Chapter 16 #6
Rhyden slowly pulled out of her, his piercings catching as he did. It made her wince. Her feet touched the ground, and she felt exposed all of a sudden. Her lips and insides were bruised because of him.
He tucked himself back into his pants and zipped them up. Rin righted her own clothes, her movements weak and shaky.
"What?" he finally bit out, stepping away from her.
"Sangreal. I remember, Rhyden. What I did to you—"
"Fucking save it. I knew I couldn’t trust you. Fuck! Look at this. Get me down here alone, bat your fucking pretty long lashes at me, and make me lose my mind and fuck you. Then you go and do this. You lie and trick again."
She shook her head. "It’s…" He was in no state to listen to her. And this wasn’t the time. "Promise me something?"
"Why should I?"
She forged on. "After this, you’ll listen to me? Alone. No insults, no threats. Just me and you and the past."
"Maybe, but don’t fucking hold your breath for it," Rhyden gritted out, and her memories of him overlaid the male standing before her, lit by flames. So different, yet so similar. Was this how he saw her? Warring between the past and the present.
"Fine. Let’s finish this then." Rin stepped forward, wincing from the throbbing in her temples and her abused core.
He gave a deadly smirk, eyes raking over her. "Distracted enough?"
She was so focused on him and the feelings in her body, the blue glowing tubes held no allure.
"Yes." Her voice was hoarse, tight. She was desperate to inject something light into the air, lest they both be suffocated by the flames.
She stared at them as they roared hotter, forcing herself to smile. "You arsonist."
Rhyden played along. "It’s not arson if it’s accidental.
" He took a step away from her, tripping over the toe of his boots as fire sparked at his fingers, then cast onto the concrete, burning a hot path to the recesses of the room.
It went up in a black plume of smoke and red flames.
"Oops. Look at that. An accident. Oh fucking well then. "
He was still angry. Rin’s words had done that. Maybe she should’ve kept her mouth shut.
As if he’d read her thoughts, Rhyden herded her backward as flames ate up the room, leaving them with only one exit.
"Next time, keep your goddamned mouth shut unless you want me to fill it with my cock.
" He looked at her with menace. She remembered how he’d looked at her with betrayal as he was taken away.
"Is that what you want? Are you trying to ask me to fill your lying lips? "
"Let’s go," she whispered, trying to ignore the hurt in her chest.
Cruelty was his armor, just like ignorance had become hers.
Each step up the stairs sent the space between her thighs throbbing.
Fire crackled at their backs, the lick of the amber lighting up the dark Academy. At the doors to the outside, Rhyden urged her forward. "Go. I’m right behind you." His hands clenched into fists.
"What are you going to do?" she asked.
"I have enough fucking anger to bring this whole goddamned place down."
"That wasn’t the plan. We were supposed to meet—"
Flames roared to life in a line, separating her from Rhyden. She staggered back.
"Go. They’re waiting on you. Tell them to light it up."
"No, I’m not going to leave you, Rhyden." The flames before her were hot, forcing her back.
"I’m coming, Vesperin."
Rin hated the way her name sounded from him. She couldn’t hide the hurt on her face. "Okay."
As she turned away from him, a shout made her feet pause.
Rhyden froze, too.
It sounded like—
"Vesperin!" Xara came running toward her, hair wildly blowing behind her.
She was gasping for breath when she stopped before her.
"I wanted to tell you that you—" She straightened, staring at Rin, the lighter in her hand, and Rhyden at her back, flames soaring behind them, licking through the Academy doors. "What is this? Vesperin?"
Rin unholstered her Echogun; she didn’t point it at Xara, but the threat was there. "Why are you here?"
"I had to tell you something… But what is this?"
"We have said everything we need to each other, Xara. I warned you to run. Not toward me. But far from Solar City and the Blackfalls."
Rhyden was keeping the flames held back from them, but smoke still escaped from within the Academy. Rin coughed. They had to hurry. If they didn’t get out of here before the Waterborn firefighters arrived…
"I had to tell you to leave." As the golden firelight illuminated Xara’s face, Rin saw a dark bruise on her eye. Her lip was split, and blood crusted around her mouth and chin. Rin felt a gripping sadness for the other girl—she’d been blackmailed, just like Rin had on Sangreal.
Xara continued, "Sabine sent guards, too. They were waiting outside to collect you with Director Ilsa and President Shin. When I told them you’d snuck out the window, they got angry.
" Anger and grief filled her face, drawing her brows low over her watery, red eyes.
"They killed my mother. The guards showed me a video of her.
She was in a chair. There was a man standing behind her.
He looked at the camera as he shot her. He said something, though, before he pulled the trigger. "
In the distance, the ground rumbled.
Xara wiped at her eyes. "He said, I’m sorry. He said he had no choice. I knew him." Her voice lowered to a whisper. "It was Kit."
Rin’s fingers grew slack around her Echogun. Kit…
"His eyes were dead. He yelled a warning before the video cut off. He said—" Xara’s voice broke. "He said, warn Rin to get out."
"Why tell me this?"
"Because none of it matters anymore. I wanted to make it up to you." The ground gave a distant rumble once more as Xara took a step forward. "I’m so sor—"
The very ground split in two, a large crack forming. Rin wavered, gasping. An earthquake!
Metal lampposts trembled, folding beneath the weight as concrete split and surged up.
The building gave a great, terrible shudder as the walls crumbled.
Large chunks of concrete and stone toppled to the ground, dust filling the air.
