Why You Should Never Rescue Stray Demons Chapter 47

**KACIA**

I have no idea how to react right now. I’d like to think I can be reasonable and logical about it all, but my heart is in control, not my head. And my heart feels like it’s cracked. It aches with betrayal. There’s no way around the truth. Oz is a liar. He’s been keeping secrets from me. I’ve been totally honest with him. More than I am with almost anyone else. I trusted him with my biggest secrets, and now? Now I don’t know if I ever really knew him at all.

“I think…” I force the words out, each one bitter and sharp in my throat. 

“You should probably leave.” My voice is quiet. Cold. Brittle. Oz stiffens. 

“What?” His voice is soft, like he didn’t quite hear me. But then panic sets in. 

“Sweetheart, please, if you’ll just let me explain, I-” He starts. 

“No.” I cut him off, sharp and unforgiving. Part of me wants to hear him out. But most of me is just hurt and angry.

“There’s no point. I don’t trust you. I can’t trust you. So how can I believe anything you say now that you’ve got no other choice but to talk?” I ask angrily. His mouth opens, then closes again. He takes a shaky breath and steps toward me.

“No, it’s not like that. I didn’t mean to lie, I mean, I did, but I was going to tell you. Today. After we…” He falters, guilt flashing in his eyes. 

“It felt wrong to keep hiding it. I swear I was going to tell you everything.” He insists. I want to believe him. A small, stupid part of me still wants to believe him. But the rest of me, the part curled up around the wound he carved into my trust, is screaming.

“No!” I snap. 

“I don’t want to hear anything you have to say. The time for explanations was before. Not now. Not when the truth is being dragged out of you.” I yell. Oz flinches at that. Good. 

“All I want, is for you to leave me alone.” I say through clenched teeth. Please. Please just go. Leave before I fall apart in front of you. Before I cry and humiliate myself more than I already have. He’s been making a fool of me since we met, please just let me hang on to this last scrap of dignity. 

“Kacia, please, please, you have to listen to me.” Oz says again, and this time his voice breaks on my name. And I see red.

“Have to?” I snarl. 

“I don’t HAVE to do anything. I didn’t have to save your life. I didn’t have to bring you into my home, or introduce you to my friends. I didn’t have to let you kiss me!” I fling the words at him. He looks gutted. But I’m not done.

“And right now? I regret every part of it. You KNEW how scared I was.” I spit. 

“You knew what the fae meant to me, what they would do to me. How I’ve spent my entire life hiding from them. And you, you had SO many chances to say something. And you never did. Not once.” I hiss the words. Oz is silent. The shame in his eyes is obvious, but it’s not enough. Not anymore.

“I… I tried to protect you.” Oz says hoarsely. Like that makes it better. Like it excuses anything.

“Protect me?!” My laugh is short and bitter. 

“By keeping me in the dark? You think that’s protection? Because from where I’m standing, it looks a lot like manipulation.” I say firmly. The fury spikes hot and fast. I yank the beanie off my head and toss it to the ground. My hair spills around my shoulders and my ears are completely exposed. I don’t care. Let the world see. Let the fae come. What difference does it make anymore? Oz’s eyes widen, alarmed. 

“Kac, Dave’s still here. He’s going to see..” He trails off. He swoops down to pick up my beanie. Then he takes a half-step forward, like he might put the hat back on my head. I snatch it and throw it straight at him. It smacks into his chest and flops to the ground, limp and useless.

“You think I care? Let him see! Let everyone see! The fae already know I exist. What’s the point of hiding anymore? I’ve spent my whole life living in fear. And it’s gotten me nothing.” I yell. Oz stares at me, something like horror on his face. I hate it.

“Just go.” I whisper. My voice cracks. 

“Please, Oz. Leave me alone. I can’t… I can’t even look at you right now.” I say. My voice is SO close to breaking completely. His expression crumples. He doesn’t argue. Doesn’t try again. Oz just… Sighs. Shoulders slumping. Defeated. And then he turns and walks away. I don’t call him back. I don’t stop him. I stand there in the clearing and watch him until he’s gone.

My feet feel like they’re made of stone, dragging through the grass, but somehow I still move forward. One step. Then another. I don’t feel much at all, really, just this dull, echoing numbness sitting heavy in my chest. Even breathing feels like a chore. But Dave’s waiting. And someone has to check on him. Make sure he’s okay. Make sure something good came out of tonight. He spots me and immediately closes the distance between us with a kind of reckless, relieved enthusiasm. His arms wrap around me in a massive bear hug so tight it knocks the air from my lungs. 

“That was so insane!” He blurts, not even pausing to breathe. 

“What did that troll want with you anyway? He smelled like… Like feet and garbage. Also, Oz’s other form? I mean, wow. A little terrifying, not gonna lie. Kind of like one of those monsters from your magic books but, you know, scarier. Also, is he okay? He got hurt, right? His wrist looked really bad. Is that where he went? To, like, demon urgent care or something?” He blurts out. He finally lets go, lowering me gently back to the ground. His smile is wide, nervous, and a little wild, like he’s trying to turn this into just another weird story we’ll laugh about later. Then his eyes land on my ears. They widen. His smile falters.

“Wait. Your ears, what the hell?” His voice goes quiet with confusion. 

“Kacia… Are you… Are you fae?” He asks incredulously. There’s no point lying. Not anymore. Not when the worst part is already over. I sigh, heavy and hollow. 

“Half, I’m half fae.” I admit. The words feel strange. Foreign. Like saying them out loud changes something fundamental in the air around me. I brace myself for disgust. Or fear. Or that special kind of cold retreat people do when they think you’re dangerous but don’t want to admit it out loud. Instead, Dave blinks at me. 

“Really? Whoa. Whoa. I had no idea.” He squints, eyebrows scrunching. 

“I mean… I guess that explains why you always smell kind of sweet? Like frosting or something. I thought maybe you were just a closet sugar addict.” He says jokingly. A weird, soft noise escapes me. Almost a laugh. Almost. I let him ramble, let the words fall over me like rain, because it’s easier than thinking. Easier than feeling. Eventually I explain it. The troll. Why he was after me. What being half fae really means. Dave listens. He nods solemnly. 

“Yeah… Okay. That makes sense. Sorry. That must really suck.” He says sympathetically. It’s not much, but the sincerity in his voice tugs something sharp and unexpected in my chest. He pauses. 

“Oh, wait. Oz. He must’ve known, right? He didn’t look surprised or anything. Not like me. Did you tell him? Or… Did he just figure it out? Is he coming back? Are we meeting him somewhere or-?” Dave continues talking. I don’t mean to cry. I really don’t. But the dam cracks. And once it does, it breaks. The sob hits so fast I barely feel it coming, just a sharp pull in my chest, and then everything pours out. My shoulders shake. My eyes sting. My hands tremble at my sides, useless. All the pain I’ve been holding in since the moment I saw those tattoos on Oz’s arms comes spilling out in a single, broken sound. Dave’s face crumples. 

“Oh no. Oh, hey, hey. It’s okay. You’re okay. I didn’t mean to- Did I say something wrong?” He asks worriedly. I shake my head, but I can’t speak. Not yet. Because the truth is too big and too sharp and sitting like glass in my throat. Oz knew. Oz lied. Oz is gone. And even though I told him to go… Some stupid, aching part of me wishes he hadn’t.