CELESTE
Knowing whose voice it was, my blood froze. Both Riggs and I whipped around.
Kyle. She stepped from the shadows near the door. Her arms were crossed, her lips curved into something between amusement and disdain. Her gown glittered faintly in the low torchlight.
Riggs stiffened, his jaw clenching. "What are you doing here, Kyle?"
She ignored him, her eyes trained solely on me. "You really think you can crawl through some rat tunnel and escape the truth, Celeste? You think you can run from the Alpha, from the mark on your neck, from what you are?"
Her voice cut deep. I flinched. My grip on the diary tightened until my knuckles ached.
"Kyle." Riggs warned, stepping forward slightly, as if to shield me.
But she only smiled. "Don't play the hero, Riggs. You can't protect her from this. She can't even protect herself."
I forced words out. "Can I not be alone for a moment, Kyle?"
Kyle tilted her head. "Of course… you can be alone. But not alone with someone else."
