Элисон Ноэль - Blue Moon

He lifts his hand to my face and caresses my cheek, and I slap it so hard the crunch of his bones pierces the air as his crumpled fingers wobble and dangle before me.

"Ouch." He smiles, shaking his hand as he flexes his instantly healed digits. "You're a feisty one, aren't you? But you know how that only turns me on, right?" I roll my eyes, feeling his cold breath on my cheek as he says, "Why do you continue to fight me, Ever? Why do you push me away when I'm all you have left?"

"Why are you doing this?" I ask, my stomach twitching as his eyes darken and narrow, displaying a complete absence of color and light. "What did Damen ever do to you?"

He tilts his head back, peering at me when he says, "It's real simple, darlin'." His voice suddenly changing, dropping the British accent and adopting a tone I've never heard from him before. "He killed Drina. So I'm killing him. And then everything's even.

Case closed."

And the second he says it, I know. I know exactly how I'll take him down and get behind that door.

Because along with the who and the how, I've now got the why. The elusive motive I've needed all this time. And now the only thing standing between Damen and me is one solid punch to Roman's navel chakra, or sacral center as it's sometimes called —the center of jealousy, envy, and the irrational desire to possess.

One solid blow and Roman is history.

But still, before I take him down, I've one more thing to do. So I look at him, my gaze fixed and unwavering when I say, "But Damen didn't kill Drina. I did."

"Nice try." He laughs. "Pathetic, a bit maudlin like I said, but I'm afraid it won't work. You can't save Damen that way."

"But why not? If you're so interested in justice, an eye for an eye and all that —then you should know that I'm the one who did it." I nod, my voice taking on new urgency and strength. " I'm the one who killed that, bitch." Watching as he sways, ever so slightly, but still enough for me to notice. "She was always hanging around, completely obsessed with Damen. You must've known that, right? That she was totally fixated on him?"

He winces. Neither confirming nor denying, but that wince is all I need to keep going, knowing I've hit the sore spot. "She wanted me out of the way so she could have Damen to herself, and after months of my trying to ignore her and hoping she'd go away, she was dumb enough to show up at my house and try to confront me. And —well—when she refused to back down and went after me instead—I killed her." I shrug, relaying the story with a lot more calm than I felt at the time, making sure to leave out my own ineptitude, cluelessness, and fears. "And it was so easy. " I smile, shaking my head as though reliving the moment all over again. "Seriously. You should've seen her. It's like, one moment she was standing before me all flaming red hair and white skin—and the next— gone ! And by the way, Damen didn't show up until the deed was already done. So, as you see, if anyone's guilty, it's me and not him." My gaze is on his, my fists ready to strike, moving right into his space when I say, "So, what do you say? You still wanna date me? Or would you rather kill me instead? Either way, I'll understand." I place my hand on his chest and push him hard against the door. Thinking how easy it would be to just lower it a few inches, jab really hard, and be done with all this.

"You?" he says, the word more like a question, a crisis of conscience, than the accusation he meant it to be. "You and not Damen?"

I nod, my body tensed, poised for fight, knowing nothing will keep me from getting into that room, and raising my fist as he says, "It's not too late! We can still save him!"

I freeze, my fist hovering at the halfway mark, unsure if I'm being played.

Watching as he shakes his head, visibly distressed when he says, "I didn't know —I thought for sure it was him—he gave me everything —he gave me life — this life ! And I thought for sure that he—"

He moves around me and flees down the hall, calling, "You go check on him —I'll get the antidote!"

CHAPTER 50

The first thing I see when I burst through the door is Damen. Still lying on the futon, looking as thin and pale as he did when I left him.

The second thing I see is Rayne. Huddling by his side, pressing a damp cloth to his face. Her eyes growing wide when she sees me, her hand held up before her as she shouts, "Ever, no ! Don't come any closer! If you want to save Damen, then stop right there —do not break the circle!"

I gaze down, seeing some grainy white substance that looks just like salt, formed into a perfect ring that keeps the two of them in and me out. Then I look at her, wondering what she wants, what she could possibly have in mind cowering beside Damen and warning me away. Noticing how she looks even odder outside of Summerland with her ghostly pale face, tiny features, and large coal-black eyes. But when my gaze shifts to Damen, watching as he lights and struggles for each breath —I know I have to get to him, no matter what she says. It's my fault he's like this. I abandoned him. Left him behind. I was stupid, and selfish, and naive enough to think that everything would work out okay just because I wanted it to, and that Ava would stick around to pick up the pieces.

I step forward, my toe landing just outside the border as Roman rushes in from behind me and shouts, "What the bloody hell is she doing in here?" His eyes wide with shock as he gapes at Rayne, still crouching beside Damen from behind the barrier. "Don't trust him!" she says, her eyes darting between us. "He knew I was here all along." "I didn't know any such thing! I've never even seen you before!" He shakes his head. "I mean, sorry darlin', but Catholic schoolgirls just ain't my thing. I prefer my women a little more feisty, like Ever, here." He reaches toward me, trailing his fingers down the length of my back, chilling my skin in a way that makes me want to react —but I don't. I just take a deep breath and try to stay calm. Focusing on his other hand —the one that's holding the antidote—the key to saving Damen.

Because in the end, that's the only thing that matters —everything else can wait.

I snatch the bottle and unscrew the top. And I'm just about to penetrate Rayne's circle of protection when Roman puts his hand on my arm and says, "Not so fast."

I pause, glancing between them, Rayne looking me right in the eye when she says, "Don't do it, Ever!

Whatever he tells you, do not listen. Listen only to me. Ava dumped the antidote and ran off with the elixir not long after you left, but luckily I got here just before he did." She gestures toward Roman, her eyes like angry points of the darkest night. "He needs you to break the circle so he can get in, because he can't get to Damen without you. Only the worthy can access the circle, only those with good intent. But if you step in now, Roman will follow, so if you care about Damen, if you truly want to protect him, you have to wait until Romy gets here."

"Romy?"

Rayne nods, glancing between Roman and me. "She's bringing the antidote, it will be ready by nightfall since it needs the full moon's energy to be fully complete." But Roman just shakes his head, laughing as he says, "What antidote? I'm the only one with the antidote. Hell, I'm. the one who made the poison, so what the hell does she know?" And when he sees the confusion on my face, he adds, "I really don't see how you have much of a choice. If you listen to this one" —he flicks his fingers toward Rayne—"Damen will die. But if you listen to me, he won't. The math's rather simple, don't you think?"