Page 48 of High Noon

Chapter Eleven

Eve

Titusand I drew our stakes and I tossed my second one, the last one containing a vial of holy water, to Maru.

"What do you think those will do for you?” Terah taunted. “Shall we test them and see?" She blurred toward Titus, but he was ready. He'd been groomed to stake her. He lashed out, slashing and slicing, only cutting through air as she artfully dodged every attempt. Terah let out a throaty laugh. "You're more pathetic than I imagined. If you are the strength of the future, then it is weak, indeed."

Titus became more and more frustrated with every offensive maneuver she escaped. Maru and I moved to surround Terah, but she caught our movement. In a blink, I made myself invisible.

She grabbed Maru by the throat. He tried to fight her off and stake her, but she was too strong. She held him away from her body with one arm, shielding her heart from his weapon with her other hand. “Aw, is this your friend, Eve? Aren’t you going to save him? Come and try!” she giggled.

As Titus attacked her from behind, Terah threw Maru through the air. His back crashed against the trunk of a pine tree and dead needles rained down on all of us. I shook them off as she yelled my name.

"Come out, Eve! Stop being such a coward."

When I refused, she refocused her attention on Titus.

He took a defensive stance as she stalked toward him and bared her teeth, her eyes going dark with bloodlust. Titus cursed when he looked down at his hand. He'd been scratched, and the blood was flowing freely.

His suit had already healed him before she reached him, but his blood called to her, just the way Kael designed. She lunged for him. I could see it in her feral eyes... she was going to kill him.

Keeping my steps light like Maru taught me, I ran up behind her and plunged my stake into her back, right where her heart should be. She sucked in a deep breath and stumbled, her steps becoming slow and sloppy. Terah's gasping sounds filled the air. Maru gritted his teeth, holding his side as he pushed himself up on trembling legs, his eyes wide in astonishment.

Titus ran to my side. "Holy shit! You actually did it. You staked one of them, Eve."

My mouth gaped open stupidly as I watched her stumble and then fall, clutching the left side of her chest. Wheezing loudly, her breath whooshed in and out as she lay on her side. The purple and white striped dress she wore was now soaked in crimson.

Terah managed to roll halfway onto her back and her eyes found mine. The look in them was accusatory, confused, and angry…but mostly scared.

My fingers began to shake. I covered my mouth when she took her last breath and every muscle relaxed. Her eyes still pointed, unfocused, at me.

Maru moved in front of me, grabbing my upper arms. “You’re okay.”

I knew I was. I wasn’t dead. But I killed Terah. “She was in our time. This isn’t possible,” I rasped.

“That’s true, she was. She was still there when I jumped,” Maru confirmed.

“You saw her?” I croaked.

A confused look crossed Maru’s face. “I saw video footage of Terah at the gala, but I didn’t see her in person…”

“She can’t be dead,” I whispered.

Titus crouched down beside her and held his hand over her nose. “She’s not breathing.”

“If you take the stake out, she’ll heal. She’ll regenerate. I staked Enoch’s hand and it… knitted itself back together. Just… pull the stake out,” I suggested weakly.

Titus hesitated, but moved Terah forward so he could clutch the handle. The stake eased out of her back, but the wound didn’t heal. Blood poured from the hole, saturating the ground beneath her lifeless body.

Suddenly, Maru was shoved away and Enoch stood in front of me. A tear slid down my face. “Are you okay? What happened?”

I couldn’t tell him. Couldn’t look at him. I killed his sister.

“She attacked us,” Titus answered defensively, pointing to Terah’s body.

Enoch’s mouth fell open in shock and he dropped to his knees and crawled to her. “Terah?” he uttered in a pitch I’d never heard. He shook her lightly. Then harder. “Terah.” He sucked in a shuddering breath. “This isn’t possible.” He gathered her in his arms and put his ear to her mouth. “No.” Holding her to his chest, he sobbed. “No! No, no, no, no…”

Enoch rocked his sister and wailed until his cries reached Asa. “What—” When he saw Enoch and Terah, he inhaled sharply. “I didn’t think it was possible.”

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