you're sure as fuck not touching me again. Come near me, and I'll rip your tongue out and strangle you with it." Hannibal's eyes glowed and one second he was next to Cain and the next in front of me, grabbing me by the throat and pinning me to the wall. I gasped in pain at the pressure he applied to my windpipe, nearly crushing it under his palm. His eyes flashed an eerie shade of red, then returned to normal, narrowing on me dangerously. And for a second, I swore he'd kill me until Cain spoke in a choked voice.
"Don't hurt him," Cain managed, struggling to get to his knees, his hair falling haphazardly over his face, "Let go of him, Hannibal." I locked eyes with Hannibal, waiting for him just to kill me, but a second later, he eased his grip on my throat and I hit the floor, breathing hard to fill my lungs again. Hannibal stepped back, looking down at me with glinting eyes.
"You should learn your place," He told me darkly, "Beneath me. The only thing that stands between your death and me is Cain. You should be kissing his feet." With that, Hannibal left the closet and slammed the door shut behind him. I coughed, sucking in deep gulps of air as I got to my knees and just sat with them on either side of me. Cain scooted over to me so he was sitting in front of me in the same position, our knees touching as he studied me, concerned.
"Are you all right?" He asked. I glared at him past my hair.
"Like you give a shit." I responded tightly. Cain's eyes flickered angrily.
"Don't get mad at me," He protested, "I just saved you! Again!"
"You're gonna have to work a lot harder than that. Because right now, I'd sooner forgive Hannibal than I would you." I seethed past clenched teeth. Cain looked like I'd slapped him before his expression twisted in rage. He brought his head forward and slammed it into mine, causing us both to gasp in pain and slump against the wall beside us.
"You stupid bastard!" I snarled and lunged at him, slamming him into the floor. It was extremely hard to move with our hands bound behind our backs, so it was more like squirming and trying to knee each other and whack each other in the heads.
"Get off me," Cain snarled, squirming to get away from me and using his legs to try and pry me off him, only to cause him to bark in pain at his busted knee caps, "Son of a whore!" I spat at him, finally pushing myself back onto my knees. Cain laid there, breathing hard in pain. A small pang hit me in the chest, but I swallowed against it.
"I don't have time to argue with you," I said at last, voice icy, "I have to get out of here and I have to tell Malachi. Hannibal's going to release the Titans with Prometheus and Rara. And while Hannibal's probably gonna give you the presidential suite at the Hilton Inn, he's tossing me into a standard and I rather not live my life like that." Cain curled his lip at me, sitting up slowly and grimacing in pain at his legs.
"And how do you expect to do that? We can't even get out of this closet, and even if we did, we're still bound by god restraints. We can't just do the worm the whole way to Inferi." He added bitterly. I scowled, turning around to the door again and feeling around with my foot for the loose plank, but the more I felt for it, the more I couldn't find it.
And I realized Hannibal had already known. He fixed it on purpose.
I gave an angry shout and kicked at the door a few times, breathing hard.
"Nooo," I shouted at last, pushing my feet against the door, "We have to get out! Malachi--"
"Fuck him," Cain snapped, sending a lash of fury whipping through me, "He, nor the others, matter. Hannibal's probably gonna split them up between the Titans and they'll be enslaved. Because that's how the Titans work." I fumed and whirled around to face him again.
"Shut your fucking mouth! Malachi, even the others, are my brothers! At least they haven't tried to kill me or hurt me like you have! Jesus Christ, even Theo stood up for me! Theo! He even gives a shit about me more than you do! And I'm not about to let them be punished when they don't deserve it!" I barked at him. Cain's face reddened.
"Are you fucking kidding me?! I've been there for you more than they have! I was there for you since the beginning! I fucking shared a womb with you, you ungrateful cunt! I loved you more than they did! Way more than they did! I loved you more than Adam and Eve and Arden and--"
"Who?!" I demanded incredulously. Cain glowered.
"You fucking whore! You don't even remember!" He accused angrily. I opened my mouth to respond when I remembered what Hannibal and Prometheus had discussed. The memories being repressed...
"Cain," I managed at last, making him frown at me, "I'm being serious... Who's Arden?" Cain glared at me.
"If you can't remember, I'm not telling you."
"Cain, seriously," I protested angrily, "Weren't you listening? Prometheus was repressing my memories. He was hiding something from me. Something he didn't want me to know. Why didn't he want me to know? Why don't you want me to know? What happened? Why do you hate me? Why do you keep killing me?" Cain stiffened.
