Chapter 13 · Steal the Starlight - Chapter 13: The Switch Flips

"Don't touch me!" Wren snaps it and shoves my hand off her chest.

Her palm hits mine hard. Too hard. Her fingers are shaking.

"Wren, you are literally cracking open," I say. "Let me see."

"I'm fine." She says it with that camera smile still glued on. "I'm fine, Ellis. Back off."

She's not fine. Not even close.

Black lines are crawling up her throat from under her suit. Like someone took a marker and drew lightning across her skin. And every time she breathes, they pulse. Bright, then dark. Bright, then dark.

Cade grabs my wrist before I can try again. "Don't. You touch her right now and you both blow."

"What?" I yank against him. "She's the one with the switch now, right? So I can—"

"No, you can't." His grip tightens. "Your power crushes. Her power burns. That switch just jumped into her core. You lay your glitch on top of that and it feedbacks. You want to watch her heart stop?"

Wren makes this small, pissed-off noise. "Stop talking about me like I'm not here."

"You're cracking," I say again. Louder this time. "Wren, look down."

"I know what I look like.