Luther’s face said it all. There was a chance I wouldn’t be able to do anything for Felix, and he would succumb to his spider bite one way or another. It was such a small fucking thing that now had the biggest consequences. Over one hundred fucking years, they’d lasted. Since I came, we were all living in a fantasy world of sex and love, focusing on the good instead of what we lacked. What made the whole situation a thousand times heavier was the fact we were so fucking close to getting out of here.

There had been a different atmosphere in the house since Brynn’s visit. For the first time in a long time, the guys shared my hopeful attitude. Never before had they had help on the outside—and definitely not help that might know about our situation specifically. All we had to do was keep going and wait it out. We were so close.

And one fucking spider bite was going to ruin it all. “Fuck.” I slammed my hand down on the table and sobbed harder. I was pissed. Pissed at the world, pissed at the situation, pissed that Felix might not have a chance for what was such a stupid fucking thing. None of this was fair. Felix getting an infection we had no way to treat while we were waiting for help was the cherry on top of so many things that had gone wrong in all of our lives, and I cried for all four of us. I grieved for what we had lost, before we ever found it.

For Theo losing his parents. For finding hope in a snowstorm, only to end up here.

For Felix, being used for what he thought would protect him.

For Luther, finding love and losing it just as quickly. For learning to stand on his own feet, and then having them knocked out from under him.

For never giving myself a chance to change. For relying on others so heavily I forgot the beauty of being alone.

I cried so hard I didn’t notice Theo appearing at the top of the basement stairs. “Sav? Are you okay?”

“Shit,” I cursed. “Theo, you scared the hell out of me.”

He smiled, used to sneaking up on me when I wasn’t expecting it. “What’s wrong?”

I sniffled, wiping my eyes on the hem of my shirt. “I’m just being dramatic. Felix has an infected spider bite from the other day, and obviously I can’t just send him out to the doctor.”

Theo’s mouth dropped open. “Oh, shit.”

I laughed bitterly. “You and Luther had the exact same response.” The kettle whistled, and scrubbed my hands over my face, pretending the situation wasn’t as dire as it seemed. “I’m just boiling some water to try and stop it from spreading any further. Maybe we can still catch it in time.”