A Touch Mortal

Chapter 15





All she needed was one loose screw. Eden slipped her fingernail into the groove in the metal and wrenched it with a sharp twist. You killed him. Her nail snapped. She ripped it off with her teeth and went back to the doorknob, lining up the next finger. You killed that boy. One loose screw and the other screws would give a bit and she’d be able to take the whole f*cking doorknob off, lock and all. He’s dead. Snap.

She searched the room again, emptying the dresser onto the floor, tossing the drawers aside. What she wouldn’t give for a goddamned screwdriver. Anything with an edge thin enough or sturdy enough to help.

“F*ck!” Eden screamed, kicking the door. Her throat was dry, the words breaking out strangled. Eden heard a voice booming down the hall outside the locked door. She pressed herself against the door, as far from the drift of ashes as she could get, sliding around the perimeter of the room before she sunk to the floor. “Oh God, I killed him,” she whispered, rocking, her arms wrapped around her head.

She couldn’t move, didn’t lift her head when she heard the key turn and the door open.

A rush of footsteps shuddered to a stop just inside the room. Only one set kept running. She flinched, even as the arm encircled her.

“Damn it, Kristen. What happened?” The arm around her tightened.

Her brain stalled out at the voice, the gears grinding to a halt. Her head snapped up.

“Gabe!” He pulled back to look at her, using his sleeve to wipe the tears from her cheeks.

“I’m here, sweetheart.” He sounded calm, gentle, but his eyes gave him away, the irises a rusty crimson.

“Kristen, what happened?” he asked without turning around.

“You tell me, Gabe,” Kristen demanded, her voice a quiet threat. “I bought your whole ‘best hands’ speech, and how the Fallen would be after her if they knew, because of Az. But clearly, there’s more to this story than you’re telling.”

Gabe picked up Eden and pushed past Kristen, giving the ashy outline on the floor a wide berth. She followed them down the hall. “She killed one of mine. Killed him!”

She shook her head, as if not quite believing it herself.

“I didn’t mean it,” Eden started to say again, but he raised a gentle hand to her cheek, silencing her.

“Kristen,” Gabe whispered. “Give me a few more days.”

“Not a chance.”

Eden dared a glance. Kristen was shaking. She’s scared of me. The thought bounced around her head, refusing to settle into logic. Kristen’s unflappable exterior had cracked wide open.

“Where is her room?” he asked. “I need to get her settled.” He emphasized the last word. Kristen huffed, storming down the hall. Eden heard her boots clamoring down the stairs. Aside from the sound, the house seemed empty. Every door along the corridor was shut. Eden wondered if the others hid behind them, if they knew. Were they cowering from her the way they cowered from Kristen?

“Sweetheart? Can you tell me where your room is?”

“Past the stairs. The door is open.” She pulled her head off his shoulder, staring at him. “Where have you been?” Her voice came out stronger than she thought it would.

Gabe didn’t answer until he’d rounded the corner, set her down on the bed.

“Eden, what happened in there?”

“I don’t know.” Her heart hammered as she trembled against the pillows.

From Kristen’s room down the hall drifted the scent of cloves. Close on its heels came the sound of a hushed argument, a male voice. From the way his jaw tightened, Gabe seemed to hear more than she could. He crossed the room, closed the door. His hand hovered near the knob as if he were looking for a way to lock it from the inside, before he gave up.

“What’re they saying?” Gabe didn’t answer. The words built up, clustered against her tongue before they escaped in a rush. “What are they gonna do? Gabe?”

“Are you comfortable?” His forced smile unsettled her even further.

“Comfortable? No, I’m not comfortable!” Her eyes darted to the door, to the window. Maybe there was a way to climb down, to get out. “She’s gonna make me a Screamer!”

“Eden?” He put his finger under her chin, tipping up her head. She met his eyes.

Az had told her about the trick, how Gabe could use his gaze to calm people. It struck her as a stupid ability, useless. Especially since it only worked if the person it was being used on was open to being calmed down. But as the connection took hold, suddenly everything seemed distant, silly. A smile wound across her lips. Even as it happened, she knew it was out of place, that it was the wrong reaction, but it just felt like it needed to be there.

“Better?” He pulled back, watching her.

She nodded, her head full of cotton.

“Eden, can you close your eyes for me?” She let them slip shut, the outside world falling away. The dark was nice. “What happened down the hall? Can you walk me through it?”

She bit her lip. She couldn’t form the words, hadn’t realized she’d held her own hands out until Gabe’s slipped into hers. “Don’t touch me!” Her voice came out slow and lethargic, didn’t have the panic she felt as she forced her eyes open.

“No, it’s fine, I promise. Touch doesn’t work on me. See?” He reached forward, grabbing her hand again. There was no glow, no passing of Touch. She was shaking, the effect of his eyes, the calmness, wearing thin as she closed her eyes again.

“He fell apart,” she choked out.

Someone slammed against the door. Eden jumped, coming out of her stupor enough to hear Kristen’s protest, Gabe’s whispered curse. The door opened.

Impossible.

So impossible, but he smiled and it was his smile. Not someone who looked like him, not a mistake. His smile. Him. Alive.

“Az?” she whispered.