Dark Flame (The Immortals #4)(48)

“Drina!” He whispers, cigarette tumbling from his lips and burning a hole in the carpet as his eyes drink me in. Seeing creamy pale skin, pink rosy lips, and a blaze of coppery red hair that falls over my shoulders, as I kneel down before him, extinguish the cigarette between my long, tapered fingers, and place my hands on his knees.

“My God—it—it can’t be—is it really—?” He shakes his head and rubs his eyes, gazing into ones the color of emeralds and wanting so badly to believe.

I close my eyes, enjoying the feel of him, the chill of him, sliding my hands ever higher, up over his knees, all the way to his thighs, so close to getting what I want, moving higher still, and then—

Haven is behind me. Her eyes blazing, hands curled into fists, and I can’t help but wonder just how long she’s been watching, since I didn’t even hear her come in, didn’t even sense her for that matter. But then, Haven’s of no real consequence here. She’s merely the annoying barrier that’s got a bad habit of getting in my way. One I can easily obliterate.

“What the fug do you think you’re doing, Ever?” She moves toward me, her harsh, narrowed gaze raking over me, meant to intimidate, but it won’t work, can’t work, she just doesn’t know it yet.

“Ever?” Roman squints, his eyes darting between us, unable to see what she sees. “What’re you talking about, luv, this isn’t Ever—it’s—”

But that’s all it takes, the mere suggestion of her words and he’s able to see me, see right through the fa?ade I created.

“Bloody hell!” He shouts, pushing me away so hard I fly across the room, over a table, and into a chair, before I land next to where Haven is standing. “What kind of crap move you trying to pull, anyway?” He scowls, furious at having been played like that.

I swallow hard, my eyes never once leaving his, as Haven moves toward me in a swirl of black leather and lace, her frosty cold breath slamming my cheek as the bite of her nails cuts into my wrist. “Don’t you have somewhere else to be?” she says, the words ground out from behind tightly clenched teeth. “Seriously, Ever, does Damen know you’re here?”

Damen.

The name stirring something—something down deep. Something that causes my hand to clutch at my amulet as I take a tiny step back.

Her gaze scathing, face creased with fury, when she says, “You really can’t stand it, can you? Can’t stand for me to have something you don’t.” She shakes her head. “Warning me against Roman, trying to scare me away so you could have him all to yourself. Well, I’ve got news for you, Ever—I’m changed. Changed in ways you can’t even begin to imagine.” And though I try to yank my hand away, try to step back and break free, her grip’s too strong, too determined, and if her eyes are any indication, she’s far from through with me. “You’ve no business here. You shouldn’t have come. I don’t want you here, Roman doesn’t want you here—can’t you see what a joke you’ve become?” She focuses on my acnesplattered chin, my newly sunken chest—the exact opposite of her porcelain-skinned perfection and well-defined curves. “Why don’t you just turn around and go back to wherever you came from, okay? I live by my own rules now, and this is how it goes: You don’t get the heck out, you try to overstay your visit and do something crazy, and you’re the one who’s gonna get hurt.” Her fingers snake around my wrist ’til they’re flush with her thumb, her eyes never once straying from mine. “You look like crap. A snaggle-haired, zit-faced wreck.” She shakes her head in a shiny whirl of black wavy strands and platinum-tinged bangs. “What happened, Ever? Damen change his mind about wanting to spend the rest of eternity with you and cut off your elixir supply?”

I open my mouth, wanting to speak, but no words will come. So I switch my gaze to Roman, begging, pleading for him to step in and help me, but he just waves it away, his eyes signaling he’s finished with me. Now that he knows I’m not Drina, I’m on my own.

Left with no other choice, I raise my wrist, the one she’s gripping so hard it’s gone white and numb, and flip her around so suddenly, so unexpectedly, her back’s flush to my chest before she can fight it.

My lips tipped toward her ear when I say, “Sorry, but I just won’t tolerate that kind of talk.” Feeling her struggle against me, trying to break free, but it’s no use, no one beats the monster, no one but—

My gaze wanders to the gilt-framed mirror hanging before us, struck by our image—Haven’s hate-filled gaze a perfect match for my own—with my own face so angry, so distorted so—monstrous—I hardly recognize it. Finally able to see what they’ve seen all along, the complete degradation of what I’ve become.

My fingers loosen, just enough to allow her to break free. Spinning on me in a cloud of fury, fist held high, a map of all seven chakras held firmly in mind.

But before she can complete the swing, I’m gone. The excruciatingly loud crack of her back hitting the wall lingering behind as I push her off and flee for the street.

Assuring myself she’ll be fine, just fine, immortals always heal.

But no longer sure if I will.





twenty-one


When I reach the store, I expect to find Jude, but instead the door is locked and the sign flipped to closed. And after trying and failing to unlock it with my mind, I fumble through my bag, searching for the key with fingers so shaky, I end up dropping it twice before I finally get in. Whizzing past the bookshelves and CD racks so quickly, I forget about the fixture of angel figurines to my right and slam it so hard they crash to the ground in a pile of broken pieces and heavy shards of glass. But I don’t stop to fix it. Don’t even give it a second look. I just keep going, making my way into the back room and over to the desk where I pull out the chair and completely collapse.