"I don't hate you." He answered. My chest drew tight in on itself and for a moment, I wanted to just cry again because hearing him actually say that in total sincerity was like a huge weight off my shoulders, but we weren't finished yet.
"Cain, please," I pleaded, making him clench his teeth, "Please tell me what they took from me. I don't remember. I don't remember anything. I don't know what I did to make you angry. Who's Arden? I don't remember anyone named Arden." Cain narrowed his eyes at me for the longest time. He didn't say anything. I didn't expect him to, honestly. Cain was slowly becoming predictable again. He would close in on himself when it came to communication in our relationship, as brothers, as friends, and as lovers. It was almost like he was afraid of divulging his feelings, like Jahlia said.
And I knew we were both men. Discussing our deepest, most inner thoughts burned. We didn't want people to know how to thwart us. We were defensive by nature. Adam had become like that after they were tossed from the garden.
That was why man was so wary and so afraid of accepting, so afraid of feeling.
Because all it took was one person to completely destroy us.
I gave up and just slumped against the cobblestone wall, dropping my eyes to the floor. I didn't have time for this anyway, I reminded myself. I had to get out of here. I had to find Malachi and the others and tell them to get to Hades. Only Hades would be able to protect them now. We had to capture Prometheus, we had to kill Hannibal and Rara. It was our best shot, but first we needed to get out.
One step at a time.
There had to be a way out of these ropes. Everything had a weakness. I squirmed my hands again them, but it was held tight. I had to find someway to slip out of them, not rip them, I decided, scooting closer to the wall, hoping to get some of the moisture from the damp stones onto my hand. I could feel the coolness of it, but it still wasn't enough.
"You kissed him." Cain said at last. I froze at the sound of agony in his voice and looked up, stunned to see his eyes glittering with tears. I had never seen Cain cry like that. He'd come close to it when he saved me from Hannibal, but not like this.
"What?" I asked, confused. Cain sniffed and gasped hard, as if it were causing him physical pain to recount a memory I knew nothing about.
"You kissed him," He yelled at me at last, making me stiffen as he panted, "You let him kiss you!"
"Cain--"
"We didn't have that many people come by. There were still too few, but on rare occasions, a family would stop by to restock supplies. This family was different. They had two daughters and a son named Arden. Adam told me to fix the wagon, so I did, and Eve told you to help the family load their supplies. I was fixing the wagon and the tarp fell in and I saw you kiss him and you didn't push him away or anything, you just kept kissing him! And the way your face lit up whenever he said something nice to you!"
"Wait, Cain--"
"How could you do that to me?! I loved you! I still love you! I didn't know what I was feeling! I had no idea what that pain was! And it got even worse when Arden came to you again and you still let him flirt with you! And when they left, you let him kiss you again! You even let his sisters kiss you! And the worst part is that you acted like there was nothing wrong with it! I didn't know what to do! I couldn't stand being around you anymore, and what made it worse was that being away from you hurt just as bad! And-And then this snake...!"
"Snake?"
"The snake that tricked Eve into eating from the tree! In the garden! He told me that I had to punish you, that it was the only way to make the pain go away and to make you stop hurting me! He said you would learn your lesson, and you did! When I found you again, you were hurt and I didn't know why! I did everything I could to make you happy again and you finally came back to me! You worshipped me again and I had almost forgotten how that felt! Do you have any idea how horrible it was to live in the mortal world, unable to die, unable to age, unable to find companionship?! I had to kill nearly a hundred people, just so I could open a new entrance to the underworld, so I could come here and find you!" Cain was breathing hard now and I didn't know what to say or do anymore, just watch him as the tears finally spilled down his face, making me suck my breath in sharply, stung by the pain he felt.
"I killed a hundred people, just so I could find you again! But what the fuck did I find when I got back?! You had slept with him!" He spat.
"Who--"
"Your right-hand man," Cain snarled viciously, "Kith! You slept with him, you fucking whore! You fell in love with him! He wasn't there for you like I was! He didn't love you as much as I did! And the way he looked at you, even when we were together again! You let him follow you around like a lost puppy! And you knew he still loved you! I didn't know what was worse, watching you still cling to him, or watching you torment him! That's why I killed you the second time, you ungrateful little bastard! You couldn't wait for me?! You couldn't fucking learn?! And then I went back to the palace and did you know that Kith actually let me kill him?! The stupid bastard fell on his knees and bared his throat to me when I decapitated him! He said he didn't want to live anymore because he couldn't have you and he rather die at the hands of the person who truly loved you?! Are you fucking kidding me?! Trying to guilt trip me?! And then, you came back, again! I thought you learned, but no! I had to learn from Theo that you were fucking a bunch of whores in his city! You forgot me again! You left me again! You cheated on me again! So I thought I needed to be harsher, so I ripped your body apart, even though the entire time I felt like ripping myself up with you! Even after you were deformed and abused, you still didn't get it!"
