“Y-yes.” Shadow made a deep inhale, all too close to Gray.
Shadow was smelling him. Would he disobey when allowed too much leeway? Gray still recalled the ease with which Shadow had picked him up and thrown him onto the bed. As if he were a fuck puppet for this monster’s satisfaction.
“Just remember, this will be a test. I’m taking you with me because I’m not yet used to having only one arm.”
Shadow cocked his head. “And… You would really like to have two?”
It was as if a blow of cold air had frozen Gray’s chest, but deep inside burned an anger so violent Gray was just a step away from landing a punch. “What do you think?”
Shadow smiled widely, and the stench he exuded from up close could wake a dead man. “I think you’re perfect. But having only one is giving you difficulty?” He spoke slowly, as if he for once weighed every word.
Here Gray was, mocked by the one thing that could help him win back the respect of his club. The strain on his heart was so great he found it hard to breathe, and the stump suddenly exploded with a dull ache Gray couldn’t ignore. “Maybe it wasn’t such a good idea after all.” He shook his head.
“No, no, please!” Shadow grabbed Gray’s hand, and only a split second later, Gray realized he was being touched by the freaky extra arm usually kept within Shadow’s body.
He was about to shove it off in anger, but the dark substance it was made of softened, and crawled up Gray’s hand like an army of ants melted into one. It marched up all too quickly for him to react, and left a pattern of warmth all over his shoulders. In a surreal moment, it broke off Shadow’s body and crawled under Gray’s clothes, moving across his torso like a parasite about to bite in.
Gray wanted to scream, but no voice came out of his mouth, when, to his horror, the black goo pulled at the muscles in his chest and shoulder, dragging on his stump like a bag of fighting cats. He stumbled to the wall, shocked by the burning heat searing through his bones.
And then he saw it. The sleeve of his jacket expanded, and once he spotted the growing presence where his clothes have been empty, he couldn’t focus on anything else.
His heart thudded in alarm, but he was transfixed by the beauty of tar-black fingers emerging from the sleeve and forming a perfect hand with long digits and a slim wrist. He moved the digits in a wave-like motion, and the shadowy image of his own hand did exactly what he’d intended.
“Would this help?” Shadow whispered, inching closer.
Gray just stared, unable to come up with a sensible answer. The shape of the hand was identical the one he’d lost, up to the slightly crooked pinky. He’d broken it fighting with Mike over who would ride in the bitch seat of the first bike they’d pooled money for.
And now it was back. It was back.
When Gray looked up at Shadow, it was as if they were only meeting for the first time. From behind tangled tresses, Shadow’s jewel-like eyes watched him intently, begging for approval. How the fuck was something like this even possible?
At the back of his mind was fear that this was some kind of trap, a setup for vengeance in the future, but he could see only sincerity in the dirty yet handsome face.
“I... can feel it. How did you do this?” he choked out.
“It’s yours. I’m your shadow. As long as I’m around, you can have it whenever you want.” Shadow shifted from side to side, and even his putrid smell didn’t matter anymore. He smiled. “Do you want another one?”
The anger at Shadow using the hand to tie Gray to him only lasted a split second, because the following question made all Gray’s muscles relax. He laughed.
He shouldn’t have found the naive question adorable, but he did.
“Very funny,” he said, trying to get serious again, because he hadn’t come here to joke around, but the smile refused to leave his face as he experimented by pulling the black fingers across his mouth.
They were slightly warmer than his body usually was, and smooth to the touch, but if he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he would have thought he’d dreamt up the amputation. It was bizarre. And yet so exhilarating he was ready to take on an army by himself.
Shadow bit his lip. “What else would you like me to do?”
Gray met Shadow’s gaze, trying to rein in his smile, but it was a lost cause. Shadow knew of his weakness anyway, so there was no point pretending that the shadow hand was nothing to him.
It changed everything.
Gray took a few deep breaths to clear his head before straightening his back. Celebration could wait.