“Come on, Carrington. We both know you’re better at the seek part, not hiding.”
The silence that answered me wasn’t comforting. It wasn’t empty. It was alive, watching.
A laugh drifted down the hallway, low and smooth. The cruel caress twisted my stomach into knots.
“Hello, Sunshine…” The voice came from the shadows. “Such a good boy on your knees for me. Enjoying my gift? Masks have always made you feel brave, haven’t they?”
“Carrington, stop playing games. Where’s Xanthy?” I shouted, my voice cracking with rage.
From the corner of the hall, he emerged, stepping forward slowly. Shadows hugged him like armor, rainwater drippingfrom his black hair, while his eyes glinted with something I didn’t recognize.
He looked untethered.
It was pure darkness.
“She’s…safe,” he said softly, almost mockingly. “For now. But you?” he continued, tsking at me. “You’ve been a naughty boy. Drunk, panicked, and deliciously predictable.”
I swallowed hard, trying to steady myself.
“We can fix this,” I said, my voice tight with urgency. “You have to stop this. Let her go, Carrington. Please. This is about me, not your sister.”
He tilted his head, a faint smirk playing on his lips. His eyes burned into mine.
“Fix this?” he murmured. “You think this can be fixed? That love, or words, or pleading can undo what’s been set in motion? You can’t stop the dominoes from falling, Shiloh. You knew that when you chose to push the first one over.”
“I can help you,” I shouted, desperation making my voice hoarse. “We can make it right. I know you killed that girl. She was a good girl, Care Bear. You shouldn’t have touched her. We can get away from the wrongs. You just have to—” I faltered, my words breaking. “You have to let Alexandra go. Don’t do something you’ll regret.”
He laughed softly, a sound that made me hiss. Then he stepped closer, close enough that I could feel the heat radiating from his body.
“Carmen touched what was mine. If you’re looking for remorse, Baby Boy, you won’t find it,” he said, his voice low and testing. “This is on you and your precious light.”
I hesitated, my chest tight, my heart racing. I hated myself for it, but I couldn’t lie.
“I…I love you, Carrington. I can’t stop it. I forgive you…” My voice faltered, raw with need and fear. “But if you truly love me too, you have to let her go. Let me go.”
Carrington’s eyes softened for a fraction of a second. Then the fire returned, sharp and all-consuming.
“You always were clever, Sunshine,” he whispered. “Always trying to manipulate me with love and sex.”
“I’m not manipulating you,” I cried. “I’m trying to save you.” My voice was breaking now, ragged and desperate. “We can fix this, together. I’ll do whatever you want. But she has to live. She has to. This has to stop.”
Something flickered in him then. A shudder ran through his frame. He tilted his head, gaze penetrating, dangerous, but soft in a way that made my chest ache.
“You’ve always known how to get under my skin,” he murmured. “Always had that effect on me. Maybe it’s why my walls fell enough to let you shatter them.”
He stepped even closer, leaning down with his lips barely touching mine. His entire presence filled the room. His eyes, wild, chaotic, and too unpredictable, locked onto mine. They were filled with pure pain and anger.
I swallowed hard. “Carrington…”
His lips brushed mine, soft and tentative, and all the chaos inside me twisted into one sharp spike of desire. My pulse slowed as I kissed him back, clinging to the part of him I loved, the part I’d always loved. The part that hadn’t destroyed me yet.
He took the kiss to a brutal level, biting my lips so hard I tasted blood, and gripped my hips, marking me there as well. The madness was there, lurking beneath the surface like a storm about to break.
“Such a good little fool,” he whispered against my panting mouth, his own voice trembling, thick with something broken. “You think love can save her? You think it can save me?”
“I do…” My chest tightened, my words barely audible. “We can fix this. We can…we can make it right. Please, just bring her back. Let her go. Let her be safe. So we can fix what’s broken without breaking anyone else.”
He laughed, low and dangerous. “You’re still trying to fix the world, Shiloh. Still trying to fix…me. You can’t fix what you broke, baby boy.”