"Get what?!" I shouted angrily, horrified at his description and the fact that I actually felt guilty over it.
"That I loved you," Cain wailed, a sharp pain piercing my heart as he sobbed, "I love you more than anything! I love you more than Adam and Eve and Hades and Malachi and anyone else! I did everything for you! I bought you everything and tried to teach you everything I had learned and tried to tell you about everything, but you didn't want me! Why don't you want me?! How could you forget me so easily?! Why did you let Arden kiss you?! Why did you let Kith love you?! Why did you sleep with other people?! Why won't you learn that I love you more than anyone?! Nobody can love you more than I can, nobody, nobody, nobody! And the worst part is that I had to hear from other people how my brother was sleeping around with stupid whores, instead of me! I had to listen to people talk and whisper about how they fucked the one person I loved most! I was supposed to be the only one that saw you like that! I was supposed to be the only one who knew you!" Cain slumped onto his knees again, but he was curled up with his forehead touching the floor, his shoulders trembling.
I didn't know what to do or say. Pain exploded in my chest and I could feel a lump rising in my throat, choking off my air. I fought tooth and nail against the urge to cry, but my vision still blurred and I still felt hot trails run down my cheeks as Cain screamed in pain.
"Why wasn't I enough?! I protected you and loved you more than anyone else in the fucking world! I kept you in my arms when we slept together in our tent! A tent I made for you from my first kill! I learned every place on your body to touch to make you happy! All the things I hunted and gathered was for you! And you still let that dirty bastard kiss you! And it hurt so much and I don't know what to do! And now everything's messed up! I thought for a second that everything was going to be okay, that you would have learned, that things would be the way they used to when we were together, but then I woke up and you...! You were going to kill me! You were going to kill me with the dagger that I used to protect you with! And I didn't even know why!"
"Because you were going to kill me." I stammered. Cain looked up at me in tear-streaked confusion.
"What the fuck are you talking about?!"
"You-You said it," I managed, "That thing that you always said. Each time before you killed me, you would pretend everything was okay and smooth sailing and then you'd take me to bed and have sex with me and tell me I was beautiful and when I'd wake up in the morning, you'd kill me!"
"I didn't even notice," Cain shouted angrily, "Because I was telling the truth!"
"You idiot, we look the same!"
"No, we don't," Cain screamed, making me wince as he trembled, breathing hard, "We don't! We may look the same to everyone else, but you're different! Your eyes glow! Your skin glows! You glow! Your hair is longer and you're, like, fucking two inches taller than me! Your skin is warmer and tanner! Your eyes are bluer! And you have a dimple in your right cheek when you smile! You have a beauty mark on the inside of your left thigh and another one two inches further in! And your eyebrow does this thing where it goes up whenever you're interested in something! We're not the same! We're completely different, which is why I love you so much! Hannibal's right, we are black and white! But you're the one who's beautiful and smart and forgiving and caring and cool and fun and everything else I can't even find a word in the English language for! We're not the same! Every time I said you were beautiful, I actually meant it!"
"Then why did you kill me?! Because a fucking snake told you it was a good idea?! You should've known after Eve told you to stay away from the snakes!"
"Because what he said made sense and he was the only one who understood why I was in so much pain! I didn't even know what it was at the time! It took me two decades to find out that it was jealousy and envy entangled in a heart that felt like it was shattering to pieces!"
"How was I supposed to know?! I didn't know what jealousy was, or cheating!"
"And I didn't know what it was either, so I went with the first thing that made sense!"
"A talking snake makes sense?!"
"We're the spawn of Hades and Eve, you fucking retard! Nothing in our lives makes sense!"
We were both breathing hard at the end of our argument. Both of us were too tired to continue. What else was there to really say? It sounded like we got most of it off our chests. And the weird part was that... I actually felt better.
Well, no, that was kind of a lie. It hurt even worse to know that Cain had been scared and confused and in pain and he didn't know why, and it had been the fault of lack of knowledge on our part. That confusion, that pain, that sheltered life. It had all led to the mistakes we made, one after another. It was an ever ending war of us throwing crap at each other back and forth until we finally snapped from it all.
