Expiration Date (Books 1 and 2)

51 Falling

Jonas~~

It's like I was falling the whole time, and I just now hit the ground. While falling, I could think of ideas to save myself, despite it being impossible to change my course once I fell. But now here, on the ground, the time for ideas has passed. I lost. I exhausted my brain to get Erik home only for this to happen. For him to threaten to expose us and for him to drag Iris away with him while pointing a gun at her head.

I thought he had already snapped when Molly died. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe that was when he started to fall, and tonight we both crashed to the ground.

Colton steps away from the door. "Jonas, what do we do?"

Society members crowd around me in the already tight space between tables. I raise an arm, and they step back.

"Get me the Iota and Undici."

Their names are repeated throughout the room until finally Percy and Tobias step out of the crowd.

They bow. "Preeminence?" they ask as one.

"I'm putting you both in charge of creating the search team. Hopefully we've given Erik enough time to stop any timer if there even was one. The public must never know about any of this. Go."

With another bow from each of them, they head off, their phones already out.

With Iris having been exposed to my family, it's safest for her to be far from us, but I don't know how much I can trust Erik not to hurt her. If—no, when Erik is found, they must both be brought back here, for the Society's sake. I will do all I can to protect her.

Seong-ho draws near, Colton at his side. "Do we kill on site?"

I have to fight to keep the disgust off my face. "No. Neither of you are going. You will both help from here. Besides, there is still a country to run."

"Are you going after them, Jonas?" Colton asks.

"Yes, I am, Beta."

He winces at my tone.

"This is my country. I'm the Preeminence. He's my Tresais and Iris—from this moment on, I assume full responsibility for her."

"Does that mean you won't kill her?" Seong-ho has the gall to appear miffed at me.

"If we study her, then there's a chance we can make sure what happened to her doesn't happen again."

Colton fights to keep his lips in straight line. "That's not the real reason, Seong-ho. He's infatuated with her."

"That's out of line, Beta."

"You're putting a girl before the whole Society. When I thought Vienna was shot you had the nerve to get mad at me for coming straight home. If I couldn't do that after what happened to Mother, then you aren't about to put an Expired's life before our own family."

I clench my fist, stepping directly in front of him. "I am the Preeminence. I do not have to explain myself to you."

"You knew the whole time, didn't you?" His eyes are wide with hurt. "You changed her Expiration Date in the databases."

"That's enough."

"I hope she was worth it, khaleedi."

Now it's my turn to recoil from his tone. A stab for a stab. But he doesn't see because he's already stalking off. We are forever bound by blood in more ways than one, but at this moment he's never felt so distant.