Tremble (Denazen #3)(4)
He stepped across the threshold, blue eyes on mine for a moment before moving to Kiernan. “Are—are you okay?”
I started to reach for him, the smile on my face going from ear to ear and probably making me look goofier than the Cheshire Cat. “I—”
“I’m fine,” Kiernan said, knocking my hand away. She shoved me aside, stepped around, and as I watched in shock, pulled him close.
With a wink, she twisted and covered his mouth with hers, and my entire world grew dark. It was like Jade all over again—only worse because of the way he responded. Fingers knotting into the back of her shirt, he dragged her tightly against him like he couldn’t bear the thought of space between them.
I wanted to move—needed to move—but it was like my feet were superglued to the tile. The feeling that built in the pit of my chest was like acid. Chipping and chewing away at the bones until it reached my heart. And it did. The burning sensation, followed by a total lack of oxygen in the room, made me dizzy. I couldn’t look away and I couldn’t breathe. This was a nightmare. That was the only explanation. At the moment, I was warm and safe in my bed, snoring softly while this horrific scene played out in my head. It couldn’t be real. I knew that for several reasons.
First, my Kale would never be sucking face with Kiernan. She’d betrayed us all. He might want to touch her, but there sure as hell wouldn’t be kissing involved. Second—and more importantly—my Kale couldn’t suck face with Kiernan. He’d vaporize her on contact.
“What the hell, Dez? You take off like someone lit your ass on fire—” Alex rounded the corner and stopped short when he got to the doorway. “Huh. Someone slipped something into my drink. I’ve obviously entered the Twilight Zone…” He leaned to the side, peering around Kiernan and Kale to me. “You okay?”
“Popular question tonight,” I mumbled, still staring at them. Good. My voice. I found my voice. Maybe that meant air wasn’t far behind.
Kiernan pulled away, grinning like a cat that ate an entire flock of canaries, and hooked a finger possessively through one of the front loops of Kale’s jeans. “She’s fine and dandy as candy.”
“I was on my way back from the bar when I saw this girl run after you. Do you know her?” Kale’s gaze shifted between Alex and me, then fell back to Kiernan. “She looked angry.”
Alex let out a sharp whistle. “You’ve gotta be kidding me, brother man.”
Kale’s expression darkened. “I’m not. Who did you say you were?”
“I didn’t,” Alex answered, taking a step closer.
“Was there something you needed, then?” Kale growled, drawing himself up. “If not, you can leave now.”
With the boys distracted—their dislike of each other apparently transcended memory issues—I grabbed Kiernan’s arm and spun her around. She still hadn’t lost the shit-eating grin and, more than anything, I wanted to wipe it from her face.
Possibly using an electric sander—or a cheese grater. Pavement would have worked, too.
“Told you he wasn’t the same.” She knocked my hand away and pushed back, catching me off guard. I lost my grip on the knife and it bounced across the floor, clattering loudly against the tile before landing at her feet.
It happened fast. We dove for the comb-turned-blade at the same time, but she was just a hair closer and reached it first. There was a whoosh of air as she swung, accompanied by a glint of silver. I dodged the attack and knocked her back against the wall, still determined to get an answer. “What did you do to—”
The rest of the sentence caught in my throat. So did the airflow. Kale had me flipped and pinned against the wall in Kiernan’s place, fingers tight around my neck as she stepped to the side, smiling. Something bubbled in my stomach. Déjà vu. The night we’d met. Only this time the look in his eyes was different. Unapologetic and cruel.
Alex made a move to come forward, but I held up a hand to stop him. Something was wrong—obviously—but Kale was still Kale. And that meant he could flatten Alex without batting an eye, not to mention we had no idea what was going on with his ability.
“I’m asking again, Roz. Do you know this girl?”
“Kiernan,” I said, trying to pry his hands from around my neck.
His fingers relaxed a bit. “What?”
“Her name is Kiernan.” I felt his fingers twitch with each word I spoke, the vibration of my voice making their hold just a bit tighter. “Who the hell is Roz?”
The question seemed to confuse him. Good. I could work with that. Confused Kale was better than homicidal Kale any day of the week. His grip loosened, head tilting a hair to the left. The coolness in his eyes cut like a chainsaw through my core. There was absolutely no recognition there, and it was taking every ounce of my control not to break apart. “Listen to me. I don’t know what they did to you, but you know who I am. I’m Dez. You lo—”
Kiernan sighed and placed a hand on his shoulder, pulling back. I was tempted to hit her, but one look at Kale and I squashed the idea. Something told me that in his current state it wouldn’t go over well. “She’s right, Kale. You do know her…you just don’t remember.”
For an insane moment, I thought for sure she’d had an attack of conscience and was about to come clean. We might get this whole crazy mess sorted without any bloodshed.