The air shifted—charged and heavy with something far more potent than fear.
His black, tailored coat clung to his broad shoulders, embroidered silver threads glinting faintly along the edges.
His eyes—tight and unreadable—locked onto Malakai with a weight that could crush stone. Malakai swallowed hard, all his earlier bravado shriveling into nothing. “I was just?—”
“Stay away from her,” Blake growled, his voice carrying the finality of a blade's edge.
Malakai’s expression darkened, but he didn’t argue. He slunk past Blake without another word, leaving the room.
Silence blanketed the room, broken only by the crackle of the fire and my own struggling breaths. I pressed my trembling hands against the wall, trying to ground myself, but all I could focus on was him.
Blake’s expression softened, but still intense enough to make my breath catch. His face was a masterpiece carved with shadows and light—sharp cheekbones, a strong jawline, and lips that looked both cruel and kind depending on how they curved.
“What are you doing here?” he asked quietly.
His presence filled the room, commanding and comforting all at once. The tension in my body began to ease, though my heart still raced.
“I wanted answers,” I said, defending myself as I shifted away from the wall.
“At what cost?” Blake asked, an edge in his tone.
I spun toward him, my anger boiling over.
“At whatever cost,” I spat, storming past him.
I sensed him following me to the door. I stopped.
“What do you want?” I asked, glaring at him over my shoulder.
Blake hesitated, indecision written all over him.
“You say you want to keep me safe,” I whispered, “but I didn’t ask you to. I don’t want to be safe. I want the truth; however I have to get it.”
His muscles tightened in his forearms like he wanted to reach out, but he refrained. His silence made me want to scream.
“Maybe none of this would’ve happened if you hadn’t told him about the other night. Now he’s blackmailing me with nonsense rumors.”
Blake’s demeanor was downright predatory. “Blackmailing you?”
“What do you care?” I snapped. “At least he showed some interest in being forthcoming with information.”
“And you think I’m not?” he shot back.
“No!” I yelled. “You tease the hell out of me the first week of classes, then I accidentally find out that you and Melanie have something going on, and I don’t see you again for weeks except to scold me.”
Blake’s demeanor darkened, and he approached me so suddenly I took a step back, hitting the wall. He neared me, staring at me, like he was breaking down all of my walls, one at a time. He leaned in, his chest touching mine every time I took a breath. His lips hovered by my ear, and I didn’t think I could move if I tried.
“I don’t want you anywhere near Malakai again,” he said, his voice low and commanding.
I closed my eyes, a surreal feeling seeping into my thoughts and nodded. Before he moved, an odd feeling struck my nervous system, shifting everything sideways for a moment.
Blake was gone, but someone else was there—my mom. Crystal clear, as if she were standing there before me, I saw her. She was younger, not much older than me, and she looked upset. She was wearing a Nightfall uniform.
As fast as she came, she was gone.
I blinked, seeing Blake before me again, as I tried to catch my breath. He reached for me, steadying me as I looked for her.
A sharp ache tore through my head as I held back the pain rushing to my eyes.
