A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford

victory in Kristen’s smile, how she relished manipulation.
    “See? Easy as pie,” Kristen said. “There’s a small window of time before your own body begins to react to theTouch inside you, when there is no pain, none of the normal effects of letting it build.”
    Kristen stood, striding to the door. “Now practice,” she commanded, closing it behind her.
    “That was a little messed up,” Eden said, hoping to kill some of the tension. Marcus gave her a ghost of a grin. “What’d it feel like?”
    “The power of it…It’s crazy.” His smile faltered. “If I pass to you, you’ll give it back, right?”
    “Trust me, if it’s as much of a pain in the ass to store as Kristen says, I want no part of it.” Eden held her breath in anticipation as he scooted closer.
    “Here we go,” he whispered. His lips barely touched hers before he pulled away.
    Eden’s lips tingled. “That’s it?”
    “That’s it ?” He stared at her in disbelief. “You don’t feel it?”
    “Maybe you did it too fast. Should we try it again?”
    “Again? But I gave you everything I had. You don’t feel anything?” Marcus dropped his hands into his lap, straining toward her. “That’s impossible. You’re lying.”
    The venom in his words caught her off guard.
    “I’m not a liar. Do you want your dose back or not?” She reached down, grabbed his shirt to yank him forward. Her lips were suddenly only a few inches from his.
    “Hurry up.” His breathing was almost frantic.
    Eden sighed hard as she leaned forward. “I am .”
    Before she could pass the dose back, Marcus tipped to the side. She didn’t have time to react, to catch him before his face collided with the floor. A stab of pain shot up her arms from wrists to elbows.
    Eden froze. “Hey. You okay?” Marcus wasn’t moving. Eden leaned closer. His eyes were half open, rolled back into his head. “Kristen!” she screamed, scooting away. She sat in shock as footsteps pounded down the hall, her arms throbbing, the feeling spreading to her shoulders.
    “What happened?” Kristen asked before she’d even made it into the room. She grabbed Eden by the arm and hauled her up.
    “I don’t know,” Eden stuttered, trying to get her feet under her. “He passed me the dose and I was going to pass it back and…”
    “He’s not…” Kristen stared at Marcus, the anger in her face fading into shock. “No, that’s impossible.” She stepped back from Eden, yanking her hands away. “You killed him. How?” she demanded. Her attention traveled to the open door.
    Adam peeked around the threshold, confusion in his eyes as he took in the scene—Marcus on the floor, Kristen moving away from the body. Eden opened her mouth, the plea for help barely formed and not yet spoken when Kristen cut her off.
    “Close the door. Tell no one,” she said to Adam.
    Without so much as a glance at Eden, he pulled it shut. The sudden swing sent a draft across the floor. As the air rushed past, the body burst into ash.
    Eden choked in a breath before she could stop herself. Grit caught in her teeth, gagging her as she tried not to swallow. Kristen’s shoes scratched across the wooden floor as she backpedaled. Gray flakes settled onto her toes when she stopped. Their mouths hung open in silent horror.
    Kristen’s paralysis broke first. She went for the knob, her hand digging into the pocket sewn into her dress.
    “No!” Eden realized what was happening too late. Kristen had already opened the door, slammed it shut again behind her, sending the ashes airborne. Eden’s hand covered her mouth, keeping them out even as it held her scream in. She heard the lock click.

CHAPTER 15
    A ll she needed was one loose screw. Eden slipped her fingernail into the groove in the metal and wrenched it with a sharp twist. You killed him. Her nail snapped. She ripped it off with her teeth and went back to the doorknob, lining up the next finger. You killed that boy. One loose screw and the other screws