Chapter 66 · The Pain We Share

"Let go of the gate, Ronan!" I shouted. "You're not holding it. It's holding you."

His hand stayed locked around the manual lever.

Black veins crawled up his wrist, glowing silver beneath the tower's red emergency lights. Every pulse dragged his arm another inch toward the core.

"If I let go," he ground out, "the west locks open."

"And if you stay there, the core cooks you alive. Pick a better option."

He looked over his shoulder at me. Sweat slid down his temple. His coat was ripped open at the ribs, blood soaking through the shirt beneath it.

Still, he gave me that cold High Warden stare. The one that had made entire districts lock their doors.

"You always did hate my options."

"I hated the one where you rejected me in front of half the city." I stepped closer. "This one's just stupid."

The lever jerked in his grip.

Ronan's knees slammed into the metal platform.

I lunged for him, but heat cracked through the gap between us. It punched through my gloves and seared my palm.

I stumbled back. "Damn it!"

"Mara!" His voice broke. "Stay away from the core.