Chapter Thirteen

Kylie

S creams echo through the darkness, pulling me from the depths of unconsciousness. My body throbs with pain, every nerve ending on fire. I don't know where I am or what's happening. All I know is pain and anguish.

God, it hurts so bad.

Where am I?

What happened?

"Kylie! Kylie, goddammit, wake up!" I'd know that voice anywhere. It's Memphis—my Memphis—but his voice is choked with a kind of torment I've never heard before. He sounds as if he's burning alive. He's in so much pain. Even his hands on my shoulders shake as if he's in danger of vibrating apart at the seams.

I fight to open my eyes but they're so heavy. My eyes flutter, revealing his haunted blue eyes, wet with tears and brimming with desperation.

"Mem…phis," I mumble, his name slurring on my lips. Something is wrong. I feel it in my bones, as if I'm teetering on the edge of death. God. Am I dying?

I can't. Not before I warn him… What?

"Venom," I gasp, choking on the name. Memphis needs to know; he has to be prepared.

But Memphis shushes me, his voice thick with emotion. "Shh, baby," he murmurs, tears streaming down his rugged face, dripping onto mine. "Shh. You don't have to worry about him anymore. You don't have to worry about him ever again."

Relief floods through me, but it doesn't wash away the exhaustion weighing down my limbs.

Why am I so tired?

Maybe I should just close my eyes for a little while. Just for a little bit.

"I love you," I whisper, the words slipping free without conscious thought.

"Kylie," he chokes, his face a mess of anguish and adoration, his grip tightening as if he's afraid I'll slip away.

I take a shuddering breath, my eyes falling closed.

Memphis sobs my name…and the world goes dark again.