Chapter 6 · Say I Do or Bleed

The watch swings on its chain like a pendulum counting down to something I don't want to see.

I'm standing in front of the warehouse door, and Evan's blood is still wet inside the key's teeth. My hand won't stop shaking. Julian's behind me, leaning against the wall because he can barely stand. The curse mark's halfway to his heart now, black veins crawling under his shirt collar. Sera's got one hand on her gun and the other pressed to the gash in her side.

Nobody's saying what we're all thinking. That Evan left this here. That he knew I'd come.

"Open it," Julian says. His voice is rough, like every word costs him.

I want to tell him to shut up. I want to scream at him that my mother's key warned me not to open anything for a Cross, and here I am about to do exactly that. But Evan's blood is right there, dark red in the grooves, and I can't walk away.

I slide the key into the lock.

It turns smooth, too smooth, like the door's been waiting. The whole frame shudders.