Sentinel [Covenant #5] by Jennifer L. Armentrout Page B

talking, but I wasn’t hearing him or my uncle shouting at the immobile Guards. My brain clicked off—never a good thing for me and definitely not a good thing for Seth. I shot forward, sidestepping Aiden who tried to get between us as I drew my Glock. “Make one move I don’t like, and I’ll put a bullet right between your eyes.” My hand didn’t shake. Whatever fear lived inside me was vanquished by the growing, nearly out-of-control rage. “I know it won’t kill you, but I sure as hell know it will hurt.”Emotion flashed in Seth’s eyes. It wasn’t surprise. More like a lick of pain or regret, but then again, I was probably giving the douchebag more credit than he deserved. He slowly lifted his hands. “Release them from their compulsion,” I ordered, my finger steady on the trigger. “Now.” His amber gaze shifted to where Luke stood motionless with the Guards. He didn’t say anything, but I felt the ripple of power brush over my skin like a smooth caress. “What the…?” Luke stumbled back a step, placing his hands on the sides of his head. He looked up, saw who was standing there, and sucked in a breath. “Holy shit.” Seth’s stare swung back to meet mine. The tension in the air increased as the others came out of their compulsion and, for the first time in their lives, saw two Apollyons together. “We need to talk,” he said again. My head cocked to the side. I hadn’t forgotten the musical lilt of his voice, but hearing it in person was nothing like the voice that came through our whacked-out connection. The cord hummed along, but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Aiden moving around to Seth’s back, leveling his own gun on the First. I knew that, if Seth took one step toward me, Aiden would pull the trigger. And I also knew Seth could disarm us both before either of us blinked. “There’s nothing you could possibly say that I want to hear.” I took a breath, forcing myself not to pull the trigger for the fun of seeing him go splat. “And if you think you’re going to be able to convince me to side with you after what Ares did, you can go screw yourself.” “That’s not why I’m here.” “Bullshit.” His head tilted to the side, a near mirror image of what I had done. Again, his stunning amber gaze traveled over my face. He shook his head, and then he dropped onto his knees and closed his eyes. Okay. Sure wasn’t expecting that. I opened my mouth, but there were no words. Glancing at Aiden, I saw he looked as dumbfounded as I felt. A keen wariness kept me from lowering my gun. Seth could be a tricky little devil, but this? I didn’t know. Seth’s arms fell to his sides. He didn’t speak out loud. You’re right. This won’t kill me, but I deserve it. So do it. So stunned by what he said, I spoke out loud. “What?” Do it. A breath shuddered from his body. If it wipes out the memory of what Ares did to you, then do it. Do it! Taken aback, I stared down at him. You felt everything, right? Everything that he did to me? Seth’s eyes fluttered open, and I didn’t want to believe what I saw in them. Regret was too late for both of us. “Everything,” he said out loud, voice hoarse. “What’s he talking about?” Aiden demanded. I shook my head as my stomach plummeted. You know how I felt? What I wanted? He squeezed his eyes shut. Yes. And you want me to take those memories from you? You really think a bullet will do that? Fuck that. I lowered the gun, hand shaking. Violent anger rushed to the surface. I can’t get rid of those memories, so neither can you. “Fuck you.” On guard, Aiden shifted behind Seth. “Come on, Alex, talk to me. What’s going on?” “I never meant for any of this to happen,” Seth said before I could answer. His eyes were open again, and there was no denying the pain in them. And there were only two things that waited behind that kind of sharp-edged hurt: anger and the truth. “I would never be okay with what happened. I didn’t know he