Flames surged past, filling the night sky.
They slammed up an invisible wall, held back only by Rhyden’s might.
A pillar holding up the entrance began to collapse.
"Get out of the way!" Rhyden roared.
Rin reached for Xara, but a shadow coiled before her, slamming into her and sending her soaring backward. With a pained scream, she fell against a chunk of fallen rubble. The chaos was disorienting.
She curled up, protecting her head and midsection as she waited for the earthquake to stop.
When it finally did, her heart was weak in her chest, ears ringing in the silence—while flames still crackled.
She stood slowly, wavering. A large hunk of the building had fallen behind her. Rhyden, no—
Rin slammed her hands against it. She had fallen into a strange pocket of untouched space amid the concrete and rubble, as if protected—by the Stars, fate, or chance, she did not know.
"Rhyden! Rhyden, please!" She coughed, eyes burning.
"Vesperin!" came Rhyden’s answering roar.
She sagged in relief. "I’m here! I’m okay, Rhyden!"
"Stay there. I’ll find a way to you!"
She bent, pressing a hand against her chest as if to steady her erratic, overworked heart. "No, go find the others—please, Rhyden. Please, you have to find them, help them. Make sure they’re okay!"
Fear made her pant. If they were hurt—or dead—she would never forgive herself. It wasn’t supposed to be like this. She was the one who was supposed to go first—not them.
It was silent on the other side. She prayed Rhyden would do as she asked, but knew he wouldn’t. He cared for no one but himself—perhaps her, too. Maybe.
Rin’s forehead fell against the stone, dust and soot on her sweaty cheeks.
Her Echogun had fallen, half-crushed beneath a large rock.
Her boot knocked into something, and she looked down, finding the lighter.
She bent to pick it up, groaning at the pain in her back.
She felt all wrong, achy. The lighter’s casing was chipped.
She swiped ash away, revealing the carved letters of her initials. V.V.
"Xara?" Rin called, voice weaker this time, as if she’d used up all her energy.
Flames hissed and crackled. She couldn’t see over the wall of fallen concrete, but it sounded distant. Had Rhyden called his fire back?
She stumbled forward, calling for Xara again. As the dust and ash cleared, she saw it there on the ground.
It took a second for the realization to settle in. When it did, Rin dropped to her knees, thudding against rubble. She barely felt the pain. She clawed at chunks of rock.
Legs stuck out from beneath a large concrete pillar—the very one that had held up the Academy’s roof. The same that had tipped right toward where she and Xara had stood.
Thick, red blood oozed from beneath.
She didn’t let herself believe it.
"Xara?" Rin’s voice cracked. Her hand shook as she touched Xara’s shoe. Her leg shifted, limp. The concrete had crushed her upper body—only her legs stuck out. More blood pooled from beneath, staining the knees of Rin’s pants.
"I’m so sorry that it—that it ended this way for you." She gave a sob.
She hoped it had been quick. That Xara hadn’t suffered from being aware of her death, crushed beyond recognition, nothing but a pair of legs and bloodied sneakers.
Rin sat back, weak. A shadow slithered over Rin’s knee. She stared at it. "Shadow, did you protect me?" She felt the shadow’s cool touch, yet it held the faintest trace of warmth. "Thank you for keeping me safe."
Something fell to the ground by her leg, making her jolt.
Her eyes grew wide as she stared at it. It was a small silver tube with a tiny red blinking light at the top.
She gasped, scrambling back. Her aching, bruised spine pressed against fallen rubble.
She tipped her head back, staring at the top of the concrete piled high around her.
A hand broke free from the ash, sticking up with stretched fingers as they curled around the edge of the concrete. She knew who it was, even before he pulled himself over the top and crouched high above.
Kit pushed himself into a stand. He was concealed in black armor, a mask covering his nose and mouth. He stared down at her, his brown hair blowing in the fiery wind.
His thighs flexed, and in one great move, he jumped from high above, landing right before her on his feet. He didn’t make a sound.
Kit cocked his head. Xara’s blood splashed beneath his black boots as he stepped toward her.
The shadow at her knee formed the shape of a hand, resting high on her thigh. Those shadowed fingers spanned out until one long digit pointed right up at her, as if an arrow for Kit to follow.
He huffed a breath, reaching up to touch his mask, as if ensuring it was still on his face.
Each movement was stilted.
"Kit, please, wake up. This isn’t you. Come back to me."
The tip of his boot brushed hers. She shrank against the concrete. Her shadow was gone. Not even it could protect her from Kit.
"It is not me. But it is what I am now. I can’t come back to you. You will come to me."
The silver tube thrummed and shook. She’d nearly forgotten about it. The red light blinked faster. Then the top unlatched with a hiss as dark smoke began to leak out.
Immediately, her eyes burned.
She yanked her shirt up to her nose and mouth, hoping to filter the gas. She couldn’t hold her breath forever. Kit waited for her to break.
Her body betrayed her. She sucked in a great, gasping breath, and the gas filled her body. It was scentless, yet it tasted of medicine as it entered her mouth.
She sagged back against the concrete, head swimming, and lids fluttering.
The last thing she saw was Kit crouching to lift her in his arms, holding her against his chest. Her cheek fell to his shoulder, her neck unable to keep her head upright. His grip tightened, and she gave a low, pained sound. He loosened his hold on her, as if unaware of his strength.
His fingertips brushed her cheek. They were cold.
"We both lose this time, Vesperin."