“But Dawson…?”
Daemon looked at me. “Like I said, I’m incredibly selfish when it comes to you.”
I honestly didn’t know what to say.
He sighed as he rubbed his palm along his jaw. “If we ended up destroying the piece of opal, then you go in there with nothing backing you up. Matthew, Dawson, and I are Luxen. We are going to be stronger than you. We won’t tire as easily. We don’t need the piece of opal, not like you do.”
“But—”
“I’m not willing to risk it. If breaking up the opal weakens it, then how does it really help you out?” He shook his head. “We don’t need the extra boost. You do.”
My shoulders slumped at the finality in his words. Frustration swelled inside me. It wasn’t that I didn’t get what he was saying, we just didn’t agree.
Later on, Daemon retrieved the opal from wherever his hidey-hole was and pressed it into my palm, wrapping his hand around mine as we stood on my porch. Night birds sung out around us, a canopy of chirps and calls. The spring roses I’d planted after school a week before filled the air with a clean, fresh scent.
It would be romantic if I didn’t want to punch him in the face.
“I know you’re mad.” His eyes met mine. “But this makes me feel better about everything. Okay?”
“A few days ago you told Dawson that nothing was going to go wrong.”
“I did, but just in case… I want you to be able to get out no matter what.”
My heart stuttered. “What…what are you saying?”
He smiled, but it was forced and I hated it. “If something goes wrong, I want you to get out of there. If you have to leave this damn town or state, do it. And if for whatever reason I can’t get out of there, you don’t stop. Do you understand?”
Air rushed out of my lungs painfully. “You want me to leave you?”
Daemon’s eyes were brilliant as he nodded. “Yes.”
“No,” I cried out, wrenching away. “I will never leave you behind, Daemon.”
He clasped my cheeks, holding me still. “I know—”
“No you don’t!” I grasped his wrists, my fingers biting into his skin. “Would you leave me behind if something happened to me?”
“No.” His face twisted into a fierce scowl. “I would never do that.”
“Then how can you ask me to do the same?” I was close to tears, mainly because I couldn’t bear the idea of Daemon being captured, suffering what his brother had. “You can’t.”
“I’m sorry.” The lines of his face softened and he bent his head, quickly kissing me. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have asked you to do that.”
I blinked furiously. “How could you even consider asking me to do something like that?” Now I really wanted to sock him, because my heart was racing and terrible, horrific images were in my head. But then…then I realized something.
“You caved pretty easily,” I whispered, distrustful.
He laughed, sliding his arms around my shoulders, pulling me against him. “I just understand what you mean.”
Uh, yeah, this was odd. I tipped my head back, searching his face for a telltale sign. But all I saw was tenderness and a bit of the smug self-assurance that was always there. I didn’t bother asking him if he was hiding anything, because I doubted he’d ’fess up, and I wanted to believe that he’d seen the error of his ways.
But I wasn’t stupid.
Chapter 35
On the afternoon before prom, Dee stood in my bedroom, twisting my hair around a medium-barrel curling iron. While the conversation started off a bit awkward, it eased up about halfway through the styling process. The conversation was light and easy by the time she’d pinned my hair up in an intricate design that showed off all her hard work.
I was applying my own eye makeup when she sat on the edge of my bed, her hands clasped in her lap. She’d gone with a simple twist—a ponytail with her hair wrapped around it in a thick bun, a classic look that showed off her angular face perfectly.
Rubbing my pinkie under my eye, I blended the brown eyeliner. “Are you excited about tonight?”
She shrugged. “I just want to do it, because, you know, it’s our last year. It’s probably going to be our last year together—all of us—and I want to experience it. I know Adam would want me to go and have fun.”
I placed the eyeliner in my bag and rooted around for my mascara. “He would,” I said, glancing back into the bedroom. “He seemed like the kind of guy who would want the best for you, no matter what it meant for him.”
A smile flickered and faded. “He was.”
With a sense of sadness, I turned back to the mirror and my gaze dropped to the golden tube. She should be with Adam tonight. “Dee, I’m—”
“I know.” One second she was on the bed and the next she was standing in the doorway. Her lower half faded out and wow, was that weird to see. “I know you’re sorry. I know you never intended for Adam to die.”
I turned toward her, twisting the piece of obsidian between my fingers. “I would change everything if I could.”
Her gaze flickered away from me, settling over my shoulder. “Are you scared about tomorrow night?”
Facing the mirror once more, I blinked back tears. For a moment, it had felt like we’d come so far, but then the door had been slammed in my face. Okay, maybe we had come somewhere, but not as far as I wanted to.
So, stop being a wussy, I ordered myself. That’s a lot of makeup to waste.