Page 290 of Psycho Devils: Aran's Story 2

I immediately ducked my head because shards of glass the size of my fist were falling from the sky like daggers.

Pieces of glass piled around my bare feet.

The realm transformed into a crescendo of clattering noises.

I curled in on myself.

Xerxes moved until he was completely cocooning me with his body, and I huddled closer to him with appreciation.

He jerked like he’d been electrocuted, then swore as he ripped a glass shard from his shoulder.

I started to lean closer to him but stopped myself.

My stomach rolled.

Mind racing, my breath came out in shallow pants as the reality of our situation hammered through me.

I analyzed the situation and the pieces clicked together.

I realized what I had to.

For one last moment, I closed my eyes. Leaning forward I took advantage of Xerxes protecting me with his body.

“Do the righteous thing,” Jinx whispered in my head. “Don’t be a coward, you know what to do.”

I rocked back and forth.

“Don’t be a coward, Aran,” I whispered to myself. Don’t think. Just act.

I didn’t move.

Sometimes I hated my brain.

Xerxes jolted against me as another shard of glass buried into his skin.

We still had hours until the next morning.

I pressed numb fingers against my eyes and screamed silently. With situations like these, no wonder I was depressed.

I hunkered lower behind Xerxes.

Jinx’s voice was frantic in my mind. “You’re the bitch who ate her mother’s heart. You’re telling me under difficult circumstances, you can turn to cannibalism, yet you can’t do the right thing when it’s obvious? Embarrassing. You know what to do.”

Xerxes whimpered.

I did know.

I didn’t let myself think about it; I acted.

With numb fingers, I shoved the shifter off me.

I shoved away my protection.

Immediately, glass scoured my skin and sliced through my clothes. It burned. I bit down on my lower lip to swallow a shriek as stitches were sliced. Wounds reopened.

My eyes rolled back in my head.

I fell face forward.

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