Siren's Mark

Chapter 40

Bloody hell, what is wrong with me? I'm losing my cool over nothing.

I can't help it. My body seems as if it's operating entirely on autopilot.

This is exactly why you don't fuck with lethe, you ignorant wanker.

I lean closer to take in more of the scent. I can feel it as it hits every single cell in my system, burning like saltwater in a wound.

A series of images flash in my mind: Gas station. My apartment. Kieran. The Pike. Random street. Kami. Kieran's truck. Hospital. Purple hair. Grey eyes.

"Just follow the arrows to B Campus..." the girl's voice rings in my head.

Grey eyes.

"Fuck!" I say, releasing Kieran's shoulder.

"You okay?" he asks.

"What are the odds that was it and I'm all caught up?" I ask.

"Yeah uh," Kami says, "I think you'll know."

I feel a sharp pain in my temple, like an ice pick to the head.

The Pike. My car. Ava's flat. Grey eyes. A kiss.

"Fuck," I say, falling to my knees and gripping my head.

I look at Kieran whose eyes are inspecting me carefully.

It's Ava. The scent on him is Ava.

"Where did you go?" I ask through my clenched jaw. "After the Pike, I came here. Where did you go?"

"Okay, okay," Kieran says with a defensive posture. "I went to go see Ava."

I stand and swing for him but he dodges.

"Of fucking course you did," I sneer. "I blow it and you try to swoop in and play the hero. You're trying to manipulate her because you think you have a shot."

"Wow, Z-Man, glad to finally hear what you really think of me," he snaps.

I swing at him again but he grabs my arm and extends his claws, digging them into my skin.

"I was making sure she was okay," he says with a tight jaw. "And trying to fucking undo some of the damage you've done with this little bullshit breakdown you've been having."

I want to tear him apart, but it occurs to me that the one who really deserves my fury is me.

"Fuck," I say, pulling out of his grip and resting my forehead on the nearby wall.

More images flash across my vision; memories of voices, places, touches... and grey eyes.

"You helped make it go away."

An inhuman scream claws its way out of my throat.

"I mean like, you have wings and all, but so do penguins."

My eyes sting and I grip desperately at my head in a futile attempt to make it stop.

"I love you too."

My skull pounds and I feel tears run down my cheeks.

Fuck.

"Wh-... Why?... I don't understand."

Stop.

"You want this settled, Zane? Fine. We're settled."

*****

I open my eyes to my white ceiling in the mid-day sun, squinting and pulling a hand up to shield myself from the brightness. My eyes are dry, my throat is raw, and there's a high-pitched ringing in my ears.