23. Kali

"No," I breathed out in a tortured whisper.

Warner stayed sitting on top of me, pure hatred in his eyes as he glared at me. His blond hair was a mess from being under the mask, and the rain instantly soaked it. His features were twisted into a scowl as he tried to pin my arms down. I struggled against him, but I couldn't focus fully. Not when it was him. I couldn't kill Warner. Couldn't fucking do it.

He was still under Zan's entrancement, which meant he thought I'd betrayed him. Betrayed the Clovers. In a way, I had. But in his mind, I was the reason Clovers had died. Why Zan had escaped. It was scrawled all over his face. He detested me.

"Warner," I choked out. "Wait?—"

"We've been watching you all week," he hissed, his eyes blazing with fury. "Sitting out here with him. A fucking vampire. You chose him over me. Over your family. You chose wrong."

"I didn't," I screamed, my voice cracking. "You don't know everything. Give me a chance to explain."

My heart jumped when he hesitated. There was a flicker of indecision in his eyes for a split second. He stayed silent as water ran down his face, and I saw the boy I'd grown up with. Even after everything he thought I'd done, he still cared for me. If he didn't, then he would have put a bullet in my back before I even had a chance to fight back.

"Let me explain," I said more softly. "Please."

His jaw ticked, and his attention went toward the stairs. I turned my head, seeing Zan still fighting with two men at the bottom of the steps. The others were sprawled in the sand, unmoving. He dove on top of one of them, ripping the mask off and lowering his head until he could reach the man's neck. It was hard to see through the rain, but the guy's pained scream reached my ears as Zan ripped into his throat.

"He kills Clovers. Humans," Warner growled, his eyes swinging back to me. "And you sit at his side like a good little pet. What does he have on you? He can't fucking entrance you."

He was so angry. So confused. I bit my lip, pain slicing through my heart. I couldn't tell him the truth. Even if I did, there was nothing he could do. I couldn't leave the vampires, and if he knew how deep I was in this, he'd try to save me. Which would end up with him dead.

"Kali."

Zan's enraged yell had both Warner and me looking at him again. He was striding across the beach, anger radiating from him. The other men were lying on the beach, and I doubted they were still alive.

Warner muttered a curse, rolling off me. My stomach lurched when I realized he was going after his gun. I jumped to my feet, going after him. I lowered my shoulder, ramming into him as he reached for the weapon. He let out a grunt as he nearly lost his footing.

I couldn't hurt Warner, but I didn't want him hurting Zan either. My emotions tearing me apart nearly stole my breath. I didn't want either of them dying on this beach, but I didn't see this ending well.

Before I could do anything else, Zan appeared and gripped the back of Warner's neck, flinging him away from me and the gun. Warner landed in a heap on the wet sand, and before he could get up, Zan was already on him. He grabbed Warner's arm, hauling him to his feet before wrapping his hand around his throat. Warner couldn't get a sound out, and I wasn't sure if he could even breathe.

"Don't," I shrieked, panic clawing in my chest. "Zan, don't hurt him."

Zan didn't spare me a glance as he forced Warner to look into his eyes. Black and red blood covered Zan's body, the rain slowly washing away most of it except what was already staining his clothes. He must have relaxed his hold slightly, because Warner sucked in a deep breath before speaking.

"Let me go," Warner snarled, disgust smothering his voice. "You son of a bitch?—"

"Quiet," Zan demanded, his voice nearly vibrating with anger. "I want you to remember. Remember what I told you to forget."

Warner's eyes glazed over as the entrancement worked its magic, his body sagging in Zan's hold. My teeth chattered from the cold rain, and I wrapped my arms around myself as Warner stared past Zan, as if lost in his own thoughts.

"Remember it all," Zan said in a low voice.

Warner stayed quiet for a while until he suddenly sucked in a sharp breath. His wide eyes went from Zan to me, and pain filled his face. Zan released him and stepped back as Warner's gaze snapped back to him.

"You," Warner growled, anger sweeping over his face. "You did this. You took her away."

"I did," Zan replied calmly. "And she's staying here."

