THOSE ARCTIC BLUE eyes burned through the sheets of rain flooding the alley.  As blue as the deepest ocean and just as cold.  And yet, something had changed in them.  Something beyond the anger and cruelty now lay there, staring back at me.

A hard tug on my shirt shattered the haze around my mind.

“Koralein, let’s go!” Rex yelled over the falling torrent. 

My feet stumbled, and I jumped into the backseat of a car.  I was crammed between two large bodies as the door slammed shut.

“GO!” Rex yelled to the driver.

I couldn’t help it.  I looked out of the window and even through the steam clouding it, those eyes were still visible.  Watching me.

“Was that really Cassius?”  Maxton’s fingers tightened on the stirring wheel.  “As in Lucius’s brother?  The second ferrum and the second demon?”

“Yes.”  Ian was in the passenger seat, his dark gaze trained on me through the rearview mirror.

“Holy shit,” Alec cursed next to me.  “If Cassius is alive, could Lucius—”

“Lucius is very much alive and here.”  Rex’s body was like a brick wall next to mine, tense and unyielding. 

My life was spiraling out of control.  The more mysteries I uncovered, the more I wished I had never started digging.  I thought my parents’ secrets were monumental, but this?

The blue-eyed demon who was obsessed with turning me so I could be the Bonnie to his demented Clyde was Cassius, the second ferrum ever born and the first who followed Lucius into darkness.  Oh and the other demon that had been stalking me was Lucius himself.

“Koralein, are you all right?”  Rex’s fingers tilted my chin toward him, his chocolate eyes surveying me.  “Did he hurt you?”

I resisted the urge to touch my lips.  Hurt was not what Kye had done.  He kissed me, promised me he’d never leave me, and would never choose anything else over me.  I would always be first.  He even let me hold a damn iron knife to his heart, and in the end, I couldn’t kill him.

What the hell was wrong with me?

“Did he bite you?”  Rex brushed strands of hair from my neck, examining it.  “Did he make you drink his blood?”

I shook my head, catching Ian’s gaze in the rearview mirror again.  He had warned me not to feel sympathy for Cassius.  Had he known he and my blue-eyed demon were one in the same?

Rex forced my eyes to his.  “Are you sure?  Maybe he made you forget.”

“I’m fine,” I lied.  I was so far from fine it was laughable.  The two oldest and most powerful demons were after me.

And the guy sitting next to me was my caetera.  My soulmate.

Why didn’t he tell me?

Those very words were on the tip of my tongue when Maxton suddenly slammed on the breaks, the car skidding to a stop.  Rex’s arm crashed across my torso, keeping me in my seat.  And, oddly enough, Alec did the same thing.

I shot him a cross look.

His cheeks flooded, and he snatched his arm back.  “Whatever,” he mumbled.

Max cursed.  “There’s a damn demon standing in the middle of the road.”  A familiar shape was framed in the front windshield.  Max unbuckled his seatbelt and reached for the door handle.

“NO!” Rex and I yelled in unison.

We both knew who the demon was.

Max looked back at us, his brows furrowed.  “What’s the big deal?  It’s not Kye.”

No.  It was worse.

The figure was no longer in front of the car, but tapping on Alec’s window.

I glared at Alec.  “Don’t do anything stupid.”  I reached for the button to unroll the window.

“Koralein, no,” Rex hissed, grabbing my arm. 

“If he were going to hurt me, would he tap on the window or rip the door off?”  Lorne—A.K.A. Lucius—was the strongest thing that walked the Earth.  If he wanted to snatch me right now, he could.

Rex’s nostrils flared as he released me, his hand curling tightly around an iron knife.  I leaned against a clueless Alec and pressed the button.

Hair dark as midnight was drenched, laying across his forehead.  A pair of deceptively angelic golden eyes bored into mine, long sooty lashes collecting tiny drops of rain.  “Stay away from Cassius, Koralein.”  His low voice was easily heard over the rainstorm.  “He wants to ruin you.”

“And what do you want from me?” I snapped even as my body trembled.  I’d had a lifetime of shit for one night.  Soon I was going to implode. 

He ignored my question, his eyes flickering toward Rex.  “Keep her away from him.  He’ll poison her mind.  He’ll make her follow the darkness.”

“I can stay away from him and the darkness all on my own.”  I hoped my voice sounded more confident than I felt.  “I don’t need you or anyone telling me what to do.  I’m not a child.”

Something unreadable crossed Lorne’s face.  “I know.”

Alec squirmed beneath me, his hand reaching for the knife in his pocket.

I mentally rolled my eyes.  Didn’t I tell him not to do anything stupid?  Lorne could kill him before he could blink.

“Don’t even think about it, kid.”  Lorne skewered Alec with a glare.  “You’ll lose that hand.”

The young ferrum froze. “I bet I’ll get a hit first d—”

I slapped a hand over his mouth.  “Shut up, idiot,” I mumbled under my breath.  When I glanced back, Lorne was gone.

I fell back in my seat, taking a deep, shuddering breath.

“Who the hell was that?” Alec snapped.  “Why couldn’t we go after him?  It’s five against one.”

“That demon was Lucius,” I blurted.  “But by all means, if you think you can take him, be my guest.”

Color drained from Alec’s face.  He licked his lips.  “Are you shitting me?”

“I shit you not.”

Maxton turned around in his seat, his face as pale as his student’s.  “Why the hell is Lucius after you?”

“No idea,” I said, looking out the other window.  Was he still out there?  Was Kye?

Several moments of silence stretched until Ian spoke.  “We need to keep this to ourselves,” he said, glancing around the car.  “No one can know who Kye and Lorne really are.  Not even Headmaster Ashford.”

