"What happened?" she asked, pulling away from me slightly. It was clear that bringing it up hadn't had the desired effect. Instead it had made her distance herself from me.
"It incapacitated him."
She bit her lip slightly. I wished I were able to read her thoughts because there seemed to be a lot going on in her mind and I had no idea what.
"Talk to me," I prompted, hoping she would let me in. She sat up in the bed, pulling her knees up.
I sat up beside her.
"I know we don't see eye to eye on this and I understand your reasons for doing what you've done." It wasn't what I wanted to hear but at least she was being honest with me. "But it doesn't take away the guilt I feel for what we're doing to Flynn or what you're going to do." She was referring to the decision to end his life to ensure the safety of her secret.
"I know how you feel about it," I said gently, taking her hand into mine. "I don't want you to think that this is a decision I've taken lightly."
I let out a heavy emotional sigh.
"Taking his life won't be easy," I admitted, not liking how weak it made me sound. "If we'd been in a battle it would have been different."
"Then don't do it," she pleaded softly. I studied her for a moment to try and find the right words to explain to her why I had to do this. Maybe it would make her understand.
"I have to. If I don't kill him and we release him to the Keepers, you know what will happen."
She dropped her gaze to our connected hands.
"They'll attack us," I said.
"But they will anyway. They won't allow a death of a Keeper to go unpunished," she argued.
It was true.
"If they find out who you are, they will hunt you down. They will never give up. If we go to war with them, we still have a chance at beating them and you will be safe." She didn't like my logic but there was no arguing that it was true. "You have a better chance of survival if they don't find out."
"But they are just a small group. If we start a war with them, they will send for reinforcements." It was the reality of our situation. If we didn't do it right, there would be far-reaching consequences that would be painted with our blood.
"That's why we need to ensure we wipe them out. We have to make sure that we kill all of them so we don't allow them to relay anything back to their leaders."
She looked at me skeptically. Her hand tightened around mine.
"If things don't go our way and this has to end, I want you to know that the last few days I've had with you have been the best," she said. "I was born to be loved by you and there is nothing better than when you look at me like I'm the only person who matters."
"I feel the same," I said, feeling the exact same way. My world revolved around her. When she looked at me with those big green eyes, everyone else faded away.
I leaned over and kissed her, needing to touch her. When I lifted my mouth from hers, she was breathing hard and I could feel my pulse quicken.
"Then let's not fight," I told her. "Let's savor our time together."
I lay down and she joined me. I slid my arms around her, bringing her closer as she kissed me, her hands on my face as her mouth opened slightly. Our tongues slid against each other.
Even though we'd just been together, I needed her again.
We moved together again, needing the closeness of our bodies. She groaned as I gently bit her ear and she arched her body against mine. Her skin, slick with sweat, caressed mine.
This time was hard and quick. The need outweighed anything else. Afterward I lay still, trying to catch my breath. Crystal lay beside me, still breathing heavily. My eyes held hers. I expected to see a mirror of my feelings but there was something else—sadness—and then it was gone.
There was something up with her but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. She lay beside me, tucked in my side, trailing her fingers across my skin in a gentle motion. I frowned as I tried to figure out why she was acting weird. It could be the change that made her still feel so unsettled. Or it could be something else. I was clueless.
"You seem distracted," I said, studying her face to read her expression in hopes of figuring out why, in her mind, she wasn't here with me.
Our union had been a shattering experience. It was like a tsunami of feelings rushing though me at once, all-consuming.
