Page 82 of Judge of Saints and Sinners

They had already found the source of my real pain, and Justine stepping away from me had been the most painful thing that I’d had to experience as of yet. They couldn't do anything else to me at this point.

I was a shell of myself, and deep inside, my monster lurked, ready to be let out.

Soon, I whispered to him. Soon.

26

Justine

Someone was stroking my hair. Or maybe I was still out of it. I cracked my eyes open, my eyelashes painfully glued together from the nearly constant stream of tears that had been slipping out as I laid here.

I swatted at the hand. I was sure it was my mom, or whatever strange person she had become. But the hand immediately returned, nonplussed by my attempts to make them leave.

“Shh, it’s okay,” the voice said. It was soft, soothing, and definitely not my mother.

I jerked away, curling in on myself as I nearly rammed my head into the base of the sink in my attempt to see who was there.

“You,” I said, and I knew my voice was accusatory. But I didn’t care anymore. The only person in the building I could trust now was the one I had hurt the worst. My chest ached as I stared at the girl kneeling on the floor beside me.

She looked different.. Maybe it was this light. But I could see her now. She was around my age, maybe a year or two younger. Her skin was flawless, a lovely olive tone, with straight, serious dark brows and curling dark hair that brushed her shoulders. Eyes that were so dark they were nearly black eyed me warily.

She was in another dress, this one green with soft blue patterns woven into it. Against my stiff tee and unflattering leggings, she looked like she’d just walked out of a fancy dinner somewhere. Glancing to the side, I saw a pair of pointed black heels at the edge of the door. Had she really been wearing those? I shook my head.

“I’m sorry,” she said softly. “Did I scare you?”

I ignored her question, serving her one of my own instead. “What are you doing here?”

“I live here,” she said easily, laying her hands across her lap and continuing to watch me with those huge, doe-like eyes.

I held up my hand, gesturing to the room just outside of the bathroom. “You live here, here?”

She nodded.

Fuck, I had a roommate.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” I grunted, pushing myself to my feet, ignoring the stiff way that my body reacted from lying on the floor. “There’s no way.”

“You took to the ideas of demons and monsters quite easily,” she answered, watching me fumble my way out of the bathroom and into the bedroom once more. “I’m surprised finding you have a roommate is so unbelievable.”

I stared at her, my jaw hanging. “It’s been a long freaking day. Week. Whatever.”

She nodded. “I get that. I’m Faye. Faye Morelli.”

“I don’t give a damn about your”

“And you’re Justine.”

I glared at her, crossing my arms across my chest. “Now you want to chat? You didn't do much when I was locked up in that cell.”

“I know. I’m sorry about that. I did warn you about the smoothies though.”

“You want to argue about smoothies right now, when they are torturing my…Nephesh.” I began to place the room, my anxiety making my skin crawl as I turned every few feet. This room, this strange girl with her curious eyes… It was all making me so nervous I could barely handle it. If I didn’t get out of here soon, I was going to explode.

“You love him very much, don’t you?”

I froze, my bare feet cold against the flat gray carpet under them. A hand pressed against my shoulders, just the barest touch, but my head spun with it, just for a second. Then there it was. Completely stillness.

I turned to her, the noise in my head far more manageable.