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Reese took it and Dalton towed him to his feet.
Craige lay on the ground, kicking and gurgling, his free hand slapping at his side as if searching for a gun that wasn’t there. Holes split the skin on his throat like his flesh had become wax and the cool air a blow torch.
“C’mon. You don’t want to see this.” Dalton ushered Reese to the front passenger side. He didn’t resist and found himself buckled in before he even realized Dalton had opened the door.
Craige continued to roll around on the ground, and his cell phone tumbled from his pocket. The rot consuming him collapsed his right eye, and the bones of his skull surfaced. He dug at the grass until his hand landed on his phone.
The sedan started up.
Reese was still watching in the side mirror when they were too far away to see Craige anymore.
“Hey…”
Reese turned.
“I promised nothing would happen to you.” Dalton smiled, but it wasn’t happy.
“Yeah. I…” Reese scrubbed his face, almost knocking his glasses off. “What now?”
“We’ll head to rural route nine. It’s only a couple more miles. They’ll meet us there.”
“They? Who’s they?”
“Some people. I’m not sure. I wasn’t told. They know a lot about you and Luca. I think you may have worked for them, but….” Dalton shrugged.
“New World Genetics?”
“I guess. Maybe. It’s not like it matters. You’ll be safe.”
“Like hell.” Reese yanked on the door release. For the second time in under ten minutes, he was trapped in a car.
Goddamned safety locks.
“Stop the car.”
Dalton ignored him.
“Stop the fucking car.” When Dalton didn’t, Reese grabbed the wheel.
Dalton swung out an arm, knocking Reese into the passenger door.
Stars burst in front of Reese’s eyes. Blood coated his tongue and touched his nose. A sharp pain stabbed his face.
“You try that again and I’ll shoot you in the knee.”
The car bounced and Reese’s stomach rolled. “Why are you doing this?”
Dalton had to know Johnathan would kill him.
“Because I’m tired of being a delta. I’m tired of being demeaned and humiliated. I’m tired of being everyone’s bed mate.” Dalton’s eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “They can change that. They can make it so no one will treat me like I’m less.”
“No one treats Seung that way.”
“She’s an egg-bearer and Varu. Their rules aren’t like ours.” Dalton said it like the words tasted sour. “Their deltas have value.”
“If you didn’t have value, Johnathan wouldn’t have you on his team.”
Tension creased Dalton’s face. “He’s an exception.”
