Opal

the right, flashed green.

As Blake inched the door open, Daemon moved to stand in front of me. Matthew was suddenly behind me and I was shielded. What the…?

“We’re clear,” Blake said, sounding relieved.

We went through the door, discovering another onyx shield. Now we had two more to get the others through. This wasn’t going to be easy.

The tunnel was like the one above, but all white and like Blake had informed us, it was shorter and wider. Everyone was moving but me. We’d made it—we were here. My stomach lurched and my skin tingled.

I almost couldn’t believe it.

Happy and anxious all at once, I felt the rush of responding Source, but it peaked and then quickly sputtered out. The amount of onyx in this building was insane.

“The third cell is hers,” Blake said, rushing down the hall, toward the last cluster of doors.

Spinning back around, I held my breath as Dawson reached for the onyx-coated door handle and turned. It met no resistance.

Dawson stepped into the room, his legs shaking, his entire body trembling, and his voice cracked when he spoke. “Beth?”

That one word, that one sound was pulled from the depths of Dawson and we all stopped, our breaths holding again.

Over his shoulder, I saw a slender form on a narrow bed sit up. As she came into view, I almost cheered—I wanted to, because it was her, it was Beth…but she looked nothing like she had when I’d last seen her.

Her brown hair wasn’t stringy or greasy but pulled back in a smooth ponytail. A few strands had slipped free, framing a pale but elfin face. A huge part of me feared that she wouldn’t recognize Dawson, that she’d be that cracked shell of a girl I’d met. I’d been planning for the worse. That she might even attack Dawson.

But when I saw Beth’s dark eyes, they weren’t empty like they’d been at Vaughn’s house. They also looked nothing like Carissa’s frighteningly blank stare.

Recognition flared in Beth’s eyes.

Time stopped for those two and then sped up. Dawson stumbled forward, and I thought he was going to drop to his knees. His hands opened and closed at his sides as if he had no control over them.

All he could say was, “Beth.”

The girl scrambled off the bed, her eyes bouncing over us and then they settled and stayed on him. “Dawson? Is that… I don’t understand.”

They both moved as one, rushing forward, crossing the distance at the same moment. Their arms went around each other and Dawson lifted her up, burying his face in her neck. Words were traded, but their voices were thick with emotion, too low and too fast for my ears to track. They were holding onto each other in a way I knew they were never going to let go.

Dawson lifted his head and said something in his language and it sounded just as beautiful as it did when Daemon spoke it. Then he kissed her, and I felt like an interloper watching them, but I couldn’t look away. There was so much beauty in their reunion, in the way he showered her upturned face with tiny kisses and the wetness that gathered on her cheeks.

Tears crept up my throat, burning the back of my eyes. Happy tears blurred my vision. I felt Matthew place his hand on my shoulder and squeeze. Sniffling, I nodded.

“Dawson.” Urgency filled Daemon’s tone, reminding all of us that we were running out of time.

Pulling apart, Dawson grabbed her hand and turned around as a whole boatload of questions came streaming out of Beth’s mouth.

“What are you guys doing? How did you all get in here? Do they know?” And on and on she went as Dawson, who was grinning like an idiot, tried to keep her quieted down.

“Later,” he said. “But we have to go through two doors and it’s going to hurt—”

“Onyx shields, I know,” she said.

Well, that solved that problem.

I turned as Blake came back, carrying the prone body of a dark-haired Luxen boy. A reddish stain bloomed across the teenager’s jaw. “Is he okay?”

Blake nodded. The skin around his lips was drawn tight and pale. “I… He didn’t recognize me. I had to keep him quiet.”

A tiny crack fissured my heart. The look in Blake’s eyes was so hopeless and bleak, especially when they flickered toward Dawson and Beth. Everything he had done: lied, cheated, and murdered had all been for the guy in his arms. Someone he considered a brother. Again, I hated that I felt sympathy for Blake.

But I did.

Beth looked up and her onslaught of questions faded off. “You can’t—”

“We need to go.” Blake cut her off and stalked past us. “We’re almost out of time.”

And we were. The reminder whipped through me and I gave the other girl what I hoped was a reassuring smile. “We have to leave. Now. Everything else can wait.”

Beth was shaking her head vigorously. “But—”

“We need to go, Beth. We know.” And she nodded at Dawson’s words, but panic was building in her eyes.

Urgency kicked adrenaline into high gear and without any more delay, the five of us took off down the hall. Daemon punched the code into panel on the wall, and the door opened.

The all-white waiting room wasn’t empty.

Simon Cutters stood there—missing, presumed dead Simon Cutters—as big and burly as ever. All of us were caught off guard. Daemon took a step back. Matthew came to a halt. I couldn’t wrap my head around how he was alive, why he was standing there, as if he were waiting for us.

The tiny hairs on my arms started to rise.

“Oh shit,” Daemon said.

Simon smiled. “Missed me? I missed you guys.”

Then he raised an arm. Light reflected off a metal cuff he wore. A piece of opal glittered, nearly identical to the one I wore around my neck. Everything happened so fast. Simon opened his hand, and it was like being hit with gale force winds. I was lifted off my feet and thrown back through the air. I crashed into the nearest door, my hip hitting the metal door handle. Pain exploded, knocking the air out of my lungs as I hit the floor.

Oh, my God… Simon was…

My brain raced to keep up with what was happening. If Simon had a piece of opal, then that meant he had to have been mutated. He probably wouldn’t have gotten us if we hadn’t been so unprepared to see him. It was like with Carissa. He was the last person I expected.

Daemon was picking himself up several feet back down the hall, as was Matthew. Dawson had Beth pressed back against the wall. Blake was closer, using his body to shield Chris’s.

I pushed myself up, wincing as pain arced down my leg. I tried to stand, but my leg gave out. Blake was there, catching me before I hit the floor for the second time.

Simon stepped into the room and smiled.

Daemon staggered to his feet. “Oh, you are so dead.”

“Ah, I think that’s my line,” Simon responded. A burst of energy flew from his hand, and I yelled Daemon’s name. He narrowly avoided a direct hit.

Daemon’s pupils were starting to glow white. He reared back. Energy arced across the room, a whitish-red light. Simon dodged it, laughing.

“You’re going to wear yourself out, Luxen.” Simon sneered.

“Not before you.”

Simon winked and then spun toward us, throwing his hand out again. Blake and I skidded back. I started to fall and Blake grabbed me. Somehow his arm ended up around my neck. There was a tugging feeling and then Daemon was beside me, shoving me behind him.

“This is so not good,” Blake said, edging closer to Simon. “We’re running out of time.”

“No shit,” Daemon spat.

Dawson shot toward Simon, but he threw him back, laughing. He was like a hybrid suped up on steroids.