“Please,” he rasped. “I don’t know anything.”
Kazimir chuckled darkly, his cold gaze fixed on the captive. “They always say that.”
I stepped into the room, the door creaking shut behind me. The shadows responded to my presence, slithering along the walls and creeping toward the chair. The captive’s breathing quickened as they wrapped around his legs.
I crouched in front of him, meeting his terrified gaze. “You’re going to tell me everything. Who you’re working for. What their plans are. And why the fuck you thought you could spy on me and live.”
His mouth opened and closed like a fish gasping for air. “I—I don’t know! They don’t tell me anything important. I swear!”
Kazimir stepped forward, his hand glowing with an eerie light as he rested it on the captive’s shoulder. The informant let out a choked cry as Kazimir began siphoning his life force, the glow intensifying as the captive’s energy flowed into him.
The bond thrummed with Vivian’s disgust. Her discomfort was distracting, but I shoved it aside and focused on the task at hand.
The captive’s face contorted in agony, his breathing ragged as Kazimir drained him. “Please,” he whimpered. “I’ll talk! Just—just stop!”
I raised a hand, and Kazimir pulled back, though his expression was one of barely restrained impatience.
“Start talking.”
The captive’s chest heaved as he struggled to speak. “I was approached by someone,” he stammered. “They paid me to gather information. I don’t know who they are, I swear! They never told me their names. Just… just that they were working with others.”
“Who?” I snapped. “What faction?”
“I don’t know!” Tears streamed down his face. “They only ever mentioned informants—people they paid off. They said they had eyes on one of your allies, but they never told me who!”
I leaned closer, my patience wearing thin. The shadows tightened their grip on him, eliciting another strangled cry. “You’re lying,” I growled. “Who the fuck are they working for?”
“I don’t know,” he sobbed. “Please, I swear I don’t know! They never told me!”
The bond pulsed again, and I felt Vivian’s unease spike. It only fueled my anger.
Kazimir glanced at me, his expression expectant. “He’s useless.”
I straightened, my jaw tightening as I looked down at the quivering mess of a man before me. His sobs grated on my nerves, and I felt a surge of hatred for the weakness he represented.
Without another word, I put my hands on either side of his head. He didn’t even have time to scream before I twisted sharply, the sickening crack echoing through the chamber as his body went limp.
I wrinkled my nose at the stench of sweat and fear that permeated the room, then let his body slump back against the chair.
“Find out who the fuck is behind this. I want names.”
Kazimir nodded. “Consider it done.”
He left the chamber without another word.
Vivian’s emotions brushed against mine. I pushed them away without a second thought. I couldn’t allow her feelings to chip away at my resolve. There was no room for softness, no room for second-guessing. The game was far from over, and I intended to win against whomever had decided to work against me. No matter the cost.
The metallic stench of blood lingered in the chamber. My hands were steady, but the tension in my chest was a sharp reminder of everything that was at stake. The shadows still writhed in the corners, feeding on the leftover fear in the air.
Suddenly, a cold, suffocating energy slithered into the chamber, prickling against my skin like needles. My jaw tightened as the temperature plummeted. I didn’t need to turn around to know who had arrived. My father’s presence was like a toxin seeping into every crevice, demanding attention and submission in equal measure.
“Missed all the fun, have I?” My father’s voice echoed through the chamber, smooth and languid, with an undercurrent of cruelty. His black eyes flicked to the body on the floor, and his lips curled into a smile that was more teeth than anything else. “You’ve been busy.”
My father had always been theatrical, but the sheer malevolence in his demeanor made it difficult to see anything beyond his cruelty. He crouched beside the corpse, inspecting it with a kind of detached amusement. His long, pointy fingernails trailed along the dead man’s cheek before he stood, brushing nonexistent dust from his jacket.
He turned to me, his gaze as sharp as his claws. “Tell me, Raffaele. Will there be any fresh female corpses for me to entertain myself with tonight?”
My stomach turned, but I kept my expression neutral. “None here.”
