8 - QUAID
When I grab Star’s arm, three things happen at once.
First—the world blinks and everything—including Star and me—turns into nothing but a teal green outline.
Second—the lighter flicks off, so everything around Declan and Aric, goes dark.
And third—the space in front of Aric goes… blurry, or something. And he goes flying backwards, landing on his ass.
Then, Star screams.
Out of instinct, I clamp a hand over her mouth, because that blur disappears again, but not before I get a glimpse ofhorns.
I pull her to my chest and walk backwards, melding right into the wall and removing us both from the situation.
Then I whirl her around—everything about her outlined in teal green—and deactivate the tech inside my glasses. Her eyes are wide with surprise, looking at me like I’m a freak. Because the world is not supposed to be nothing but a glowing outline. But it only takes a moment for that to disappear and for us to become ‘real’ again.
She opens her mouth to scream, but I clamp my hand over it again and shake my head. Then I whisper, “Don’t make a sound.We’re out of immediate danger, but if we landed where I think we did, it won’t be safe for long. Do you understand me?”
She doesn’t move. Doesn’t even blink.
“Star!” I whisper yell, kind of shaking her at the same time. “Do you understand?”
I get a nod this time.
“Good. I’m gonna take my hand away from your mouth and you’re gonna remain silent and still.” Slowly, I remove my hand.
And immediately, she’s broken her word! “What the hell! What the fuck?”
“Shhhh,” I say. Very insistent now. “We’re in a lot of danger and?—”
But my words are broken by a scream somewhere else in the maze.
Star whirls around, looking in all directions in the dark. “What the fuck was that?”
I sigh. “Declan, I think.”
“What?” Now she’s looking at me again.
“Don’t worry. He’s a demigod. He’ll pull through.”
Star grabs me by the collar and starts shaking me. “What the fuck is going on!”
I grab her wrists and hold them tight. “I get it, it’s confusing. You lost your memory. You have no idea who you are. And the three of us all showing up on the same night—well, it’s a lot. So I get it. But you need to calm the fuck down and listen to me. Because both of those men back there, they claimed you. I don’t know how Aric did it, but Declan did it with that trick of a kiss and?—”
“Kiss?” She’s hysterical. “Who the hell cares about a stupid kiss! Three seconds ago, I was a glowing green outline! We… you… I went through a wall! A wall, Mr. Nobody! A fucking wall!”
I push her away from me, kinda hard, too. “Don’t call me that! I was the one who saved your ass! Twice!”
She stares at me, stunned by my angry outburst.
Which affords me the opportunity to take a breath and get myself under control. “I’m just gonna spell it out for you, OK? Because you’re clearly in a state.”
She puts her hands on her hips. “Astate?”
“You’re not who you think you are. You’re not even mortal. This life you’re living? It’s all a lie. You were sent here to the mortal world because you’re a lynchpin in an ancient Titan prophecy.”
“You’re insane! Get away from me!” She turns and tries to run, but I quickly lean forward, grab her around the waist, and push her up against a wall. Immediately, she and I are struggling, but she’s very small and I’mnot, so she’s got no chance at all.