Warner continued to glare at him as he stepped to the side and cautiously moved past Zan as he looked at me. He strode toward me, wrapping me in a tight embrace that had my heart aching. I hugged him back, my gaze going over his shoulder. Zan was watching, a frown on his face and his body tense. But he didn't move to interrupt us.

Tears filled my eyes, and I choked back a sob as I squeezed Warner. I didn't think this would ever happen. I never expected to see him again. The rain finally began to ease up until it was only drizzling.

"Fuck, Kali," Warner muttered into my wet hair. "He entranced me to hate you. Because you told him to do it. We almost killed you today."

"Don't give your group too much credit," Zan spoke up, his voice mocking. "You were nowhere close to killing us."

"Leave with me," Warner whispered, as if Zan couldn't hear his every word. "We can tell the Clovers what really happened."

Zan's eyes didn't leave mine as Warner continued to hug me. "That won't be happening. Try it, and I'll entrance you. And this time I'll make sure you don't come back here ever again."

Warner let me go, spinning around to face Zan. "You fucking bastard. Just let her go."

"No," Zan said simply.

"Warner." I moved until I was standing in front of him and placed my hands on his wet shirt. "Don't fight him about it. I'm not leaving. Even if I did, the Clovers would never see me as trustworthy again. I can't go back to them. You know that."

"Then I'll leave," he bit out, grabbing my shoulders as if trying to shake sense into me. "You and me, Kali. We can survive together."

"How'd you know about this beach?" Zan asked, his voice turning dangerous. "How long have you been watching?"

"Tim found it before PARA raided the city," Warner clipped out. "It was impossible to get into the city without raising suspicion, but then we saw you out here one night. We kept watching until today."

"Who else knows I can walk in the sun?"

Warner didn't respond, and I let out a protest when Zan moved to my side and roughly grabbed Warner's jaw.

"Who else knows?" Zan repeated, using entrancement to get an honest answer.

"The four men you just killed," Warner answered in a monotone voice.

"Why haven't you told anyone else?"

"We haven't gone back to camp yet."

"How long have you been out here?"

"A week."

Zan stared at him thoughtfully. "What else have you learned since watching me out here?"

"Nothing. We couldn't hear you. Only watch."

"You couldn't find a way into the city?"

"No." Warner's face remained blank. "Not a quiet way."

"Zan, stop," I begged. "I just want to talk to him for a few minutes."

"This is a fucking problem, Kali," Zan said tightly. "I let him go once, and look what happened."

"You won't hurt him," I said, keeping my voice strong. "I know you won't."

Zan cocked his head, breaking eye contact with Warner to look at me. "Really?"

"Yes." I lifted my chin. "You care about me. Hurting him will hurt me."

Zan muttered a curse before dropping his hand from Warner's face. "You have five minutes to talk. Then he leaves, or I change my mind, and he ends up back in a cage at Impulse."

I couldn't tell whether he was bluffing, but he walked away before I could argue about it. He headed back toward the men that were sprawled in the sand. Warner watched him with loathing in his eyes.

"It's good to see you," I said, pulling his attention back to me. "I miss you."

"Come with me." There was a desperate edge in his voice. "We can disappear."

I messed with the necklace locked around my neck. "I can't."

"What's keeping you here?" he exploded, his eyes going to the gun still on the sand. "Him? We can kill him and run."

I blew out a humorless laugh. "Kill him? He just took out four Clovers, Warner. You can't kill him."

"We can," he said quietly. "It's two against one."

"No." My answer was firm, and he stared at me like he had no idea who I was. "You're going to leave. And act like you never saw me."

"What? No?—"

"Warner, I can't leave," I cut him off. "I have nowhere to go. PARA wants me. The Clovers want to kill me. I would only be able to survive for so long on my own."

He gaped at me. "What happened to you? The Kali I knew would rather die trying to survive than bow to vampires."

"You have no idea what's been going on," I snapped, my own anger rising. "Don't judge me when you know nothing, Warner."

"Are you choosing vampires over us?" he asked under his breath, his eyes darting to Zan, who had his back to us. "Over humans? Over me?"

I shook my head in a silent answer. "I love you, Warner. But I'm staying here. You need to accept that so you can leave."

