“Turn willingly and you can be free, or”—he leaned into a Fae who had resisted arrest earlier in the day,—“fight me, and I’ll make you mine, whether you like it or not. Either way youwillsubmit.”
The man spit in Thames’s face.
He’s fighting more than you are.
The obnoxious voice I attributed to my own magic seethed at me. I flipped the black-tipped dagger in my hand, unbothered by their antics.
You don’t know what you’re talking about,I argued.
In retribution, the fucking things pulsed inside of me, and when they did, that spark in my core flared.
Lana loves you. Our mate is out there. Start fighting back.
I stopped tossing the blade in my hand, drowning out the sounds of Thames’s final offer toward the unrelenting man.
Lana.
Thinking her name made the light grow, pounding through the murky darkness filling me from the inside out.
A small, useless section of my mind flared to life. My subconscious screaming alongside the will of my shadows. For her.
Now hold on to that.
“Kade,” Thames barked. His scrutinizing eyes scanned me as he leaned against the wall, arms folded, beside the man bound and chained. Could he see the inner demons I battled?
I approached, malice spreading once more through my veins as the man jerked against his restraints. Blood dripped from his wrists as the chains dug mercilessly into the skin from his futile attempts to escape.
“Show our guest how painful the darkness can be when it’s resisted,” Thames instructed. “Slowly.”
“My pleasure,” I rasped, swirling the blade in my hand.
My shadows strained against the evil inside of me as I stabbed the black-tipped edge into the man’s gut. I reveled slicing through the layers of skin. Technically all it takes is one little cut for someone to be infected. That’s what those willingly accepting the darkness received—a slit on their thigh, somewhere fleshy. The marking appeared immediately along their arm, designating them as belonging to Thames. It was easy and agony free. For the most part.
Those who fought secured a much worse treatment. If need be, Thames healed them, aiding whatever magic they possessed after I cut into their skin. Killing them did us no good. We had to ensure our army of dark ones survived no matter the cost.
I knew Thames derived greater joy from those who resisted, so I played my part. Each dark one I infected shrouded my own mind in more of the murkiness. Each stab, each thrust of the knife fueled the beast within to drown out the pesky magic reminding me of my past.
Nothing from that time was here now anyway. That Kade was gone.
No. She’s waiting for you, you fool.
The forceful tone took me by surprise, enough to make me still my blade. Instead of noticing it as hesitation, Thames grinned at the man who’d started screaming.
"Now, now, enough of all that noise.” Thames rolled his neck from side to side before leaning down. “You’ve done well, lasted longer than I expected, but I can’t have this taking so long. Since you clearly won’t choose loyalty to someone stronger than you, someone willing to give you, a mere lesser Fae, the chance of power beyond your wildest dreams, I will give you a different choice. I am agraciousking after all.”
Thames looked over his shoulder, smiling at me. I knew what he wanted: my attention. An audience. A puppet to feed his ego.
You know this is wrong.
My shadows released themselves inside me again, letting that ball of perfect light show momentarily. A warmth crashed over me like a wave, burning my insides like fire. Suddenly, I realized what my shadows had been doing all along.
Fates, no. What was I doing?Lana.The pain in my chest, the light. It was all Lana. I’d succumbed to the darkness instead of fighting for her.
The scene in front of me finally registered, forcing images in my mind of every death at my hands since Thames took over.
Every damned one.
I stepped back slightly, swallowing down the growing chasm of guilt while plastering a cruel smile on my face. My mind reeled, knowing I had to hide my thoughts lest Thames take notice of my change in demeanor. His power tightened in response to the light peeking through from the bond, but my shadows fought back, unyielding.
