“Better than nothing,” I say, looking back at Erik.
I’m…forgetting something about chest wounds.
One disaster at a time.
I zip a line up Thane’s pant leg and make five injections around the bullet hole in his leg. He’s holding Ronan, who’s dazed and bleeding profusely from the head. I see a thin line of bone, but no brain matter. He might’ve gotten lucky with a deep bullet graze.
I hold up the needle. “This will stop the bleeding.”
Ronan pulls back, terror sharpening his features.
I hold up my hands so he can see the tattoos. I let my eyes turn black. “It’s me.”
“That shouldn’t be comforting, but it is,” he says, sounding like he might vomit.
He holds still as I administer a couple of injections on each side of the wound.
“Pinch this together,” I tell Thane.
I hand the blue injector to Oakley. “I can’t… Can you see if Cupcake is still…?”
Oakley takes the injector. “I’ll take care of her.” He looks into my eyes. “You should know that Cup defended us, almost as viciously as you would’ve. We’ll do everything in our power to make her better.”
Unable to consider anything else, I grab the kit and move to Ant.
He’s shivering but looks weirdly proud as I cut through his shirtsleeve, revealing where the bullet that went through Erik hit Ant.
“The bone is broken.”Bone white, I say to myself. I open the silver case and take out the white injector. “It’s a new protocol, but I think I inject this first and then use the blackpolymer.”
Ant nods, sweat beading along his brow. “That’s… I think you’re right.”
I inject above and below the break, as best I can tell, then pull out the polymer, gingerly wrapping it around his tiny arm.
“How’s Erik do—” Ant’s eyes widen. “Behind you!”
Something hits the back of my freshly healed head. I fall, dropping the remainder of the polymer.
I’m on the ground. Looking up at my own face. Again.
“Hello, Silas. I’m Blake.” He bows, then makes a show of cracking his neck. “You’re gonna have to work a little harder than that to kill me.”
I’m disoriented, but something… Mav’s initiation.
Blake shakes his head. “Or instead of trying to kill me, you can come with me.” His eyes turn white. “I’ll give you an upgrade.”
“Fuck. You.”
Blake grins, and it’s the most unnatural thing I’ve ever seen.
“Do you think these assholes know anything about you? Do you think they understand you in the slightest?” He must see something in my face. “Of course they don’t. You’re a tool to them. A weapon they can point at…anything.”
“Shut up,” I growl as the wounds on my head stitch back together.
I want him to stop talking.
“Wouldn’t you rather be free to follow that instinct like a heartbeat, instead of holding yourself back all the time?” He pounds his fist into his palm in a rhythm. “Kill, kill, kill. Yes?”
Yes, that’s… That’s exactly what it’s like. Every beat. Every minute. Every hour. Every day.