He stared at me, and I could tell he wanted to ask all the questions. Like if I was still on his side. If I was using the information I was learning here to help the Clovers. Whether I was really still the girl he knew. But he didn't dare voice any of that when Zan was listening.

"So much is changing," he finally mumbled. "The Clovers are standing up against PARA. Citizens are getting antsy. There are more rules. Less freedom in the cities. Something big is coming, Kali. Another war."

I smiled sadly. "The war never ended. Can't you see that? It calmed down, but there's no ending it. Humans and vampires will never peacefully co-exist."

"All the more reason to leave," he pressed.

"I haven't turned my back on humans," I said softly. "Trust me, Warner. I'm right where I want to be."

Surprise flashed in his eyes, and he stared at me intently, his mouth opening before he glanced down the beach. He swallowed his words, only giving me a nod. My words made it seem like I was staying to help the Clovers. To uncover information that could be useful.

And I was. But would I ever be able to use it? Probably not. But Warner didn't know that. If that was what he thought, it would make it easier to get him to walk away from me. He needed to let me go, and this was the best way to do it.

"Time's up."

Zan stepped up to my side, sliding his arm around my waist. Warner's eyes narrowed into slits watching Zan tighten his possessive hold on me.

"Take your friend and go," Zan ordered in a dangerously soft voice. "Before I change my mind."

Shock engulfed me as I turned to see one of the men standing a few feet away. He was staring at us but not really seeing. Zan must have entranced him to forget all of this. Blood covered the side of his face, and his eye was swollen shut, but I couldn't deny my surprise that Zan had left him alive. Warner gritted his teeth, his gaze cutting back to me.

"If you can leave, find me," he said gruffly. "We're staying?—"

"Don't," Zan warned.

Warner glared at him defiantly. "We're staying a few hours from here. You know where Project Faith is. There's a bridge ten miles north. Our camp is near there."

Project Faith was another safe city, just like Project Hope. I'd heard of it, but I'd never ventured close to it.

I nodded, acknowledging his words. Zan let me go, not giving Warner a chance to look away before he entranced him again. My heart pounded against my ribs as I wondered what Zan was going to say.

"Are you going to tell the Clovers about this?" Zan asked.

"No."

"Why?"

"To protect Kali."

"Don't come back here," Zan commanded. "Tell the Clovers that there is no way into my city. Only more of your men will die if you try. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

"You will forget that I can walk in the sun." Zan was protecting his secret, but relief filled me that he wasn't doing more. Warner would leave here knowing I hadn't betrayed him. He wouldn't hate me anymore. Even if I didn't see him again, that thought still made me feel better.

Zan released his mind control hold, and Warner blinked before stumbling back. I swallowed through the lump in my throat, lunging forward and giving Warner one last hug.

"Be careful," I whispered. "I'll see you soon."

My last words were lies, but he didn't need to know that. This still hurt, but it was nowhere near as painful as the last goodbye when we were in the cabin.

"Bye, Kali," Warner murmured, looking conflicted before backing away from me. "Stay alive."

Zan looked at the other Clover. "Go."

Both he and Warner made their way to the stairs, and soon they disappeared from view. I heard the truck engines, and a couple of seconds later, I watched as the vehicles tore down the road.

"Do I have to worry?" Zan asked in a low voice.

I looked at him with a frown. "Worry about what?"

"You going to find him now that you know where he's at."

I rolled my eyes. "Sure, Zan. I'll walk right into a camp full of Clovers who want me dead."

My sarcasm didn't help, and he scowled as we walked across the beach. I was positive that if he was able to entrance me, he would. If only to just make me forget that I knew where Warner was. Zan knew I still wasn't completely happy here. That I would choose to be with humans rather than vampires if I had a choice. Warner telling me about his camp location was another avenue I could use to try and leave.

"Let's go," he said gruffly. "I'm taking you home, and then I have to clean this up."

My gaze drifted to the bodies in the sand. More Clovers dead. If Warner was right about how tense things were getting in the cities, more death would happen. Were the Clovers large enough to be a threat against PARA? And even if they were, what good would it do when Amaros Kane was still planning something?