“You can’t be serious?—”
“I am,” I interrupted, my hands shaking as I balled them into fists. “This… this thing I’ve been working on. It’s the answer. Your father is tied to that damn object that keeps him alive, right? The Mirror of Truths can reveal its location. And my program can force the mirror to show us everything. Every fucking secret he’s buried. But we can’t do it from a distance. We have to go back.”
He stared at me like I’d lost my mind, and maybe I had. But I knew I was right. I wanted to end this nightmare that had haunted him, his family, and now me.
“Are you absolutely sure about this?” he asked.
“Positive.”
Raffaele exhaled sharply, his hand raking through his dark hair as he processed my words. Finally, he muttered, “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“I’ve been told.”
He rubbed his temples, muttering under his breath, before his gaze locked onto mine again. “Fine. But if we’re doing this, we’re doing it my way. I’m going to put an illusion on you beforewe get anywhere near the estate. And while we drive, I’ll focus on warding the upper levels of the house.”
“Deal.”
He shifted the SUV back into drive. The tires crunched against the gravel as we pulled back onto the road, and I leaned back in my seat, letting out a shaky breath.
As the SUV rumbled along the winding road, I turned my head to look at Raffaele. His profile was tense, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, the veins in his forearms standing out. The air between us was heavy with unspoken questions, but one bubbled to the surface, refusing to be silenced.
“So…any idea how I’m alive?” I asked. “I stabbed myself, Raffaele. I felt it… I was dying. Dead.”
He glanced at me briefly, his expression conflicted, before focusing back on the road. “I’ve been trying to figure that out myself.”
“But you have an idea,” I pressed, watching him closely.
He let out a long sigh, his shoulders sagging slightly as if the weight of everything was pressing down on him at once. “I think it has to do with our bond. The magic that ties us together. I’ve never seen anything like that before, Vivian.”
I swallowed hard. “What do you mean?”
He hesitated, his brow furrowing as he searched for the right words. “When you stabbed yourself, I thought… I thought that was it. That we were both going to die. That’s how these bonds work. If one half is severed, the other follows. That’s why my father bound his soul to an object. My mother was dying, and he wanted to live. But instead of both of us dying…” He trailed off, his jaw tightening. “Instead, it was like the bond reacted. Like it wouldn’t let you go.”
My heart pounded as I processed his words. “Our bond healed me? I thought our bond was practically nonexistent by the end. I couldn’t feel you.”
He nodded, though his expression remained grim. “It was dwindling because of my waning magic and the siren’s kiss, but it was still there. Faint, but there. I felt it when you stabbed yourself. The magic between us… it surged. I could feel it, Vivian, as clearly as I feel your emotions right now. It was like our connection wasn’t just fighting for us…it was keeping us alive.”
I stared at him, trying to wrap my head around it.
I put my hand over his on the gearshift. “Raffaele… thank you. For fighting for me. For not giving up when I was so far gone.”
His fingers relaxed slightly under mine, and he glanced at me again, his eyes softening.
“You know, for someone who’s supposed to be all brooding and shadowy, you’re ridiculously sentimental.”
He chuckled. “Don’t get used to it.”
“I already have,” I teased, squeezing his hand before leaning back in my seat.
As the trees blurred past us, I let his words settle into my heart. The bond between us was more than a lifeline. It was something deeper and powerful. And as terrifying as that was, it also gave me hope. Together, we were stronger than anything that tried to tear us apart.
We were headed straight for the lion’s den, and for the first time in weeks, I was hopeful. If we could do this—if we could end this—there was a chance for peace. For freedom. For us.
The estate loomedin the distance, an imposing silhouette against the backdrop of the evening sky. My heart thrummed with anticipation and unease as the SUV rolled to a stop in the long, winding driveway. It felt surreal to be back here after everything that had happened. Raffaele stepped out and opened my door before I could even unbuckle my seatbelt.
“Raffaele, I can walk,” I protested as he scooped me into his arm.
“You’re still weak,” he said as he cradled me against his chest. He pressed a kiss to my temple. “And I’d rather keep you close, anyway.”
