Chapter 6

JASE

"It's been two weeks," Mel says as I sip on the whiskey, not turning to face her as the darkness around me tries to hide my misery.

"And you've had me watched for both weeks," I mutter dryly, the clanking of the ice rattling louder in the otherwise quiet room.

I've done nothing but stare at the picture of Aria and me together for days now. We were so happy in that photo. My life is... It's over now. Mel just can't seem to accept that.

"When you stop acting like you're going to commit suicide, I'll stop having a guard watch you. She's gone, Jase. Burned and buried. There's nothing you can do about it. And it's not your fault. How can we kill these bastards if we're all worried about you?"

I snort derisively while refilling my glass. "You're the only one worried about me. Your counter wants me dead, Araya wants me dead, Kellan wants me dead... I want me dead, Mel. You're the only one who can't seem to understand the big picture—Aria is dead because of me."

My sob escapes me, and the glass falls from my hand as I cradle my face, bending over as the stabs of pain wash over me and steal my breath. Just as Mel nears me, something inside my head starts pounding, a painful rush of a projected thought that almost tears through my brain.

I cry out while dropping to the ground, gripping my head, and Mel rushes to my side.

"Cerium," the voice says, and it vanishes with the pain in the next second.

My breath comes to me in a rush, and I drop to my back as I slowly wrap my mind around what just happened.

"Fuck," I blurt out, stumbling to my feet as Mel is knocked away by my frantic hands. "She's alive. I just heard her."

The look on her face tells me as much as her mind.

"I'm not crazy, Mel. I heard her. I fucking heard her! Call everyone. Now!"