Tariq turned in place, scanning the area. He had no idea where the shots had come from—but he was alive. His dad was alive.

  The tree Elena had been sitting on suddenly exploded, splintering outward in a shower of burning wood and vines. Tariq didn’t need to see who fired the shot to understand what it meant. If his father was close enough to intervene, then staying here was suicide.

  It was time to run.

  Tariq spun and scooped Zora up, throwing her over his shoulder as the ground beneath them began to rumble. He took off at full speed just as thick vines erupted from the earth, snapping and clawing at his legs. Fire rained down from the sky in brilliant arcs, explosions detonating behind them as Elena and David gave chase.

  Tariq shifted Zora, cradling her against his chest and turning his body to shield her from the heat and shrapnel.

  I can’t hold onto her for long, he thought grimly. The radiation pouring off him would start affecting her if it hadn’t already.

  “Z,” he shouted over the explosions, breath steady despite the chaos, “you need to snap out of it. I can’t keep carrying you.”

  Another explosion rocked the street, followed by Elena’s furious scream.

  “MARCUS!”

  Tariq skidded around a corner, concrete cracking beneath his feet. “The radiation will kill you!” he yelled, unsure if Zora could even hear him.

  A massive tree burst out of the ground directly in front of him—only to explode less than a second later.

  Thanks, Dad.

  Zora still hung limp against him, his words clearly not reaching her. Tariq clicked his tongue in frustration.

  The school. I need to lose them and get her there.

  The problem was obvious almost immediately: Zora’s parents knew the area just as well as he did. Every alley, every shortcut—useless.

  Suddenly, a string of explosions tore through the street ahead of him, filling the air with smoke and debris.

  Perfect.

  Tariq charged straight into the smoke, leading with his right shoulder. He smashed through two buildings in rapid succession before finally skidding to a stop and glancing back.

  Elena and David were gone.

  The explosions continued in the distance, but they were no longer closing in.

  Tariq didn’t slow down. He turned and sprinted toward campus, tearing through walls and barriers until he burst back into the courtyard. Without stopping, he zeroed in on the building where they’d left Sasha.

  Listening her found her heartbeat.

  There she is.

  He bounded up the stairs, turned left, and slammed into the door of a small lecture hall. The door flew open, and a high-pitched scream filled the room.

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  “Sasha! Sasha, relax—it’s just me!” Tariq said quickly.

  He set Zora down and immediately backed away. Zora curled in on herself, knees pulled to her chest, head resting on top of them. Her clothes were scorched where he’d carried her, and he was fairly certain her stomach had been burned as well.

  “W-what happened…?” Sasha asked from behind him.

  “A lot,” Tariq replied quietly. “She needs new clothes. Have you had any problems here while we were gone?”

  Sasha shook her head. “No… it’s been quiet.”

  Good. I can leave her here for now.

  Tariq turned toward the door, then paused.

  I can’t get her clothes myself… and Sasha won’t want to leave.

  He looked down at his hands. Anything he touched disintegrated within moments. With a tired sigh, he stepped into the hallway.

  “Keep an eye on her,” he called back. “I’ll be right out here.”

  Him staying wasn’t good for any of them. Sasha was terrified of him—he could hear it in her heartbeat. And Zora… she wasn’t going to recover with him around. Not after learning that his mother was responsible for her parents.

  Tariq rubbed the back of his neck, stress coiling tight in his chest.

  What’s our relationship even supposed to look like now?

  He descended the stairs and froze.

  Wyatt’s body was gone.

  Both the head and the body—vanished.

  Sasha wouldn’t have touched them.

  There was too much to process. Tariq sat down at the bottom of the stairs and pinched the bridge of his nose, forcing himself to focus on something he could control.

  The radiation.

  If Zora was right—and she usually was—then what he was emitting really was Cherenkov radiation. But his instincts told him it wasn’t the source of his abilities. It was just a byproduct. Something the world could see.

  He wished there was someone he could talk to about this. Someone who might understand.

  There wasn’t.

  His thoughts drifted—from his parents, to Zora’s parents, to Zora herself—until he realized the light outside had faded. It was dark.

  Tariq pushed himself to his feet. He needed to check on them. Their heartbeats were still there—steady and alive.

  He climbed the stairs and entered the lecture hall. Sasha jumped at the sight of him, though her heart never slowed. Zora looked up through swollen, red eyes.

  “Sasha… can you give us a moment?” Zora asked, her voice hoarse.

  Sasha hesitated.

  “We’re clear,” Tariq said gently. “If anything comes, I’ll handle it.”

  Biting her lip, Sasha nodded and hurried out.

  Tariq walked forward and sat on the floor in front of one of the desks, leaning his back against it before shooting forward after feeling it start to decay.

  “How’re you feeling?” he asked.

  “Like shit,” Zora muttered.

  “Yeah… I’m sure the radiati—”

  “It’s not because of the radiation, Tariq.”

  He went quiet.

  Zora rubbed her face. “I don’t know what to do…”

  He froze. He was never good at this.

  “H-hey, Z,” he said awkwardly. “It’s okay. We’ll figure this out.”

  “Figure what out?” she snapped. “My parents are dead—killed and raised by your mother.” She pointed at him. “And then you’re just… killing people.”

  Tariq clenched his jaw.

  “I understand they were gone,” she continued, voice shaking. “But crushing his head like that…”

  “I didn’t have a choice,” Tariq said.

  “Like the kid earlier?” she shot back. “You didn’t have a choice then either?”

  His sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.

  “I don’t even know you anymore,” Zora whispered. “I don’t know when you’ll decide to start killing again, if you've even stopped.”

  She slammed her fist into the desk, snapping it in half.

  “You should feel something, Tariq! Something about the lives you’ve taken!”

  “But you don’t,” she said, stepping toward him, tears streaming. “You’re becoming a monster right in front of me—and I can’t stop it.”

  “I’m not a monster,” he said desperately. “I’m not turning into one!”

  She shook her head. “I can’t do this right now.”

  She turned for the door.

  “Where are you going?” he asked.

  “Somewhere far away from you.”

  His heart slammed in his chest, her parents were still out there somewhere.

  “I’ll go,” he said quickly. “I’ll go—just stay here, okay?”

  She paused.

  “How long?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. Just… leave me alone.”

  She turned and walked back inside the lecture hall leaving Tariq alone. Tariq stood there, words stuck in his throat, before finally turning away and walking down the hall.

  At the top of the stairs, Sasha waited.

  “Go ahead and go back Sasha” Tariq said causing her to jump slightly. She didn’t hesitate.

  Tariq exited the building through the front doors, the weight in his chest heavy and suffocating.

  He needed to do something about it.

  And about the hunger growing inside him.

  Luckily, there were plenty of heartbeats outside of the campus for him to vent his frustrations on.