Her eyes stay down as she asks, “Well, how didyoubecome immortal?”
There’s an instant tug in my chest at her words, a pulsing in my head, like the memory wants to burst free from its deep cove.
Tell her the truth. That was the mantra. But am I ready to tell her this truth? Relive my past? The events that led to my immortality and my downfall.
When her fiery gaze finally lifts, settling on me, her darkness calls to mine with a warm tug. I realise I have no choice. I am at her mercy.
I have to do this. For myself—for my brother… for all of them, even her. She deserves to know this.
To know I don’t deserve her.
“How much do you know of the three realms?”
“Embarrassingly little.” She points to the table. “I know there’s this realm: the Earth Realm.” Then she points to the side, to a shadow. “And now I know there’s a Dark Realm. But I don’t really know what it is or what that means… then the Fae Realm, I guess?” Her pale cheeks flush slightly.
She’s embarrassed. Embarrassed by what she doesn’t know.
Five years to learn of this world—five years—and yet she knows so little. Nothing of thetruethird realm. Nothing about the origin of everything.
What did that so-called family teach her exactly? How to be useful to them. How to stand guard in a club while the truth rotted beneath her feet.
But she knew of the ‘Dark War’. She knew the histories they’d chosen to give her—half-truths twisted to serve their purpose. I nearly scowl, remembering how she linked enforcers to those genocides.
Everything she’s been taught is tainted.
I keep stoic, quelling the anger crawling beneath my skin.
“Jasmine.” My voice is level, hands remaining steady on the table as I wait for her to look at me. “Before I answer your question about my immortality, you need to know about the three realms.”
She nods, fiery eyes locked on me.
“In this world, there are three realms. The Earth Realm, where we currently reside. Accessible to all beings. Then there is the realm of dark.” My darkness curls around me at the mention of it. “And the third realm, the Light Realm.”
“Not Fae?” she queries, her voice soft and contemplative.
I shake my head once. “That came after.” She frowns. “Would you like me to explain now?”
She blinks, her eyes struggling to stay in one place. Is she that shocked by my offer?
Then her gaze is back on me. “No, not yet. Keep going.”
“The two realms are not separate worlds, rather reflections of it. But they are shaped by the essence of the beings who dwell within.
“The Dark Realm, accessible only to beings of the dark, is a shadowy reflection of Earth. And the Light Realm, is its luminous counterpart, accessible only to beings of light. Both realms echo the Earth’s landscape but are infused with the nature of their inhabitants—flourishing or fading, thriving or crumbling, depending on the balance of light and dark within.”
Her lips part, brows furrowing in concentration. I wait to see if she wants to ask anything, before continuing.
“Now you understand the true three realms, I can begin to explain how I became immortal.” I pause, considering my next words carefully. I will tell her the truth, I gave my word, but some truths are harder than others. “But mine and Ezekial’s stories are somewhat entwined. I will answer your question, but please do not ask me to elaborate on my brother’s. If you deem itso, I think it’s only right he is the one to share that with you. Not me.”
Her eyes widen gently with surprise; the sunlight makes them glow like vermilion flames. Then, slowly, she nods.
I never want her to stop looking at me, so I keep talking. “I will also understand if, afterwards, you do not wish to be near me.”
Her dark brows softly dip as she pulls in her lower lip. I steal that expression too.
Then there’s a pause in which her fiery eyes flicker over my face. I worry she’s about to deny me—to walk away again… Instead, she shifts on the small chair and waits, her gaze never leaving mine.
So I begin.