But what felt good was that I finally knew. I finally understood why all of this happened. It was like pulling the veil down to finally see what was underneath, the truth that hid in the darkness.
"We really need to contact Doctor Phil." I said at last, sniffing. Cain actually laughed at that, giving his head a shake to get the tears off his face.
"Yeah, that's gonna go over well."
"It'd give 'em a good laugh." I pointed out. Cain just smiled at that and after a moment, it melted off his face. We both just sat back on our knees, catching our breathes and ceasing the crying. I breathed in a deep breath of air, looking around the closet.
"We need to get out of here," I said at last, "We can't stay here." Cain frowned, scanning the small closet before looking back at me.
"This place is completely sealed off, though. And I have no doubt that Hannibal's out there making sure we can't get out and nobody can get in. We're..." His voice trailed and a light flickered in his eyes that meant he was thinking about something, and hopefully it was about our escape. I watched him twitch thoughtfully for a second before he nodded, more to himself than me.
"Get against the wall, Abel." He commanded. I scowled in confusion, but obeyed, scooting across the floor until my back was against the wall. I watched him scoot over, with great effort and leaving a blood trail behind him from his knees. I grimaced.
"It's a good thing immortal, otherwise, you would've died of blood loss." I muttered, then watched even more confused as he scooted over until he was straddling my lap, breathing from the effort of moving, a bitter smirk on his face.
"Well, the blood loss is kind of making me dizzy. Right now, there's two of you and the closet's a lot darker than it was earlier." He commented. I frowned, watching him scoot up until our chests were touching.
"Cain, what're we doing?" I asked. Cain leaned down and captured my lips as a response. My protest was muffled against his lips as they worked against mine, hungrily. My lips tingled and my mouth ached to kiss him back. I could feel my body warming up, reacting to his attention. I finally pulled back, breathing hard.
"Cain, this really isn't the time--"
"Just follow my lead," Cain ordered in a low voice, "Make as much noise as you can. And I know you can. I have an idea. You're just gonna have to trust me." I hesitated at that. Even though we'd just spilled out all our feelings into a mess in the closet didn't mean I trusted him. It was a difficult thing to do after years of not trusting him. I swallowed hard at that, studying Cain's face as he stared down at me intensely. I was afraid to trust him again, but something in me was urging me to try just one more time. So I just gave him a nod and Cain smiled in relief before he captured my lips again, kissing me deeply now.
A moan erupted from my throat and I squirmed underneath of him, jerking at the restraints to try and touch him, but I couldn't. I whimpered, pulling hard at them, but it was no use. Cain kept kissing me, then trailed his lips down my throat, making me arch my back. He nipped at my skin and moved further down until he came to my nipple through my leather uniform. He pressed his teeth into it and I hissed, writhing and moaning. My body hardened and throbbed for him and I couldn't stop another whimper of frustration at being unable to touch him back.
And then I heard it.
The sound of boots thumping on the floor. I started to turn my head curiously, but Cain bit down on my nipple and I cried out, tilting my head back against the wall, breathing hard. He rolled his tongue across it, pinching with his teeth. I squirmed, trying to get him off when the door to the closet came open and Hannibal ended up standing there in the doorway. Heat flooded my face as I jerked my head up to stare at him. Cain sat back, casting Hannibal a dry stare.
"Do you mind?" He asked dryly. Hannibal was silent for a few moments, then shook his head. Cain scowled at him for a moment, then a wicked smirk played across his face. He shrugged and turned back to me, moving back to tease my other nipple. I gasped, squirming underneath of him.
"Cain." I managed. His eyes flashed at me for a split moment, a warning glare that told me to just play along. I gulped. I had no idea what he was planning and it was making me nervous as fuck. I didn't want to do this, despite the fact that my body was begging for it. I especially didn't want to do it in front of Hannibal, who watched Cain with this intense stare. All I could do was whimper and squirm, jerking at the restraints as Cain toyed with my nipple. Cain made a sound of frustration and finally sat back, looking up at Hannibal, who had stood there and watched for a good two minutes.
"Since you're not going away, could you at least...?" He gave his hips a wiggle. I stared at Cain in disbelief. What the hell was he doing? Hannibal was definitely dying, just by standing there. I could see the way his muscles had pulled taut, and even with his coat on, I could tell he was sporting on hard-on that had to hurt. 'Course, I didn't feel sorry for the bastard.
"You're not getting away." Hannibal said at last, but I swore I heard a waver in his voice. Cain pouted.
