Hallows: Black Death

Predators Eating Predators

3 Doors Down- Kryptonite

Carson:

I've never seen that kind of hostility in her eyes before. Her eyes were black for the first time since she awakened. Completely black. The coldness in her turned her skin pale, like snow. She looked like an actual demon. The way Dante did when he appeared at the top of that staircase. She scared the s**t out of all of us.

It was then that I knew that all of this is no longer speculation. She's going to need more than what Luc and I have to offer. The reaper and the snake are as of now, working together. She really wanted to go down to New City and rip both Luis and Mariah apart. She was focused and driven. She would have done it if Dante hadn't stopped her. That coldness inside of her scared the hell out of me in that parking lot. There's no way either of us would have denied her this.

The moment her lips met his, the coldness around her drained into him. Numbing the pain, giving him life. I'd only read about that in the journals. The way the crows and the reapers work. It's the same for the snakes and the devils. On bite can resurrect a devil and a kiss can bring the snake back to life.

This works out for us. Mariah Thompson and Luis Jimenez. Two birds one stone. Or in this case. A reaper. She's not going to stop until those responsible pay for what was done to Rigo tonight. They should have killed him. She would have mourned him but this. This is vengeance and nothing does it better than a reaper. I have to admit that I'm getting a little excited about what's to come now.

"Oh, my god," Stacy sighs taking a seat next to me. "The crows just disappeared into him,"

"I can't believe I just helped save that f*****g piece of s**t's life," Lucien drops down on the couch to my left.

"B.B. needed you to," I remind him.

"I'm mad at her too, right now," he crosses his arms over his chest like an eight-year-old who just got in trouble for playing with s**t he shouldn't have been. "The f*****g audacity. yOu AiN't NeVeR bEeN kIsSeD bY a MaN BeFoRe," he mocks. "f**k that guy,"

"Dude," Stacy bursts into a fit of giggles. I laugh not able to help it.

"Relax, she's fine. She's just asleep," I give his shoulder a squeeze. He brushes me off.

"I know she's fine. She's always fine. Why did we do that? Why did we f*****g save his ass? One less motherfucker to worry about, Car. We should have let his ass die," he stands up angrily and walks out the front door.

"You want to explain to me what the f**k just happened, Diablo?" Rigo asks, watching my brother walk out the front door.

I laugh at Lucien's rage. He's not the kind of person who rants like this. Sure he never shuts up but usually when he's upset he's silent and the silence can be unsettling. Jimenez is not wearing a shirt and his jeans are covered in blood. The wounds are completely healed. It's just the angry bruising he has to wait out. The time Victor and I brawled on the docks. A lot of people died on the beach. It was broad daylight. The clash of two hallows was too much. Neither of us knew how to control it then. I thought it was my fault. I had to live with that s**t for a whole year until James told us there were others. Until he told us what we could potentially do if we were not careful. We most definitely weren't.

"It's a long f*****g story, man," I take a seat behind B.B.'s desk and motion for him to sit down. Dante scoffs at me but doesn't say anything otherwise. He wants to see what I do. His eyes are watching the two of us intently. I'm not going to hurt him. Although every instinct in my body is crying out to kill him, I can't hurt her that way. She'd hate me. The very thought of her looking at me the way she did in her lab that night, I can't risk it. "What happened tonight?"

"Esta cabron," he sits down rubbing his chest where James and Dante dug out the bullets. He was shot three times. How is this motherfucker alive? "I don't know. I was talking to Luis and he told me what he did. I lost my s**t and I f****d him up pretty bad. He disappeared and then Oliver caught a glimpse of him by the docks. I went to check it out and he was there all right. Con la puta diabla. They were f*****g,"

"How'd you get shot?" I laugh. f*****g Mariah. I can't really say I'm surprised. Before B.B. Hunting meant needing to f**k right after.

"Wey," he shakes his head and starts laughing covering his face with both hands like he can't believe everything that happened today. We've all been there. More than once. "I f*****g pulled him off her. She started shouting in her f*****g chango tongue. I was taking Luis back with me. Perro stabbed me in the back. He took off running. Before I could chase after him, she called my name and I turned around. She shot me point blank. Then all these f*****g pajaros. They swarmed all around me and I don't know how I got to that school but all I could think about was La Bonita for some reason,"

"How old are you, Rigo?" I ask because before now, I thought he was older. Not even Delilah liked messing with this guy. We cut a deal with him because of his family. That and I'm sure she was f*****g around his crazy ass sister.

"Nineteen,"

"You're nineteen? I thought you were older,"

"I graduated school two years early. The public system is different than your prep bullshit," he scoffs.

"This was the first time you ever had a murder before?" I ask. He looks at me skeptically. "Not a murder-murder. A murder of crows,"

"f*****g guerros have a word for everything," he shakes his head. "Yeah, this is the first time a big ass flock of birds shows up,"

"Okay, man. I am going to tell you something and you can't tell anyone else. Ever. You're something called a hallow," just rip the bandaid off. He can handle it. After all, he's a "man".

"A hallow? What the f**k is that?"

"It's like a demon. I've got one, Stacy, Lucien, Marco, Dylan, Natalie, B.B, and Mariah. We've all got this curse. You're like Lucien. A crow. It's why the birds protected you. It's like-I don't know a power. I've got a devil,"

"Have you been snorting your own s**t again, Diablo?" he sneers.

