Chase yells my name, frantic. The wall's nearly solid with flames. I can't turn away from Aiden, but I wish I had Chase at my back, touching, facing this together.
Like he heard the thought, Aiden looks over my shoulder, past me, through the flames, to Chase.
When his eyes come back to me, they're flat and hard. "You'd rather be with him."
There's little value in agreeing with him. It would only enrage him. But I don't want to lie, either. So I drop my head and don't deny it.
Aiden huffs out a huge breath, his hands close to fists. I brace for the killing blow. Help me, Light. Help Chase when I'm gone . . .
But a few, terrifying seconds later, still alive, I hesitantly look up.
The glittering hardness in Aiden's expression is gone. He's pacing inside the flaming wall, muttering to himself. Hands running through his hair every other pass.
