Page 84 of Amethyst Flame
As he’d been the one to set up the security on it, he could probably do that easily. Probably read all my messages too. “Asshole.”
“Hey, you freaked us out, running away like that. We didn’t know…” He glanced away, mouth skewing sideways. “We thought you might do something…”
“Desperate?”
“We were afraid for you, Mo.”
My throat tightened. “I’m afraid too.”
He reached across the center console and put his hand on my forearm. My fists were clenched between my knees to stop them from shaking. “We’ll figure this out. Together. Just like before, yeah?”
Yeah no.Beforewas over and done.
I huddled back in my seat, dislodging Jacob’s grasp, which was probably meant to be comforting but felt confining. “Thanks for coming to get me.”
His sidelong glance was a bit suspicious. “Any time.”
But we both knew time was running out.
CHAPTERFIFTEEN
“Let me get this straight…”Jacob’s eyebrows made a tilde of extreme confusion. “He attacked you tocureyou?”
I hugged a sofa pillow. “I think it’s about burning out the bugs, using them all up, before they get a chance to eat us alive from the inside.”
Jacob shot a look at Dane, who was sitting in a chair across from us, but who hadn’t signified any surprise or shock at my report of Will’s actions, so Jacob was left to continue the interrogation. “Well…did you tell him you were pretty fucking burnt out six months ago?”
“Yeah. More than once.”
“And how was his thing supposed to be any different?”
“I don’t know.” I heaved a sigh. “Maybe that the bugs would go to war and kill each other. My butterflies against his…whatever. And it’s different because they are attacking or defending, not just getting sucked out.”
Jacob turned to Dane. “Does that sound like it would work? Or is it as ridiculous as I think it is?”
Dane’s expression was inscrutable when he finally weighed in. “I think William Teller is in the early stages of nanobot psychosis. And if he’s been blacking out, as he mentioned had happened in the past, then he’s nearing the avalanche.”
Now there was a leading statement if I’d ever heard one, and no way in hell was I going to tug on the line. The other words Dane had used were plenty terrifying.Early stages of psychosis?Yeah, no thank you.
But Jacob justhadto pull. “What the fuck is an avalanche?”
I closed my eyes to shut out the answer.
“He becomes the passenger,” Dane answered. “And the bugs do the driving.”
Yep. I’d been afraid of something like that.
“And further,” Dane stood, scowling, “his violent strategy is a strong indication that they are already in control.” He turned toward me. “Attacking you was very likely his nanobots attempting to neutralize a threat—their only threat—and his nonsensical reasoning was his attempt to explain why he’d want to do such a thing.”
“Will said he wanted to be free of them or die.” I leaned back into the sofa, hoping it would swallow me whole. “But he thoughtI’dwin…so?”
Dane nodded as if he knew exactly where my train of thought had been heading. “Or Will could’ve suspected what the nanobots truly intended and was doing his best to ask you to end this nightmare for him. Either way, his control is compromised.”
“Wait…likekillhim?” Jacob asked, just catching up.
Will had seemed suicidal, so desperate he didn’t even care anymore.
I’d killed before, so I knew I could do it…like, if mymom’s lifedepended on it. Probably if mine did, too. But I was no executioner, no matter how cold my EldWitch was in Legendelirium.
