“I hurried to the southern corridor, relieved when I was safe in the blackness there. Relieved and horrified. It was really over now.I'm so afraid, I whimpered.Before Mel could respond, a heavy hand dropped on my shoulder from the darkness."Going somewhere?"I was so tightly wound that I shrieked in terror; I was so terrified that my shriek was only a breathless little squeal."Sorry!" Jared's arm went round my shoulders, comforting. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you.""What are you doing here?" I demanded, still breathless."Following you. I've been following you all night.""Well, stop it now."There was a hesitation in the dark, and his arm didn't move. I shrugged out from under it, but he caught my wrist. His grip was firm; I wouldn't be able to shake free easily."You're going to see Doc?" he asked, and there was no confusion in his question. It was obvious that he wasn't talking about a social visit."Of course I am." I hissed the words so that he wouldn't hear the panic in my voice. "What else can I do after today?It's not going to get any better. And this isn't Jeb's decision to make.""I know. I'm on your side."It made me angry that these words still had the power to hurt me, to bring tears stinging into my eyes. I tried to hold onto the thought of Ian - he was the anchor, as Kyle somehow had been for Sunny - but it was hard with Jared's hand touching me, with the smell of him in my nose. Like trying to make out the song of one violin when the entire percussion section was bashing away..."Then let me go, Jared. Go away. I want to be alone." The words came out fierce and fast and hard. It was easy to hear that they weren't lies."I should come with you.""You'll have Melanie back soon enough," I snapped. "I'm only asking for a few minutes, Jared. Give me that much."Another pause; his hand didn't loosen."Wanda, I would come to be with you."The tears spilled over. I was grateful for the darkness."It wouldn't feel that way," I whispered. "So there's no point.”

“And then we jerked to a stop. Jared was blocking the exit. "Have you lost your mind, Ian?" he asked, shocked and outraged. "What are you doing to her?""Did you know about this?" Ian shouted back, shoving me toward Jared and shaking me at him."You're going to hurt her!""Do you know what she's planning?" Ian roared.Jared stared at Ian, his face suddenly closed off. He didn't answer. That was answer enough for Ian.Ian's fist struck Jared so fast that I missed the blow - I just felt the lurch in his body and saw Jared reel back into the dark hall."Ian, stop," I begged."You stop," he growled back at me.He yanked me through the arch into the tunnel, then pulled me north. I had to almost run to keep up with his longer stride."O´Shea!" Jared shouted after us."I'm going to hurt her?" Ian roared back over his shoulder, not breaking pace. "I am? You hypocritical swine!"There was nothing but silence and blackness behind us now. I stumbled in the dark, trying to keep up.He jerked me along faster, and my breath caught in a moan, almost like a cry of pain.The sound made Ian stumble to a stop. His breathing was hoarse in the darkness."Ian, Ian, I..." I chocked, unable to finish. I didn't know what to say, picturing his furious face.His arms caught me abruptly, yanking my feet out from under me and then catching my shoulders before I could fall. He started running forward again, carrying me now. His hands were not rough and angry like before; he cradled me against his chest.”

“Ian didn't come. He just sat here with you--he said he didn't care what you looked like. He wouldn't let anyone else put a finger on your tank at all, not even me or Mel. But Doc let me watch this time. It was way cool, Wanda. I don't know why you wouldn't let me watch before. They wouldn't let me help, though. Ian wouldn't let anyone touch you but him.' Ian squeezed my hand and leaned in to whisper through all the hair. His voice was so low that I was the only one who could hear. 'I held you in my hand, Wanderer. And you were so beautiful.”

“And..it was Jack. Jack. Of the many things I'd considered doing to him, most involved violence.None of them involved lip-on-lip action.I jerked my head back,but it wasn't hard to get away,since he pulled back at the same moment.He wrinkled his nose. "Well, that was...interesting. Always wanted to try it,but now that I have,I'm pretty sure I never want to again."Furious,I smacked him in the shoulder with my free hand, hating that we still had to have one clasped so I wouldn't be lost forever. "You"-smack-"little"-smack-"freak!"-smack. "What was that?!" SMACK.He dodged another volley. "And I had been under the impression that afterward was a little less"-he winced as I connected hard-"painful.""Listen,creep,if I wanted you to kiss me,I would have asked! And I didn't. And I wouldn't! And if you ever try that again,so help me,I will find that fossegrim and throw you to a watery death!"And then-as if his awkward,terrible kiss weren't bad enough-he started laughing."SHUT UP!"He shook his head,grinning smugly. "See? Two goals accomplished. One:try out kissing. Miserable failure, no doubt your fault,but a noble effort nonetheless.I should find your friend Carlee. She's probably better at it than you are."Why couldn't my glamour-piercing eyes have a laser function? I wouldn't kill him. I'd just burn the word "freak" into his forehead."Aren't you going to ask me what my second goal was?" He batted his eyelashed at me."No,I'm not."He nudged me in the ribs with his elbow. "You aren't crying anymore, are you?"I'd have to let go of his hand to throttle him. So that option was out. "Being so mad I'd like to kill you is better?”

“What can I give you, Wanda?” he insisted.I took a deep breath and tried to keep my voice steady.“Give me a lie, Jared. Tell me you want me to stay.”There was no hesitation this time. His arms wound around me in the dark, held me securely against his chest. He pressed his lips against my forehead, and I felt his breath move my hair when he spoke.Melanie was holding her breath in my head. She was trying to bury herself again, trying to givememy freedom for these last minutes. Maybe she was afraid to listen to these lies. She wouldn'twant this memory when I was gone.“Stay here, Wanda. With us. Withme. I don't want you to go. Please. I can't imagine having you gone. I can't see that. I don't know how to… how to…” His voice broke.”

“What did you do?” I mumble. He is just a few feet away from me now, but not close enough to hear me. As he passes me he stretches out his hand. He wraps it around my palm and squeezes. Squeezes, then lets go. His eyes are bloodshot; he is pale. “What did you do?” This time the question tears from my throat like a growl. I throw myself toward him, struggling against Peter’s grip, though his hands chafe. “What did you do?” I scream. “You die, I die too” Tobias looks over his shoulder at me. “I asked you not to do this. You made your decision. These are the repercussions.”