Rex nodded.  “It would create panic and anyone involved could be in danger.”

Alec blinked.  “People are in danger.  Shouldn’t we warn them?”

“No.”  Max turned forward and put the car in drive again.  “Rex is right.  Too many people knowing this will only make things worse.  The ferrum world would be in pandemonium.”

Oh there was still time for that.

“There’s one thing we should probably tell Ash,” I said, a knot fisting in my chest.  The fate of our entire race was in jeopardy.  Kye’s vision of our future world was a nightmare.

The weight of Rex’s gaze lingered over me.  “What?”

I swallowed hard.  “Kye isn’t killing pureblooded ferrums.  He’s turning them.”

 

Hunters were everywhere when we pulled up to the school.  The guards at the gate almost didn’t let us in until they recognized Maxton in the driver seat.  They shined a flashlight on the rest of us and then waved the car in.  The iron gates quickly closed behind us.

“School’s on lockdown,” Ian said, his dark eyes scanning the grounds as we walked up from the parking lot. 

The rain had stopped, but Rex and I were both soaked.  My skin puckered against the cold air and I clenched my teeth to keep them from chattering.  A familiar sickly sweet scent mixed with death choked the air.  My gaze landed on a demon corpse a few feet away.  One of our sparring instructors was bent over it, checking to ensure it was dead.

The gray skin and raised burgundy veins were a dead giveaway, but you could never be too careful.  Another corpse was a few yards away.

Acid crawled up my throat.  Were there any ferrum casualties or injuries?

I glanced at Alec who walked on my other side.  “Braelyn’s okay, right?”

He gave a quick nod.  “Annabeth took her to the infirmary to get checked out.”

“Kye had wanted to create a diversion.”  Ian jerked his chin toward another demon body.  “They were young and inexperienced.  I doubt he expected any of them to live or do much damage.”

Rex’s fists clenched by his sides and tension rippled through his body.  “He just wanted to keep the school occupied while Nate took Kory.”

I could only imagine what Rex had been going through when he realized I was gone.

My hand slid toward his, my fingers gently trailing over his taut fist.  “I’m all right, Rex.”

His brown eyes met mine, fire still dancing inside them.  “Until he decides to play more games.”  His fist suddenly softened, and his fingers twisted with mine.  The gesture was the complete opposite of the expression he wore.

“Rex!”  Annabeth appeared from around the corner, Portia in tow.

Our hands fell apart, and I stifled the groan trying to claw up my throat.  I was not in the mood to watch Annabeth stare at Rex with worried, lovesick eyes.  And then there was his mother.  Portia was already glaring at me, her lips thinned.  She’d probably seen our fingers connected.

Perfect.

“Is everyone all right?” Rex asked as we came to a stop.

Portia gave a quick nod.  “No ferrums were injured, and all students are accounted for.”  Her hazel eyes flickered to me.  “Well, now all students are accounted for.  I’m glad you’re okay, Kory.”

“Thanks,” I muttered.

“Come on, Alec.”  Max jerked his chin toward the buildings.  “I’ll take you to your dorm.”

Alec followed his mentor, glancing at me over his shoulders.  He better keep his mouth shut about Cassius and Lucius.  Pandemonium would be putting it mildly if everyone in the ferrum world found out.

“I’m going to find the headmaster,” Ian said, pivoting in the opposite direction.  “We can convene in his office.

Rex turned to his mother.  “Can you take Kory back to my room.  She needs to rest.”

For once I didn’t argue with him.  I had no desire to rehash what I’d been through tonight.  I’d already told Rex in the car.  He could be my voice just this once.

A grimace melted over Portia’s lips.  “I can escort her to her dorm.”

Rex’s face hardened again, and the tendons in his hands popped out as his fists tightened.  “Take Kory back to my room.  There are things I need to discuss with her.”

Portia crossed her arms against her chest.  “I’m sure it can wait until morning.”

“Mom,” Rex snapped, his nostrils flaring.  “I’m not arguing with you.  It’s been a long night, and it’s still not over.  Take Kory to my room like I asked or I’ll do it myself.”

Annabeth’s gaze shifted from mother to son, worry lines creasing her forehead.  She wasn’t the only one concerned.  Rex wasn’t usually so short with his mother, but like he’d said, it had been one hell of a night.

Portia gritted her teeth.  “Fine.  I’ll take her and then I’ll meet you in the headmaster’s office.”

I glanced at Rex, trying to signal with my eyes everything would be okay.  I wasn’t sure he understood.  Hell, I wasn’t sure I really meant it.

“Want to tell me what happened tonight?” Portia asked as we made our way across campus to the faculty suites.

“Rex will tell you,” I said.

She made a humming sound as if she wasn’t convinced. 

An exaggerated sigh flew from my mouth.  “Why don’t you like me?” I blurted, yanking the door open with unnecessary force.

Portia blinked as she trailed behind me.  “I don’t dislike you, Kory.”

“Then why does it always piss you off when I’m with Rex or his decisions go against yours?”  I’d been a touchy subject from the beginning for her.

Portia sighed and tucked a short lock of blonde hair behind her ear.  “I’m just worried about Rex,” she admitted.  “He’s different since meeting you.  The rules don’t seem to matter as much, and I’m afraid it’s going to get him in trouble.”

Annabeth shared the same worries. 

“Life’s not black and white, Portia.”

“I know, but your life seems to be a hundred shades of gray, and I’m afraid Rex will drown in it.”

I swallowed back the lump rising in my throat.  She didn’t know the half of it.  My life was a hell of a lot more dangerous than she could even imagine.