Dante laughs. A low demonic mocking laugh. Jimenez looks back at him. He probably feels that ugly chill sliding over his skin as well. He's also shirtless. I don't mind my skin exposed around B.B. but her dad is a different story. I can't even take my hoodie off around the guy. He has this sickening cold aura around him.

"He's not joking, kid. You saw what just happened. What you did. What B.B. did. She saved your life. You owe her. For starters. Where are you from, kid?" he asks him.

"Stop calling me that," Jimenez rolls his eyes.

"Dude," I shake my head. "That's B.B.'s dad. I know you feel a certain energy around her, right?" he nods. "Well, he's a lot worse. Like a lot. Don't piss him off,"

"Smart," Dante points at me. He comes over and sits next to Jimenez. "Where are you from, Emmanuel Rodrigo Jimenez?"

"How the f**k do you know my whole name?" he asks.

"I know a lot of things about you. Like you're not really Chato Jimenez's oldest kid. The girl was until B.B. barbequed her nasty ass. Did he know that? That you're not his son?"

"No," he turns away, lips tight. Holy s**t. "I'd be dead if he did,"

"Yeah, when I met Chato he was a f*****g piece of s**t. I imagine it got a lot worse,"

"He's not s**t anymore," Jimenez shrugs. Dante laughs almost as if he's impressed with him.

"I know that too. You pushed that kitchen knife right through the middle of that f*****g ass hole's throat. Right on, little man. That's the crow in you," Dante reaches for his wrist and turns his arm over to reveal the crow perched on a stack of books on his right arm. He has a full torso piece. Christ, a lot of secrets are spilling out. "You've ignored your basic instincts for a long time, Manny. Feels good, doesn't it? That coolness in your body. You're not on fire anymore. You're always moving because you can't sit still. You can't quench those hot urges but you're good right now, yeah?"

"Yeah," he rubs his chest again but doesn't meet Dante's eyes. He's considering what we're saying.

"She's not going to care about what you did. She's not going to care about where you came from. s**t, if you want to know where you really came from, she'll help you find your real father. He might already be dead but she'll get you there. These kids all will. You're one of us. You're a hallow.

"You might not belong to our stone but we're all one and the same. Predators eating predators. You've just hit the top of the food chain, son. Even if your fake father's guys come after you. Even if all the cartels in the world come after you. They won't be able to lay a single finger on you. Bella wouldn't allow it. None of these little delinquents would. You need to re-evaluate what you want to do from now on,"

"My real dad, is what like a demon then?" he asks.

"No, it's a curse. I'm sure the others will explain it to you better. But it's passed on through our bloodlines. And you come from a strong crow bloodline. Lucien obviously being the original bloodline is your superior. It falls on him to teach you what you are. To help you get stronger,"

"He's not going to help me," Jimenez scoffs.

He's wrong obviously but he has good instincts. Lucien hates him. Always has. I don't know why or when it started but he hates Jimenez with a passion. It's why he live-streamed his little encounter with Thompson. To show him that he would no longer be dealing with Delilah anymore. He would be dealing with the two of us and we have a loose sense of humor.

"He has to. His Reaper demands it. When the Reaper gives an order, the rest follow. Even the devil himself," Dante looks at me.

"Are you his Reaper?" he asks him.

"No, I'm not anything. I'll be gone soon enough. She's his Reaper. His Reaper," Dante repeats sternly. His hand shoots out and wraps around Jimenez's throat in the same unexpecting manner that he did to B.B. "And he's going to share her with you. Out the kindness of his f*****g black little heart. So, you do your best to respect Lucien Daniels. You'd be dead right now it if wasn't for him. You do anything to hurt him or her, I'm going to f*****g come back here and personally drag your little cartel prince ass to hell with me,"

A fully grown black mamba makes us all jump back as it wrapped itself around Jimenez. Dante's eyes are pitch black as the reaper in him stares into Jimenez's eyes. I give him credit for remaining calm. Even his breathing is normal but I can see the fear dancing in his eyes. I see where B.B. gets it from now. The way she speaks. How she moves. Her self-control. This f*****g maniac really is her father and she's studied him enough to continue his legacy.

"f**k, that's a big ass snake," Stacy whimpers behind Dylan.

"I get that a lot," Dante releases Jimenez. The snake slithers back up the stairs and Dante walks away without saying another word.

"You okay?" I ask. The others had been holding their breaths and collectively release it at the same time.

"You can't do that, right?" he swallows hard. We all laugh.

"No, but B.B. can," I grin. "Come on. I'll get you a change of clothes and you can get some rest in my room,"

"Why are you helping me, Diablo? We hate each other," he shakes his head.

"Nah, man. I don't hate you. I didn't give a f**k about you. Ever. You were never s**t to me. But now, my girl needs you. She needs all of us and if that means I got to tolerate your spic ass. Then I will. We're a family. None of us have much of that anymore and by the looks of it, you never had much of it, to begin with. Get some rest.

"B.B. is going to wake up pissed as f**k and when she's mad, she likes to do business. The reaper demands blood as retribution for the blood you lost and the blood of her favorite crow's birds. She's going to want to talk to you and I suggest you listen. Even if your soul feels like it's being ripped out of you. You're going to want to say yes. Lucien is not going to give you a choice. He's been obsessed with her for a long time and if she wants something, he'll make sure she gets it,"