Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 107720 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 539(@200wpm)___ 431(@250wpm)___ 359(@300wpm)
“But what about the whole thing about them balancing each other out?!”
“She won’t need him to balance her once we attach a low dose frequency emitter. We’ll put her in cryogenics and keep working. I don’t care if it takes decades. I don’t care we’ve never found a cure. I won’t stop until we fix this!”
I froze, waiting for both men to find me eavesdropping in the corridor, but Frank whirled to face Dillon. “I will take full responsibility, just like I did when I amended this collar to kill instead of control. I’m giving him mercy. A quick, painless death in his sleep rather than a systemic failure of his organs before physical disintegration. Get the cryochamber ready. When Lucien is gone, Rook will have only a few minutes before her power tries to get loose. We need her in stasis before then. I need you to be on board with this, Dil. Otherwise—”
“Fuck, you’re really going to do this.” Dillon’s voice hitched with horror.
“I don’t have a choice,” Frank whispered, equally broken. “It’s her or him. Now or never.”
My knees threatened to give out at the thought of Frank killing the one man I’d been made for. Of willingly trading Lucien’s life for mine when I would gladly give mine in return.
The final piece inside me snapped.
A primal, guttural scream tore up my throat as horror, rage, and desperate love detonated through my chest. The ice fed off my emotions. Frost blasted out of me in a freezing shockwave. My left forearm began to disintegrate, skin turning misty before dissolving into swirling snowflakes.
But I didn’t care.
I would freeze the entire world before I let Frank hurt him.
A thunderous growl echoed just as Whisper charged from the lab, knocking aside Frank. He arrowed toward me like a black streak of vengeance, skidding to a stop at my side.
Frank stumbled out, eyes wide with shock and horror as he took in the frost-covered walls and my dissolving arm. “Rook...w-what are you doing here? Come. We don’t have much time. We’ll take you to the cryochamber. We’re just going to put you to sleep for a little while, alright? We’ll wake you up when we’ve figured this out and—”
His voice choked as his gaze landed on my arm. “Shit, you’ve already started disintegrating. Dillon, help!”
Dillon appeared behind him, face pale with guilt. I waited for him to talk me out of what I was about to do. For him to go against my wishes and do his job to save me, but...he merely sighed with the weight of death and crossed his arms. “I won’t help you break them apart, Frank. I would never be able to live with myself.”
I gave my bodyguard a grateful smile just as I opened the floodgates of power.
A howl of snow knocked both men off their feet.
Lunging forward, I snatched the frequency collar from Frank’s trembling hand. It stung my fingers even though it wasn’t turned on. “Save Lucien. He’s fading fast. Go!”
“Rook!” Frank screamed, scrambling to stand. “Don’t. You don’t understand what you’re doing!”
But I was already running.
My bare feet slapped against the frost-covered floor as I sprinted down the corridor toward the lift, Whisper flying beside me.
Frank’s desperate shouts echoed. “ROOK! Come back! Please!” His footfalls slapped against the linoleum, chasing. Whisper roared and spun to attack but I flung up an impenetrable wall of ice, sealing off the corridor with glittering, jagged crystal.
Dillon cursed. Frank pounded against it. And tears froze on my cheeks as I sprinted as fast as I could.
Rationality no longer existed. I didn’t care that Lucien was probably already dead. That I’d left him while he was drifting apart piece by piece.
All I knew—all I cared about—was love.
Love had brought him back before. It could do it again. I’d do whatever it took to give him a chance because...Frank was right.
We were killing each other.
I fed off his energy far more than he did because he willingly sacrificed himself for me.
It was me who was draining him too fast.
He was stronger than me.
His fire was connected to life while I already belonged to the dead.
Without me, Lucien would be strong enough to survive.
Long enough for Frank to figure out how to help.
A soft, tragic laugh escaped as tiny flakes rose from my chest. Pretty little snowflakes that killed me. They twinkled as I ran, suspended in the air like glitter.
Soon.
You can have me soon.
But not yet.
The ice seemed to understand and accepted my surrender. It granted me more strength. Strength to get out of the lab. Strength to die without taking anyone else with me.
Minutes.
I had minutes.
Skidding into the elevator, I punched the button for the surface.
I felt power building like a nuclear detonation. Feeding on all the death and bones and history of the world, preparing to make me join them.