Page 83 of Grim

By days much too short for hope still to stand.

When will I ever swim under the moon?

The celestial power purifying.

To know love’s fall, then it must happen soon

As, like Addie Bundren, I lay dying.

How can I expect to feel something more

When my deadline’s a whispered reminder?

Haunting, infecting, seeped into my pores.

Lost in a library, come and find her.

So much I had hoped to do with my life.

Now I have knowledge that cuts like a knife.

I finish reading the words, but keep my face buried between the pages. There is nothing left to read there. The only thing left to read is the expression on Kane’s face, but this moment of vulnerability, coupled with the potential of his disappointment, keeps my neck down for several additional beats.

Kane clears his throat, coaxing my gaze upward like a snake charmer’s flute. When my eyes lock with his, I know before he speaks. And I exhale.

His words confirm what his eyes have already told me. “That was beautiful, Rue. Simply divine.”

“It’s nothing,” I deflect, my default reaction to a compliment.

“Don’t do that,” Kane states with an edge. “Don’t minimize what you’ve done.”

“It’s just a poem.”

“It’s your soul on a page. It’s enduring, and it shines, Rue.”

His insistence is convincing, and I take a breath to receive his words.

“Thank you,” I state simply.

“Good girl.” He smirks in reply, and the sensation that awakens in me is undeniable.

Lightning crashes, sending brightness pouring momentarily through the windows, and I can see Kane’s mind spark with something undecipherable.

Thunder follows, then Kane’s voice chases after the boom. “Come with me.”

“Where are we going?” I ask, not one to trust this man with spontaneous decisions.

He begins to move but turns to see I’m still rooted to my spot.

“Fine,” he sighs. “We’re going to the roof.”

“To the roof? Are you mad? It’s raining and storming and—”

I close my mouth when I run out of excuses.

“And?” he repeats.

When I stay silent and still, his expression softens, and he extends his hand. I take it as he guides me up a ladder.