Page 18 of Ronan

His gaze is heavy, and even though it takes every ounce of my self-control, I don’t avert my eyes. “They call us the monsters, but look at what they do.”

“You took over our entire world,” I say, enunciating each syllable with a slow, deliberate precision. “Apologies for my sympathy meter running a little low.”

“You agree with what they did?”

“Of course not,” I argue, “but that doesn’t make you innocent, and it certainly doesn’t put me on your side.”

“So, you side with them?” he snarls.

“I side withme… and for the last time, I’m not with them.” He stares at me for a long time, searching with those intelligent eyes that slice right through me. Up close, I realize they aren’t black, but a rich brown, swirling with deep emotion that contradicts his tough-guy exterior.

The spell is broken when his gaze suddenly drops lower. “What do you know about that mark on your arm?”

“What?” I jerk back, covering my biceps with my palm.Smooth move, Cameron.

“We’ve already determined you aren’t dumb, so don’t play that card.”

Unsure if that was a compliment or insult, I narrow my eyes at him. My cheeks push out as I heave a loud sigh, deciding there’s no point in lying. “It came up after I arrived here. I’ve kept it covered.”

“And you don’t know what it is?” I shake my head, and my gnawing worry about the strange light on my arm must show on my face, because his eyes soften. “Were you ever taught the tale of the mate’s mark?”

“The do-what-now?” I ask in a rushed breath, and Blue chuckles from the corner. I glance over at him, having almost forgotten he was in the room.

Ronan’s patience is more collected now, and he turns to the other monster. “Elas, could you get a bottle of water for Cameron? Maybe some bread?” The blue man—Elas, apparently—stands and gives him a lazy salute before walking out the door.

“Why doesn’t that bode well?” I try to hide my rising panic in a joke, but my attempt fails spectacularly and my voice turns breathy. There’s no way I’m fooling him, so I drop the pretense. “Is there something wrong with me?”

“No,” he answers slowly, his eyes darting to the table as he starts tapping those fingers again. “Nothing is wrong with you, but you might not like what I’m about to tell you.”

Drum, drum, drum.

My head pounds in time with his fingers, and my temper reaches its limit. “Would you stop that?!” I snap, smacking his hand flat on the table, and my arm burns with another wild flare the second I touch him. He flips his hand and catches mine as I try to pull away, holding me in place as his eyes lock on mine again.

A low ache forms in my stomach as my heart races, and I’m so wrapped up in the sensations that I don’t even hear the footsteps approaching. The door swings open and Elas stands there, a few bottles of water and a small loaf of bread on a tray. His brows arch high as he notices our hands, and Ronan releases me as though my palm is on fire.

The two of them meet eyes, Elas with a very pointed look on his face as Ronan clears his throat and leans back in his chair. Elas places the tray on the table and takes abottle for himself, returning to his spot in the corner. Ronan follows suit and cracks one open, taking a long sip before he speaks.

“When the veil between our worlds first came down, it was… bloody.”

“Oh, this story I know!” Steam rises from the bread as I tear off a piece, my eyes rolling back into my head as I take a bite. Carbs have always been my weakness, and I’m not dumb enough to waste fresh food when it’s in front of me. A thought hits me, and I freeze, glancing at Ronan. “This isn’t poisoned, right?”

He huffs a breath, but the sound is amused this time. “Do you think I’d tell you if it was?”

“Hmm, good point.” I take another bite with a shrug. It might not be a cyanide steak, but it’s worth the risk. “So, back to the whole monster apocalypse… everyone knows this story. The barrier between the worlds disappeared, the monsters came through and massacred half of humanity, then took over every major city until they ruled the planet.”

He shifts uncomfortably before nodding. “While I was planning on phrasing it a touch more tactfully than that…”

“Sugarcoat the lie, you mean.” I flash him a snarky smile as I take another bite of bread, and his glare returns in a heartbeat.

“It’s more complicated than that, but yes, that’s the basic summary of it. There’s a second part to the story that most humans have never heard, though. Why the veil closed again.” Despite myself, I lean forward, curious. “The Fates were furious with the way our kind handled the merging of the worlds…”

“The merging of the worlds, classic,” I snort. “Someone give this guy a job in PR.”

He glares harder, but continues without comment. “The gateways were sealed permanently, and our world on the other side was destroyed.”

I’m shocked into stunned silence, my jaw slack as I find myself momentarily speechless. Despite the monsters’ devastation to our realm, I can’t imagine the crushing weight of that loss.

But the loss of everything you’ve ever known? That I can relate to.

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