She groaned, pushed up on her hands before rubbing at her cheek. “Asshole.”
Joon was hopping around again, kicking down the Variants that got close to us. “Great timing, little dreamer! Jump back in for me, would ya? I amcarryingyou today.”
Then, he started to glitch. Dipping in and out of reality again, the purple of his eyes leaving behind a streak of light everywhere he went.
“Shit,” she moaned, holding onto my arm as she gathered herself. “Leo?”
I wrapped an arm around her waist, steadying her. “I’ve got you. Do you have enough power left?”
She sneered. “Jack’s bark is bigger than his bite. I couldn’t break through it—but I could resist, for the most part, at least. I didn’t let him waste too much.”
Michael limped forward at the head of the pack. The bodies I hadn’t turned to ash started to rise; everyone Joon had knocked unconscious, or that Reed electrocuted, started to come-to. Joon appeared beside us again, his eyes flashing, face going pale.
“Alex,” he whispered. “You’ve gotta put me out for a while, I think.”
She nodded, turning to me. “You can get us out by yourself?”
I tucked her hair behind an ear before giving her my best ‘don’t worry’ smile. “I’ll deal. jJust make sure thatGlitchstays out of commission, and we’ll be fine.”
“You think that’ll stop us?” Michael cackled, and the air plummeted to freezing temperatures. “We’re standing on theedge of evolution.This is only the start. Jack was brilliant, but too careful. We’ve been waiting for him to be put down. The next wave will be written intohistory.We aren’t done yet?—”
I leaned into Alex’s ear. “Why do theyalwaystalk so much?”
Alex narrowed her eyes as he continued to babble, no amusement on her face. There was a spark there, a fire in her eyes that made my body hum. Blue shone in the shadowed room, a bright beacon that came from her horns as her eyes glowed.
“There won’t be a next wave, and I don’t give a damn about evolution. Daydreams are fun, but it’s about time I show you what kind of nightmares I can create. What kind ofexperimentsyou can handle, Michael?” Her smile was filled with poison, and mercifully, Michael shut up.
Alex raised a hand, took a deep breath, and bodies dropped like stone. I caught her in my arms as she fell back, careful not to jostle her. The men in front of us cracked their heads on the concrete floor, not flinching as they were swept into her mind.
Make them hurt, Sweetheart.
Alex breathed softly in my arms, a quirk to her mouth, as if she was satisfied with her work. She’d pushed herself to her limit—with Joon, and with Splinter.
Bodies surrounded us, and I could finally breathe right again. Reed was sprawled out on my right, Joon to my left, and I clutched Alex to my chest. The gentle hum of the chambers surrounded me, mixing with the soft sound of bubbling liquid. Concrete crumbled, small fires burned themselves out, and insects buzzed in the air as if they were confused, or searching for a way out.
It’s done,I thought.
It’s finally over.
Three years of torment lifted from my shoulders, and my head sagged as I buried my face in Alex’s hair. I breathed in the citrus as I raised a hand to the speaker in my ear.
“Cinder to headquarters,” I said, my voice filled with conviction. “Splinter is down.”
Static crackled back, but I didn’t listen. I sat there, rubbing Alex’s cheek, watching that blue light fade in and out. I’d gone decades believing I was a monster, that I was something to be kept locked up. Joon had gone through the same for three years. And Alex?
She saved us both.
“Hey, sleepy Sloth,” I murmured, a smile forming that was only for her, though I knew she wouldn’t hear me. “Thanks for bringing us back. By the way, I think I’m in love with you. I hope you’re okay with that.”
THIRTY-FOUR
ALEX
Cameras flashedas Leo kept me tucked tight against him.
It wasn’t protection, but comfort. The tabloids had never played nice when it came to Cinder—but Daydream was ready to bare her fangs. We stood in our Hero suits in front of the VIA headquarters, Dahlia droning on as Leo rubbed a nervous thumb along my hip.
He shifted, eyes glazing over the crowd, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
