Ivan steps closer. “What’s your problem?”
“No problem at all,” I say, my voice dangerously calm. I finally let my eyes move to the desk. To the fresh cuts in the wood.Her name next to his, like they’re twelve.
“You disappear,” I say, looking right at her, “and I find you in the dark, carving your names into a desk like some lovesick puppy?”
“Jax—”
“What else were you doing in here?”
Her expression hardens, a wall slamming down. “Don’t talk to me like that.”
My hands curl into fists. “Then maybe don’t act like?—”
“Alright,” Ivan cuts in. “Back off.”
I turn on him, a slow, dangerous pivot. “Or what? You gonna sweat on me?”
“I’ll say it again. Back. Off.”
His head tilts slightly, like he’s listening to something I can’t hear.
“Just him?” he whispers, his lips barely moving.
Sisk takes a half step toward him, her anger forgotten, replaced by a deep frown. “Ivan, are you okay?”
He doesn’t answer. His eyes are glassy, fixed on some point in the middle distance.
“I will,” he says. To no one.
“Ivan. Who the hell are you talking to?”
He crouches again and slowly presses the knife back into the desk.
I move closer, my own shadow falling over the desk. I read it.
SISK + IVAN = FOREVER
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I ask, getting right in his face.
He stares past me, through the wall, his eyes wide and vacant.
Sisk’s fingers find mine, squeezing tight. It’s a reflex, pure instinct.She’s scared.
I snap. “You know, anyone else with black marks climbing up their damn hands would’ve been dragged out of here by now. But not you, huh? You say ‘lab accident’ and everyone just nods. Is it your father? Or is it just easier to ignore the freak?—?”
“Jax.” Sisk grips my arm, her voice sharp. “Stop. We’re leaving.”
Ivan’s eyes slide to our hands. “You can’t stop it. It’s done.”
“What’s done?” Sisk asks, her voice trembling.
He lifts his gaze to the ceiling, a small, satisfied nod playing on his lips. “You’ll see.”
I don’t wait for him to say another creepy fucking word. I grab Sisk’s arm and pull her out of that room, her heels clacking against the tile as we move. She doesn’t fight me, her fingers tremble in mine the whole way out, and I know she felt it too. Whatever the hell that was, it wasn’t just Ivan being a weirdo. But I’m not about to risk her safety to figure it out.
Forty-Two
NOW | SISK
