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And I m not going with you.
Kayla, please, he begs, not angry, but terrified. Now s not the time. We can talk about
what I did later, and you can give me the biggest lecture on how stupid I am. But after we get the
hell out of here.
I point the knife at his chest, a threat. Why shouldn t I just kill you right now and run off
by myself. It seems like the safer option.
Because you re not a killer, he says with certainty. And because& because, God damn
it, Juniper, you re so stubborn sometimes. He kicks a piece of glass and it ricochets through the
air. Then he takes me by the shoulders and crushes his lips into mine. It s like I ve swallowed him
whole, suffocating with everything that is him. It s more than sensing his fears; it s like seeing into
his soul.
When he pulls away, he s gasping, eyes glazed over, blinking wildly.
What the hell was that? I breathe heavily.
A kiss. He licks his lips And assurance that you can trust me.
How did you know that would
Later, he says and reaches for my hand. I let him take it, trusting him, and let him lead
me away.
Do you know a way out? I whisper as we hop over a row of tipped chairs and storm for
the back wall of the room where there s a door.
He kicks the door open, splitting the wood, splinters flying. We run and kill anyone that
gets in our way.
I like his plan, until I really think about it. Where would we even go? I pause. It s better
for me to go on my own.
He looks me straight in the eye. No it s not. He voice cracks. I didn t know they were
going to do that, throwing you in with a Higher just because the vampires fear you. We all have
our little things. He should have been more accepting of yours.
He doesn t know what really happened and I m afraid to tell him. I keep silent as we tiptoe
through the darkness, round a corner, and step out onto wobbly platform. He puts his fingers to his
lips and points down at our feet. The platform is made of linked metal thin enough to see straight
into the crowded room below us. People sit at tables, eat their dinners, chattering away as if
nothing is wrong, as if death isn't lurking in the air.
Is Dominic down there? I hiss. Please tell me he s not.
Aiden shakes his head and walks cautiously across the platform, taking each step gradually
as it rocks underneath his movement. I follow, keeping my footsteps weightless and my body
balanced against the sway.
He eats his dinner in his room, he says. But soon the guards are going to report what
happened. And we need to make sure we re long gone before he does.
We gradually speed up, the floor shuddering, trails of dust trickling down on the peoples
heads below. A girl glances up, blinking against the dirt. But thankfully, doesn t see us and returns
her gaze to her food.
At the end of the platform, there s a very narrow tunnel digging into the wall. Aiden gets
down on his hands and knees, puts his knife between his teeth, and crawls inside. I follow,
dragging my knees through the dirt. My head scrapes the ceiling and twigs snag my hair. I try to
twist free, but it s dark and I can t see. Desperate, I take my knife and hack a chunk of my hair off,
freeing my head, and I keep crawling, knowing how precious my time is.
At the end of the tunnel, there s a large boulder. Aiden shoves at it, panting and grunting
until finally I give him a hand. Within seconds, it s rolling forward down the hill and we re
blasted by the grey of the outside world. He dives out head first, slumping onto the rocks. Then
sticks his hand in and helps me climb out. We re standing in a ditch that rests between two hills.
Where are we? I ask as we start to climb up the side of the hill.
An emergency escape route. His hand slips, but he promptly catches himself. They are
all over the place.
We heave onto the top of the rocky hill. Aiden s out of breath, heart knocking against his
chest, while mine still stays silent.
You know, you were always pretty good at staying calm, he pants. But this is just
ridiculous. You re not even out of breath.
I stare up at the smoky sky, not wanting to talk about me, afraid of what he ll discover.
What do we do now?
I don t know. He clutches his side. I was hoping maybe you had an idea.
Fix the world Kayla, he says. You re the only one who can.
I sit up, dusting the dirt off my arms and face. What d you do with my stuff? My knife,
the vials, the pocket watch all the stuff that was in my jacket pocket.
His eyebrow arches. Why?
Because I need it. I stand, dusting my hair and arms off. I need the pocket watch. Where
is it?
He points over his shoulder. Over at the hillside, in my room.
I start down the hill, but he grabs my arm. We can t go there. That s the first place they ll
look for us. We have to find somewhere else to hide out.
We have to, I say, pausing to turn and look in his eyes. I need that pocket watch. It s
important.
He tugs me back toward him. Why? What s so important about it?
Because, I say, holding back the truth like I do. It is.
Why, he repeats, refusing to let me go. Or are you after something else and you just
don t want to tell me?
I frown, perplexed. What else would I want?
He sighs. Nothing. Look, let s just go. We can hide out in a cave until this all cools
down.
I stand firm. I m not leaving without that watch.
He lets out a frustrated breath. Why? What s so important about the damn watch?
Because it might fix the world to what it was, I shout.
Everything, including his heart, freezes.
Chapter 24
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