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“No.” He shakes his head and I watch as his muscles start slumping in defeat.

I nod. “You need to go.”

He tightens my ponytail and uses his shirt sleeves to wipe the black mascara running down my face. It warms my chest and I fucking hate it. The longer he stays here, the harder it is to save him from his torment. I need him to hate me. Hate me like I hated him, even if it starts killing me.

“I am not leaving you, Jordie.”

“Go, Kain.” I shove gently at his chest.

“No,” he growls, clutching my face and bringing our foreheads together.

He doesn’t smell of weed anymore. No. It’s citrus and mint on his breath. Which also means his lips are way too close to mine.

“Go,” I whisper, even as my eyes stick to his lips and plead to place my mine to his. “I hate you, Kain. Go.”

“No.”

I take an internal deep breath. “Go!” I scream.

“You don’t hate me.” His Adam's apple bobs up and down rigidly.

“I do. Get. The. Hell. Out. Of. My. Face… My. Life.”

His lips slam into mine, tongue desperately seeking entrance to mine. As much as I want to melt into him, I can’t, so I push him again. The taste of my tears and mint tingles on my lips.

The last taste of him.

Because once he leaves, there’s nothing left for me anymore but to reignite one last time. I’m broken, burnt out, and I don’t know if I’ll ever be normal again.

“Go.” Those words are the biggest lying sin on my lips.

With one last longing look and a nod, he silently stands and I watch as he walks out.

I know I need to spare him the hurt. So tonight will be the night I will ruin everyone. Including Kain.

29

Kain

She can lie to other people, but she can never lie to me. Not when her body and mind betrayed her in the bathroom last night. I’ve seen the hate in her eyes and that wasn’t it. That was all I needed to make my mind up. Not that I ever would have stopped, but I’m not going to stop fighting for her.

She kissed me, for fuck sake.

My knuckles are pulsating, dying to connect with that prick's face again. I only stopped because I saw the scared look in her eyes after he threatened to kill me.

And she expected me to believe she wanted me to leave?

I can’t let her go. I won’t let her go.

I will fight this with her till the end. Why can’t she accept that? She also suffered in silence, that much is clear.

As I enter the ballroom, there’s already a sea of crimson on the main floor as I look down from the balcony, Heath’s gun sitting pretty in my pocket. Tonight I will show her the evidence I gathered. She needs to see all of it, the whole truth. She can’t just allow them to slaughter her like this. She wants to do this by herself, but it’s the clergy versus Jordie—

“You know, I’m really sick of your not answering your texts.” A boisterous voice pulls me out of my thoughts, followed by a friendly slap on my shoulder.

Asher and Blake both flank me in their matching suits.

Blake pulls at the material of my blazer, exposing the dried blood of my shirt. Asher slaps a hand on my forehead, pushing me upright from my perch on the railing. I forgot about my bruised and cut face.