Chapter 27 · Blood on the Clock

Carson's blood was everywhere.

Not on the floor. Not in his veins where it belonged. Somewhere under the city, moving through tunnels I couldn't see, feeding the gate like a slow drip into a hungry mouth. I felt it through the pact. Every pull. Every beat. His heartbeat stuttering, trying to keep up with what Sera was stealing.

We had an hour.

Maybe less.

"Get Jonah out," Carson said. His voice was scraped raw. He was on his knees next to the cracked pillar, one hand pressed to his chest like he could hold his blood in if he just tried hard enough. "Mia. Listen to me. Get him out and run."

"Shut up."

"I mean it." He looked up at me, and his eyes were wrong. Too bright. Too much gold bleeding through the gray. The curse was crawling back in, and the silver wasn't stopping it anymore. "Cut the pact. You can still—"

"I said shut up."

I grabbed his wrist and pressed my palm over the marriage mark. The black lines flared hot under my skin, and I felt the gate pull harder. It wanted in. It wanted him.