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quickly.
    I clean his wound, dumping almost an entire bottle of alcohol on it. When Dustin begins to thrash, Finn pushes away from the wall and comes to hold him still. I glance at him quickly, and then away, wiping and pouring, until the bottle is empty. Finn cleans up the rags and trash as I re-wrap Dustin’s arm, and then he grabs my cold soup. I follow him out of the room.
    And begin to plan my argument.

Chapter 15

Making My Case
    I wait until Collin is asleep before I get up from the couch and make my way to where Finn is sitting with his back propped against the cave wall, taking first watch.
    Even if he claims we’re safe, in the Wide Open, there is always a watch.
    “You need sleep,” he says without looking at me.
    “So do you. You had watch last night.”
    He finally graces me with a look, and I meet it with a cool one of my own.
    “What do you want, Nurrin?”
    “You’re going to Haven 18, to launch the evacuation.” He doesn’t respond, and his gaze goes back into the night. But the stillness of him tells me he’s listening. Finn O’Malley is always listening.
    “Here’s the thing—you go, you leave Collin with an open infection. Dustin needs meds, you know that. And you won’t be back in time—the infection is going to spread, and eventually, he’s going to turn.”
    “He’s still not showing the markers.”
    “A flesh wound is still exposure. It takes longer, and we can stop it, but if we don’t do anything, it’s going to happen. And you won’t be back before then.”
    His gaze swings to me. “What do you want, Nurrin?”
    “Take me with you,” I say softly, and his nostrils flare, his expression tight. “Or Collin. I know you—you wouldn’t be headed to Haven 18 if you didn’t have a way out. Take Collin and let him bring back the meds.” I hesitate, and then, “
Please,
Finn.”
    “That means leaving you with a live infection,” he says emotionlessly.
    I shrug. “Dustin won’t hurt me. And the infection won’t take hold for at least a week. Collin will be back in plenty of time.”
    He stares at me, his eyes unfathomable, and then he shakes his head, and the tension eases out of him. “Go to bed, Nurrin. We’ll talk about this in the morning.”
    I want to protest, but something in his gaze when I open my mouth is dangerous and forbidding. So I swallow my argument and stand up to walk away.
    Before I do, I say softly, “I’ll get the meds Dustin needs. If you won’t take me or Collin, I’ll go by myself. You won’t be here to stop me. Think about that before you vanish into the Wide Open by yourself.”

Chapter 16

Executive Decision
    Collin shakes me awake, and for a moment, half-asleep and surrounded by my brother’s voice and the scent of coffee, I can pretend I’m still in the Hive, still safe behind the walls of Hellspawn. Then Finn curses and the distinct sound of a gun being loaded fills the cave, and the illusion vanishes. I sit up and rub my eyes.
    Finn spares me a glance, and I cross my arms over my thin tank top, wishing I’d had time to grab something more substantial. “Get dressed, Nurrin. We’re leaving for Haven 18 in ten minutes.”
    I blink at him, and then, “But you’re taking Collin.”
    Finn gives me a dark smile, and I flinch away from him. “There is no way in hell I’m leaving you alone in this cave with a live infection, Nurrin. You’d either bring a horde down the canyon, or Dustin would kill you. Neither would please me. So get your pretty ass off my couch and dressed.
Now.”
    I flush, and I hate myself for it—that was his intention. To Finn O'Malley, everything is a weapon, even words and emotions. It's one of the things I admire about him, even if I do despise it.
    "I don't
want
to go," I say, shrilly.
    Finn laughs at that, a deep belly laugh that makes me flinch—it's coated in irony and danger. The idea of spending hours in a car with him, days at Haven 18, of being
dependent
on this man—I shudder and look at