My breaths come faster. The woman who touched me everywhere last night, who made me feel cherished and wanted, killed someone who loved her and walked away after.
Riley takes my hands. “We see the way you look at her, Hannah. If you don’t step back soon, you’re going to become another Charlotte.”
“She’ll do it to you too,” Rebecca says. “Maybe not tonight. Maybe not tomorrow. But eventually, she won’t be able to stop herself. It’s her nature.”
Shame burns through me. She’s right. I offered myself to Julia completely last night, begged her to take what she needed, and she nearly killed me.
Upstairs, a door creaks open.
Riley and I flinch at the sound. Rebecca just keeps staring at me with those knowing, pitiless eyes as footsteps thump closer overhead.
My mouth is dry. I swallow hard. “I won’t let that happen,” I whisper.
I’d rather die than surrender to Julia again. I’d rather let this spell kill us both than become another one of her victims who wasted away believing a monster cared about her.
Satisfaction flashes across Rebecca’s face. Riley slumps in relief, squeezing my hand.
But realization crashes over me like an icy wave. By showing me what happened to Charlotte, Rebecca has guaranteed I’ll never surrender to Julia again. And without surrendering, we can’t break the binding spell.
We’re stuck. Julia is bound to someone who knows exactly what she’s capable of, and I’m bound to a monster who will slowly drain me dry without remorse. Neither of us is going to give the other what she needs, but we can’t escape each other either.
Rebecca has gotten her perfect revenge. Julia will be helpless, just like Rebecca was when she found Charlotte on the bed. And I’m the sacrifice caught in the middle, destined to waste away no matter what I choose.
The binding spell pulses behind my ribs, ticking closer to the moment I’m trapped forever.
Unless I can find another way out of this nightmare.
There has to be a way to break this spell that doesn’t require me to trust a woman who kills the people who love her. I have four hours to figure it out, and I’m not giving up until I’m free—or dead.
19
Julia
Themomentthedoorto the guest room closes, Elizabeth’s magic slams into me, buffeting the air from my lungs. My wrists snap together as if bound by invisible shackles, and I’m forced to my knees on the wood floor. My magic flares hot beneath my skin, searching for a weakness in her attack, but as powerful as that feeding made me, I’m no match for an ancient witch in her own domain.
“You dare attack a guest under my roof?” Elizabeth says, her voice low and dangerous.
I struggle against the restraints, but they only tighten. How humiliating, being on my knees like a chastised child. “She’s the one who—”
“I don’t care what Rebecca did to you.” Elizabeth circles me like a predator, her fingers trailing green sparks. “There are laws older than your vendetta, Julia. Laws of hospitality that even you should respect.”
“I need her to tell me how to break this spell.” The words come out strangled. “I’m running out of time.”And kneeling on this damned floor isn’t helping.
“You think torture is the answer?” Elizabeth stops in front of me, her green eyes blazing. “You think making her bleed will somehow undo what she’s done?”
“It’s worth trying.”
“No, it’s desperation masquerading as strategy.” She backs up to a padded armchair by the door and sinks into it. “You want to break this spell? Show some remorse. Apologize to Rebecca for what you did to Charlotte, and try to find some way in that black heart of yours to make it up to her. Maybe then she’ll have mercy on you.”
Remorse?As if feelings could solve this.
I glare up at her. “What happened between Charlotte and me is none of her business.”
“It became her business when her little sister’s life fell into your merciless hands,” Elizabeth snarls. “Have some compassion, Julia.”
I laugh bitterly. “If only that were possible for someone like me.”
She furrows her brow, searching my face. “You really believe that about yourself?”
