Page 26

“You don’t know what you’re doing,” Gabriel hissed. His voice lowered even further, each word pronounced like a death sentence. “He isn’t human.”

After what she’d just witnessed, his assertion didn’t sound half as far-fetched as it should have. Still, Iris wasn’t going to let herself be intimidated. She looked Gabriel in the eye, straightening up to her full height. The fury radiating from him was unmistakable. At that moment, he was hardly recognizable.

“If anyone is being inhuman right now, it definitely isn’t Blair.” Iris turned her back on him before he had a chance to react, ducking left into the dark hallway. Behind her, she could hear Gabriel’s frustrated groan followed by the slam of the front door.

She felt a pang in her chest as the door closed between them. Iris had never coped well with interpersonal conflict, especially with someone so close to her. But if Gabriel wanted some space right now, well, frankly, good riddance.

The lighthouse nightlight illuminated the closed bathroom door. Iris hesitated, teeth digging into her cuticle. “Hey,” she said, knocking softly. “Just wanted to make sure you’re okay in there.”

There was no reply. A prickle of fear bit at the back of her neck, and before she could think better of it, Iris inched open the door.

The scene before her made her breath catch.

Blair was hunched over the vanity, his entire body trembling while black liquid oozed into the sink like an oil spill.

“Blair,” Iris gasped.

He turned at the sound of her voice, stumbled backwards, and crashed against the heater mounted to the back wall.

But it was his face that made her blood freeze.

The same black liquid that was pooled in the sink was seeping down Blair’s cheeks. Underneath, the skin was raw and red, as though the substance was eating away at his skin.

Hands shaking violently, Iris bolted into the hallway, wrenched open the closet door, and grabbed a washcloth. She held it under the bathroom tap, trying to ignore the black fluid dribbling sickeningly down the drain. Once the cloth was drenched in warm water, she knelt in front of Blair and reached for his face.

“Don’t!” Blair’s eyes were wide and terrified as he jerked away from her touch.

Ignoring him, Iris wiped at the watery black sludge coating his skin. She gasped, wrenching the washcloth back in alarm. A hole had ripped through the center of the cloth, the black stuff eating away at it like acid. She stared up at Blair in horror as he wiped at his battered cheeks. His hands were covered in the inky substance. Her stomach lurched as she watched it cut into him like glass, the skin raw and bloody.

He met her horrified gaze with a weak, defeated smile. “I knew you’d find out how deplorable I am eventually. I’d just hoped it wouldn't be this soon.”

Iris was completely speechless. She reached for him again, his pain causing a potent ache in her chest. As he turned away, more of the black poison leaked from the corners of his eyes.

She cupped a hand over her mouth, her own tears threatening to spill over as understanding washed over her. She’d seen the faint scars on Blair’s cheeks, only visible in the winter sunlight. Now she realized what had caused them.

Blair swept the backs of his hands across his eyes and winced. He looked at her wearily, dodging the washcloth. “I don’t want your sympathy.”

She wiped softly at his face, her hand jerking as the poison disintegrated the remaining cloth and cut into her own hand. She tried not to look at the cut, but the sting was potent. She couldn’t imagine the kind of pain Blair was in.

“Stop.” Blair rested his elbows on his knees and hid his face from her. When at last he had himself under control, he raised his head. Faint traces of the obsidian tears were still smeared across his cheeks. He looked as though he’d just been the victim of a violent mugging.

“It’s a sick joke, isn’t it?” His voice was so quiet that Iris had to lean in to hear him. “The poison is meant to only hurt humans. But then…” He gave a wry smile, wincing at the pain of moving the muscles in his face. “I am partially human.”

His words made no sense at all, but Iris found she didn’t really care at the moment. She just wanted to ease his pain.

As if he’d read her mind, Blair sighed. “I’m fine, Iris. Trust me, I’m used to it.”

She opened the cabinet under the sink and rummaged through a plastic bin until she found some liquid antiseptic and a cotton ball. Her hand shook as she poured a large dollop of the pungent medicine onto the cotton ball, causing it to dribble all over the tile. Blair took it from her with a quiet word of thanks and dabbed at his face, turning away with a look of shame.

“You don’t have to be embarrassed around me,” said Iris softly, wishing he would let her help. “I understand how it feels to not always be okay.”

Blair nodded, but he still wouldn’t look at her. He deposited what was left of the cotton ball in the trash can by the toilet.

“What happened tonight?” Iris asked. The smell of the antiseptic mixed with the acidity of whatever toxins made up Blair’s tears was making her a little woozy, but she focused all of her attention on him anyway.

He swallowed, pressing his fingers together almost as if in prayer. “I can’t tell you that,” he said, glancing over at her. “I’m sorry. But you already think I’m a monster.”

“I don’t,” Iris promised.