Page 183 of Blood & Betrayals

I don’t answer, applying more pressure and cracking his ribs. I could kill him with a single touch of my hand and bring him back to life with the other, but this is different. This I want tofeel. My ability makes it too quick. Any casting would make this too quick. Even now, it is too quick.

“So I ran.” I press harder with my foot, watching his eyes as the broken rib punctures his lungs, filling them with blood. He’s too weak to heal from this. “And he chased me.”

My next step shatters his rib cage, my foot crushing his heart. My eyes lock with his, the last of his life dimming.

“Show me what you can do, Torin.”

75

Summer

My phone pings in my pocket, and I pull it free. The fallen tree trunk I’m perched on has a thick canopy of leaves above, so I’m mostly sheltered from the rain.

Alice

I’m sorry.

I consider replying, but there is still that deep ache in my chest that I’m unable to push away. The only way I can think to ease it is to take more time to come to terms with my feelings and reflect on what she said.

The sky is inky black by the time I decide to make my way home, and though I’ve been out on my own all day, there has been no sense of being watched. Does it make me naïve to hope that the killer has just… gone? By the time I arrive home, my clothes are soaked through again, and I’m shivering from the cold.

Alice is pacing in the living room, and she’s practically worn a track into the rug. She spins toward me, her eyes widening. “You’re soaked.”

I nod and start toward my bedroom, desperate for a shower, desperate to be wrapped in warmth and comfort. Alice wraps her arms around me from behind and squeezes, trapping my arms at my sides.

I feel my body tense, and I hate the way it does. “Alice, I… I’m…” I swallow, feeling the emotion welling inside me again, but she just keeps holding me. She loosens her hold enough to allow me to turn and wrap my arms around her. I bury my face into her neck and hold my best friend.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper so softly that if not for her vampiric hearing, she’d never have heard.

“I’m sorry, too.” She exhales shakily. “I just… I hate it when you shut me out. I can’t handle it, Summer.”

I pull back, looking at her. “I’ll tell you everything, okay? Everything I know, and then we can decide what to tell Connor.” I had decided on my walk home that Alice deserved to know the whole truth. I trust her, and if she is this adamant about telling Connor, I should hear her out.

Alice nods, sliding her hand into mine, her face set into a serious expression. “All right. It’s always going to be us. Wifeys.”

I squeeze her hand. “Let me shower real quick, and we can talk.”

Alice reluctantly releases me, and I take a quick shower before pulling on pajamas. Alice is in the living room when I emerge from my room, and to my delight, she’s put the fire on. Even after the shower, the remnants of the cold still linger on my skin, but the room is warm and comfortable. It’s like walking into a blanket.

Alice pats the space next to her on the couch, and I sit down, pulling a blanket over my legs as much for comfort as warmth. Alice holds her hand out, and I place mine in hers.

“It’s you and me to the end, okay?” she says.

I nod, moving closer to her.

“I’m sorry I yelled at you.”

“It’s okay,” I say with a small smile.

Alice sighs. “I’ve never had a friend.”

I squeeze her hand. “Me either.” I sigh heavily. “Okay. I’ll tell you everything.”

Alice smiles, but I can see the tension in her shoulders.

“There’s really only one more thing,” I say. Alice squeezes my hand, waiting for me to continue. “I have this… friend.”

Alice tilts her head. I feel her carefully studying me.

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