Chapter 25 · Under the Moon Crack

The moon crack spat me out on stone.

I hit the ground hard enough to knock the air out of my lungs. Cold bit into my palms. My neck burned where the mark sat, hot and angry, like Theron had grabbed it and twisted.

I rolled onto my back and tried to breathe. The sky above me wasn't a sky. It was black and silver and moving, like oil on water, and the moon—the moon was split down the middle, bleeding light that felt wrong. Too bright. Too cold.

"Get up."

Theron's voice.

I turned my head. He stood a few feet away, backlit by that broken moon, and his eyes were reflecting it. Silver all the way through. No pupil. No human left in there.

"Get up," he said again. "We don't have much time."

I pushed myself onto my elbows. Everything hurt. My ribs, my wrists, my neck. Especially my neck. The mark was pulsing now, and every beat sent a spike of heat down my spine.

"Time for what?" I asked. My voice came out rough.

Theron smiled. It wasn't a good smile. "To open the door."

I looked around. We weren't anywhere I recognized.