The Shadow Stealer (Silver Moon Saga Book 3) by Melissa Giorgio Read Free Book Online Page A

almost fell off the recliner. “No—of course I’m not! What the hell, Gabs? Why would you even think that?”
    I traded glances with Rafe, who seemed mildly amused at Evan’s reaction. “Um, because it’s you , Evan. Nothing you do would surprise me anymore.”
    He buried his face in his hands and groaned. “I’m staying at the Chens’ apartment, okay?”
    There was dead silence for a beat, and then Rafe and I started speaking at the same time.
    “You’re staying with the Chens?” Rafe’s eyebrows rose high up on his forehead.
    “You’ve been in touch with Alex? I thought she wasn’t talking to you!” I exclaimed.
    “Guys, guys!” Evan held his hands up again. “Shut up and let me talk. God, you two.” He rolled his eyes. “I didn’t say I was staying with them, I said I was staying at their apartment. It’s the one they used here when they came to visit Alex on weekends. They decided to loan it to me after I helped bring Alex back.” Slumping back in the recliner, Evan raised his eyes to the ceiling. “I refused at first, but I really didn’t have a place to stay. That sorta happens when everyone hates you, you know? Sure, I could have stayed with my uncle, but he’s two hours away and I didn’t want to be far away in case…” Evan spread his hands in front of him. “So I agreed and have been crashing there. I’m not proud of myself, but I didn’t have a choice.” He gazed at each of us in turn. “There? You happy you asked now?”
    I chewed on my lip. “It’s better than a hooker, I guess.”
    “You guess ?” Evan shook his head. “Anyway, I answered your question, Rafe. Now how about you start talking to me?”
    “I have nothing to say to you—”
    “Really? That’s how you’re going to do it?” Evan asked. “This is just like the bullshit you pulled five years ago, when they died. You pushed me away, refusing to let me help—”
    Rafe launched himself to his feet again. “Do not talk about them—” He cut off midsentence, grabbing his side and wincing.
    I went ice-cold with fear. “Rafe!” Gently, I helped him sit down and rested my hand over his. Rafe shut his eyes and concentrated on breathing steadily. My heart hammered as he struggled, clearly in pain, and I wished I could do something, anything, to help him through this. Stupid useless hands! What’s the point in having this power if I can’t even use it when I need to?
    Evan pressed his lips together tightly. “The spell is still hurting you.” He didn’t voice that as a question, but as a statement.
    Rafe’s eyes snapped open. “That’s none of your business.”
    “Rafe, come on,” I said. “He deserves to know.”
    “Why?”
    “Because I’m your best friend, you ass,” Evan snarled, furious. He joined us on the couch; Rafe made a face, but didn’t move away. “I bet you haven’t gone to the doctor since then, right? You’re just going to tough this out, like you do with everything else. Like with your parents. Like with me.”
    Rafe’s green eyes narrowed to slits. I couldn’t tell if it was because he was in pain, or because he was two seconds away from slamming his fist into Evan’s face. “You want to know what I think about you, Evan? I think you’re a selfish asshole. You didn’t listen to a word I said about Gabi, because all you cared about was using her powers to save Alex. You never saw Gabi as a person, just as a means to get what you wanted, and I will never, ever forgive you for that. I don’t even care about me—she got hurt because of you. What if we weren’t there? What if Nina had killed her?” He shifted closer to me, almost unconsciously, because he was staring at Evan the entire time he spoke. “You almost made me lose the person I care about most in this world. After what happened with my parents, how could you do that to me? How could you do that and still call yourself my best friend?”
    I was blinking really fast to keep my tears in check. Rafe probably