"I wasn't trying to. I'm just really fucking horny, and if you're going to keep us, well, we might as well do something."
"But you love Abel."
"And I have Abel."
"Then why are you asking me?"
"Because we give up."
"No, you don't."
"Yes, we do."
"Why?"
"Dude," Cain drawled, then kneed me gently between the legs, making me gasp, "I have what I want. I really don't give a shit how we end up together, as long as we're together and right now, I'm about to explode and I need to put my cock in him. You don't even need to untie us." Hannibal was sweating now. I could tell he wanted to leave and do something else, but I could also see that he was itching to touch Cain, and probably to see Cain fuck me, which made my skin crawl in disgust.
Finally, Hannibal seemed to give up the fight as he dropped his jacket at the door, revealing his leather pants and sleeveless black turtleneck that showed off all the horrendous scars on his arms. He came up behind Cain and dipped a hand down between his legs, timidly. It was weird to see Hannibal behave almost shyly with Cain when he'd been so barbaric with me.
I just grinded my teeth together as Hannibal dipped his head in to kiss Cain's throat. Cain moaned, arching his back and biting his lip seductively, turning his head to nuzzle Hannibal's hair. Hannibal shivered at that, biting his own lip in hesitancy before he returned to suckling on Cain's throat. I still wasn't sure what Cain's plan was until Cain's eyes flickered and locked on me. He gave me a stern stare and mouthed the words "now".
He brought his head back into Hannibal's nose and Hannibal hissed, falling back against the floor to grasp at his bloody nose. Cain whirled around so fast that he was a blur as he straddled Hannibal's waist, revealing his hands to me. Cain's hands were covered in blood from digging his own fingernails into his skin. His hands were slippery enough so that they pulled right out of the rope, causing it to drop to the floor. But there was still the rope that was wrapped around his torso that he was struggling to untie.
Meanwhile, Cain bashed his head into Hannibal's again, causing Hannibal's head to slam into the wall. Hannibal gasped and his eyes flickered as he struggled to stay conscious. He reached up a hand and planted it in Cain's hair, wrenching his head back. Cain cursed as Hannibal breathed hard, blood running down his face as he gave Cain a deadly glare.
My heart pounded in my chest as I started to do the same thing Cain had done. I sank my fingers into my hands, gritting my teeth against the stinging pain of it, drawing blood that poured over my fingers. I squirmed them quickly, trying to slip free of the ropes around my hands. By the time the rope fell, Hannibal had throw Cain onto the floor and was straddling him, still holding Cain by the hair.
"Goddamn whore!" Hannibal barked at him and slammed his skull into the floor. Cain choked, blood bubbling past his lips and pouring down his mouth. I flinched.
"Hannibal, stop!" I shouted, struggling to find the knot at my back around my torso to untie the last of the ropes. Hannibal ignored me and slammed Cain's head into the floor again. Cain didn't move anymore, just laid there, unconscious. For a second, I was worried until I remembered what Cain had told me. Anyone who killed him would die. Which meant Hannibal hadn't killed him considering he was still alive as he leaned over Cain, breathing hard.
I finally found the knot at my back and twisted at it hard, gritting my teeth. I felt the ropes around me slip and fall to the floor. I moved my hands forward, quickly untying the knots at my ankles. I got up on trembling legs. Hannibal hadn't even noticed because he was panicking about Cain, patting at his cheek.
"Cain?! Cain, wake up!" Hannibal ordered, the fear in his voice real. But it didn't stop me from grabbing Hannibal by the head and throwing him into the wall so hard that I heard a crack. I didn't stop, though. I grabbed him by the shoulders and threw him out of the closet so he went skidding across a stone floor and slamming into a wall across a lobby.
I watched to see if he'd move, but he didn't. He just laid there, and I almost left him there until I remembered that Cain had done the same thing and he'd come back. I went after Hannibal, stalking across the lobby, but I had only gotten a few feet closer and Hannibal vanished with a sharp pop. I cursed, then went back to the closet, looking in to see Cain slowly sitting up, breathing hard. I came in and dropped to my knees beside him, undoing the ropes around him.
"I feel like I was just hit by a truck." Cain groaned, gasping as the ropes fell from him. As soon as they did, his wounds began to heal and I touched his shoulder, sending a flow of power to speed up the recovery.
"Ditto," I agreed, "But we don't have time to hang out here. We have to get to everyone else."
"Can't we just go somewhere and sleep?"
"Cain!"
"Fine, fine. Let's go save the rest of our idiot brothers."