Page 48 of Dark

I watched from across the yard as August and West righted the table, my younger brother’s face pale and drawn.

The shifter community had few medical specialists. The handful of doctors who had examined August over the years suspected his condition was some sort of autoimmune disorder, that just like with lupus or MS, his body attacked itself, in his case causing nerve damage, seizures, disorientation, and a host of other symptoms. August’s attacks came in phases, and yeah, like any other shifter, he healed in between, but there was no rhyme or reason to it, no pattern we could identify. All we knew was that for the past year, the interval between the flare-ups had been gradually shrinking. And no one could figure out why.

Fingers brushed my cheek. I jerked.

Hayden frowned up at me, eyes shadowed with concern. “We should go.”

She was counting on me to protect her. And hell if I was going to fail her again. I stared down at the cuff clamped around my wrist, thinking back to the day almost two decades before when Ben had forced me to choose. His methods of compliance and control.

Or my little brother.

8

Hayden

WEDNESDAY MORNINGS WERE ALWAYS a dumpster fire. Think long lines. Snarky commuters. Add in this week’s special—Devil’s Ghoul Mochas—a chocoholic’s fantasy topped with whip, sprinkles, and a ridiculously cute Cool Whip ghost made by yours truly, and I was baring my teeth by eight a.m. Which of course, was when my phone buzzed with an incoming text.

Two frozen ghosts careened to the floor. Quickly sliding an iced chai tea latte to the girl across the counter, I pulled my phone from my back pocket. A hand clamped around my wrist.

Cursing, I whirled. “That’s it. No more American Horror Story until we catch this guy.”

Ethan tugged me to him by the front pocket of my skinny jeans, leaning me up against the counter for a quick kiss. “Maybe I like the way you insist you aren’t scared then strangle me so tight I can’t breathe.”

I briefly lost my train of thought as Ethan nipped along the underside of my jaw. “Please. We all know who wakes up wrapped around me in the blankets like we’re making freaky werewolf crepes.”

“Didn’t hear any complaints a few minutes later.”

“You’re scaring off the customers.”

“PSL. No whip,” Ethan called, dropping the cinnamon shaker on the counter. “Let’s go in back.”

“We’re slammed.”

“He’s texted you twice in the last twenty-four hours, once from here in town. If this is another one—”

Grabbing him by the hand, I led the way over to the supply closet. The door shut behind us with a thump, locking us in the dark.

“Well. This is interesting.”

I pinched his side.

“Ow.”

“Seriously? Right now?”

“I can be quiet if you can.”

Snorting, I pulled up the text. “Try to focus.”

Meera: You know I’ll come get you any time. Day or night. No questions asked.

It was followed by the number for a domestic abuse hotline. And then an image. I shut down the screen, but not fast enough to miss the blizzard of balled-up tissues next to my sister’s pillow or the clothes she’d clearly slept in.

Ethan cursed under his breath.

“Okay, wow,” I whispered. “Things you wish you could unsee for $200, Alex?”

With every lie, I pushed Ellie further away. Worse was the knowledge that if she ever found out the truth, ever discovered the monster I’d become, I’d lose her forever. And that might just destroy me.