48. Skel

Icouldn’t get the sight of Nyx kissing Pandora’s cheek this afternoon out of my fucking head. It didn’t matter how much fae magic I smoked or how high I was. What was worse was that I didn’t hate Nyx. I wanted to, but more than that, I wanted to be him. She’d been on my lap, getting high and being fucking cute, and then…I got scared of her.

Terror of death clouded my judgment of her, and now, I was reaping what I fucking sowed.

But what was worse was knowing that Darkmore’s fear may not have been made up. It might’ve been something true. Seeing Pandora bloodied again that night changed something inside of me. But more than that, it just pissed me off.

It pissed me off how much I fucking cared.

Bram, Dex, and I were headed to Occult Arch to just hang out this evening, trudging through the sand. I was wrapped in the lethargic embrace of my fae-induced haze when everything seemed to rip apart.

The scent of decay filled the air as we approached the arch, sickening and sweet like rotting fruit, and we stumbled upon a fucking dark magic-infected body. It lay within the confines of a dark magic circle, its edges dark and shimmering with an aura of malevolence. The stench of sulfur was tangible, clawing at the back of my throat.

Dex”s scream pierced the air as he dropped to his knees, clutching his head, and it was laced with raw terror. His face is twisted in agony. “Fuck, no!”

The guy”s usually fucking off, but this was weirder than usual.

Bram”s voice cut through the air, sharp and commanding, even though he’d definitely been drinking. “Skel, get Dex the fuck away from it. I”ll go get fucking Darkmore.”

With a slow nod, I tried to focus and put an arm around Dex. I could feel the fear magic itching under my skin, eager to seep out and create illusions from the depths of anyone and everyone’s mind. But I pushed it down, the rainbow smoke from my fae pipe encircling us both.

I dragged him all the way to our room before rushing back, but as I approached the arch, I noticed Pandora walking this way.

Jealousy burned hot in my veins, but I shoved it down. “Don’t come over here!”

Pandora’s frown on her pretty lips deepened, and she stomped closer. “What is your problem with me, Skel? I know for a fact that the night you comforted me after my nightmare meant something. So why do you?—”

She dropped to her knees in the sand, her head turning toward the dark magic circle and body enclosed. With a violent burst of her magic, death smoke tumbled from her open mouth and covered the scene. Utterly fucking covered it. Everything was consumed by dark, viscous clouds.

The body inside had looked dead, but maybe there was a soul inside. She was drawing in what seemed to be the dark magic like a siphon, and her body convulsed with each second that passed by.

“Pandora,” I blurted her name, fear paralyzing me. I was rooted to my spot, unable to do anything.

It went on for a few more moments before the smoke entered her again, and she slumped all the way to the ground, eyes fluttering shut.

I sucked in a sharp, painful breath, but my muscles were stiff from fear at what I had just witnessed.

Then, Darkmore was suddenly there, dropping into the sand and pulling Pandora into his lap. He cradled her head, his lips touching her forehead in a gesture so tender it felt…invasive to watch. “I’ve got you, starlight,” he murmured, a promise that seemed to reverberate through the very air.

How close was she to the counselor?

Bram strolled up next to me with a closed-off expression as he took in the scene in front of him. “Dex is in your room.”

Darkmore rose to his feet, his gaze sweeping over Bram and I. “I need to call Death. You two need to leave.”

I hesitated, the offer to carry Pandora to her room on the tip of my tongue, but Darkmore’s stern gaze told me no before I could speak. Bram and I were left there, the confusion and anger nothing but a bitter end to the night.

Bram”s fists were clenched as he spat out, “Of course she”s fucking a noble councilman. Reed Nyx surprised me, but Hunter Darkmore? That makes more fucking sense than I’d like it to.”

As for me? The hurt that lodged itself deep within my chest was an agonizing surprise. I took a long drag from my pipe, letting the smoke fill my lungs, a desperate attempt to numb the sudden ache. I couldn”t figure out why it stung, why the sight of Pandora in Darkmore’s arms twisted something inside me.

What had she even been about to say before her powers took over? The night we had gotten high together meant something to her? If it did, then why did she let me pull back? Why did everyone let me pull back?

When would someone fight for me? Or was I too far gone for anyone to put out the effort?

My legs were still frozen with the fear of death after seeing Pandora’s soul eater magic erupt. It was a lingering vision that not even my fae pipe could chase away. For once in my fucking life, I wished I could unleash the fear magic within me to create an illusion where none of this mattered. Where Pandora wasn”t lying unconscious in Darkmore’s arms and where my heart didn”t feel like it had been scraped raw.

I was left with the taste of fae smoke on my tongue and a question that had no right to exist.

Why did seeing her like that, with him and with Nyx, hurt so damn much?