The Revealed by Jessica Hickam Read Free Book Online Page B

or whatever bullshit he spews. It was for the attention. So he could play the hero and, at the end of the night, everyone would just love him even more.
    I glance back over at him through my eyelashes. Clearly, not as subtly as I thought. He’s still staring at me and our eyes meet again.
    He’s not even listening to Rory. But then, I guess, neither am I.
    I turn my attention to her words just in time to catch the end of her last sentence, “Your mom wants you. She’s up near the media line with your father. I think they’re going to take more pictures or something.” She shrugs and adds, “I have to get back to serving. Ilan’s having a fit in the kitchen. There are so many people. It was good seeing you again, Kai.” She whisks away, tray in hand.
    My eyes return to the crowd. At least Jeremy isn’t hovering nearby. But that probably just means he’s reported back to my mother about my “scene,” which is exactly why she wants to see me.
    “I have to go,” I blurt to Kai. I want to get lost in this party for just a little bit longer before my mother drags me back to reality.
    “Wait,” he says and grabs my hand, forcing me to turn and face him.
    “Look, I appreciate what you did,” I say, “the dance and all but….”
    “But what?”
    A grin pulls at the edges of his lips, and he tilts his head in playful amusement. I can’t tell what the expression means. It’s almost a replica of his father’s. Only, it’s also the opposite of the expression Westerfield wears. Kai’s is laced with sincerity and an authenticity I don’t understand. It nevertheless fills me with suspicion.
    “It was really good to see you again, Lily,” he says before I can finish my sentence. “It’s been a long time.”
    My face melts before I can harden my gaze. It’s then I realize my hair has fallen over my shoulder, my cheeks are bare all the way to my ears, lending myself like a book to his gaze. I’ve never felt so exposed in my life. And I want to pull my hands up, shy away from his look before his eyes can take in the sight of my face. I don’t want to watch his expression as he analyzes my appearance. I don’t want him to see me and find the disappointments.
    His eyes narrow and then his expression drops, yanking my chest and my lungs down with it.
    But his face doesn’t mock.
    Eyes widen. Jaw slackens. He doesn’t meet my gaze.
    What?
    Before I can verbalize the question, he’s grabbing my wrist.
    “Get down!” he yells, yanking me roughly to the floor.
    I catch sight of Marg Lancing, who shrieks. The room seems to take a collective shudder. My body vibrates with surprise. Everything suddenly comes into focus. People are dropping all around us. Glasses are tossed aside as something piercing and crashing pulses through the room.
    On the floor, Kai wraps his arms around me. My heart jumps into my throat. An attack? Are we being attacked? I peek through Kai’s arms at the commotion. The back windows of the ballroom are completely shattered, leaving piles of broken shards.
    The music stops, replaced by an orchestra of frantic screams as people recognize the danger, causing chaos.
    The doors slam shut on their own and something translucent creeps along the hinges, cracking as it climbs up the sides of the door. Ice. Ice is forming along the doors!
    My feet want to move. I scramble up, but Kai pulls me back to the floor. “Stay down,” he commands. A few people grab the door handles and try to open the doors, but they don’t budge.
    All of the glass in the ballroom explodes—champagne flutes, light fixtures, serving platters. Everything. A sharp wind whips through the room like a bomb. Blackness sweeps over us with only the dim moonlight left to illuminate the room.
    “Keep your head down!” Kai orders, and I tuck my face between my arms. Some of the flying shards hit my skin and I cringe at the sting, yelping as the pieces rake my flesh.
    When the glass stops raining again, I dare to glance up.
    My