To everyone's surprise, the coral snake suddenly turns around and viciously bites the hand that's about to grab it.

"She's been bitten!" someone screams.

"Avery!" Gabrielle cries.

"That's crazy!" a guest shouts, "She won't let go of the snake's head!"

Everyone looks at Avery with sheer horror. Andrew wants to help her, but he's scared to provoke the snake even more.

"Avery, let go of the head," he screams.

Avery seems to lose hearing. She wraps her hand even more tightly around the snake. It squirms and she tightens her grip into she rips the head from the body. Blood gushes into her hands and spills on the floor. Avery smiles faintly.

She always knew she never have much luck, and tonight was no exception. She lifts her hands to stop Andrew from approaching her. She doesn't want him to touch her, even though the situation is critical.

"Avery!" Gabrielle cries out desperately as she squirms on the floor.

Her heart is in so much pain that she almost can't breathe. She wonders why no one is moving to save her beloved sister. Gabrielle hates herself for being too weak to protect Avery. She bangs her head on the ground and the floor shakes. Her miserable screams echo disturbingly through the quiet room.

The sound of a slammed door breaks the silence, and hurried footsteps slam onto the stage. Evan runs to Avery's rescue like a god of the night. He almost jumps from the stairs behind the stage when he hears Gabrielle's screaming. As Gabrielle shouts Avery's name over and over he feels as if he's been sent straight to purgatory. Purgatory quickly turns into hell when he sees Avery lying in a pool of blood on the stage.

"Avery, are you hurt?" he shouts, "Where?"

Evan can't help but wonder why Avery's always hurt whenever he sees her.

"What are you doing here?" Avery asks "Is it a delusion?"

She realizes she has been thinking of him.

"Is God taking pity on me and making my last wish come true?" she wonders.

"Where are you hurt?" Evan asks again.

Avery's hands are covered in blood, and he wants to examine them. Then the beheaded snake catches his eye. He knows it's a venomous snake.

"Give me your hand," Evan orders.

Avery's breath is faint and shallow. In spite of her weakness, she finds the strength to scream when Evan lowers his mouth to her hand.

"Evan, what are you doing? Are you out of your mind? It's poison. Don't do that!"

Disregarding her protests, he places his lips around the snakebite. He knows it's dangerous, but he also knows that he can't live if something happens to her.

"Evan, leave me alone," Avery protests, "I don't want you to do this. It's too dangerous. Please, don't do it."

Avery tries as hard as she can to push Evan, but she's too weak from the venom. She struggles to lift her head and look at Robert Tinder.

"Get him away from me," she begs.

Evan sucks deeply from the wound before spitting a mix of blood and venom onto the floor.

"Who dares to stop me," he roars.

Robert is frightened, but he knows what he has to do. Evan's life is too valuable for him to throw it away like this. Robert musters all his courage and orders the bodyguards to get Evan off of Avery. Evan grabs a gun from a bodyguard and shoots Robert's thigh.

"I'll shoot anyone else who comes near me in the head," Evan threatens.

"Evan, don't do it," Avery begs desperately, shaking her head back and forth.

"Why is he doing this?" Avery wonders, "Does he realize how he's leading me on? His actions seem to say that I'm more important to him than his own life, but that's not possible. He loves Diana Summer, doesn't he?"

Evan kneels down to continue to suck the poison from Avery's snake bite. He's adamant that no one can stop him. Tears well up in Robert's eyes, but he's not crying from the physical pain of the gunshot. It wounds him that Evan holds his own life so cheaply that he'd sacrifice himself to save Avery.

Avery grasps Evan with her unbitten hand. His eyes burn like fierce stars.

"Please tell me, Evan, why?" she whispers.

There is blood all over Evan's mouth making him look like a handsome vampire. Her dazed brain finds him incredibly attractive. Evan begins to lose strength quickly. His eyes start to lose focus and his head droops and snaps back up as if he may collapse at any moment.

"Avery, hit me one more time," he whispers.

Avery is stunned. She feels a sob caught in her throat.

"If you hit me three times, it means you love me," Evan says.

"I won't do it," Avery says.

The tears that have been accumulating in her eyes start to pour down her face. She can't believe he has the nerve to joke at a time like this.

"Hit me twice more," he begs.

If Evan adds these to the last two slaps, Avery will have hit him four times, which means she's in love with him and wants him to return her love.

"Tell me, do you want to hit me twice more?" he asks weakly.

Nobody knows what they're talking about. Only they are aware of the true meaning of his words. Avery is crying so hard she can hardly speak. She can't focus on anything but the feel of Evan's touch on her skin. She shakes her head frantically.

"Evan, I just want us to live," she sobs.

Evan smiles faintly. He tries to say something more but the poison reaches his central nervous system. As powerful as he is, his position and wealth and indifference can't protect him from the venom and he collapses in her arms.

"Evan! Evan, talk to me!" Avery shouts, shaking his body, "Evan, wake up!"

He doesn't respond. His hand falls limply to the floor and the gun slips from his grasp. Avery can barely see through her tears. Suddenly, her eyes sharpen and she grabs the gun and pointed it at Andrew's head.

"Give me the antidote," she demands.

Andrew remains calm. He didn't expect Evan to arrive, much less sacrifice his life for Avery.

"How do you know I have it?" he asks casually.

"This place is swarming with snakes," she says, "You must have an antidote."

Andrew casts an admiring look at Avery. Her calmness at such a critical moment surprises him. He quickly replaces his admiration with an arrogant laugh.

"Why should I give you the antidote?" he asks cruelly.

"Because I won!" she replies.

"So what?"

"You have to make sure we get out of here in one piece," she insists, "That was the deal."

"Wrong," Andrew smirks, "I'll make sure you get out of here safe and sound. But that doesn't include him."

Andrew shows no fear at the threat of the gun.

"Give my antidote to him," Avery insists, "I want him alive. Do you hear me?"

Hands in pockets, Andrew's face shows no emotion.

"Do you mean you're willing to give up the chance to live for him?" he asks curiously.

"There's no time for this!" Avery wails, "Cut the crap!"

Andrew suddenly lifts his hand to hold the gun.

"It's him or her, pick one," he whispers.

Avery knows Andrew's referring to Evan and Gabrielle—she can only take one of them with her.