He rose to his feet, staring down at me.
“Some of this is real,” he said quietly.
I laughed, sharp, humorless. “No, it isn’t.”
“Yes,” he said, matching my glare. “It is.”
Nyxthra’s claws suddenly sank deeper into my mind, feeding on every flicker of pain. I closed my eyes, trying to push her back, but she wanted blood. I felt her slowly slipping into control, taking over my magic. And when my eyes opened, Abram stepped back from me.
“Your eyes are black.”
I ignored him as I stood up, tossing the tray of food on the bed negligently and turning my back on him. Abram watched me get dressed.
“What part is real?” I asked him as I turned back, noting that my voice didn’t sound like my own.
“I care for you,” he answered.
“Yes, like a friend.” I nodded.
His eyes flared. “More than a friend.”
His gaze roamed over me, and I knew he could sense Nyxthra seeping out of me. Abram stepped toward me but stopped when I sneered at him.
“I don’t want to discuss this,” I told him. “I understand why we can’t go to Della’s together, and I don’t care. I know what this whole thing is.”
“Why is Nyxthra coming out?” he asked.
My eyes blackened even more as he stared at me.
“Because I am feeling very angry,” I told him. “She is using it to her advantage. She wants me to hurt you back, so I am leaving.”
“So I did hurt you.” He frowned.
Nyxthra hissed at him like a wild animal in my mind. I begged her to let me go, but I knew she was angry that I kept her bound inside of me.
“I’ll be home later.”
“Where are you going?” he asked. “I wanted to spend the day together.”
I sighed as I slipped on my boots.
“There is no point in hanging out together, Abram.”
He hurried over to me and grabbed my hand gently. His eyes were filled with disappointment.
“Please, stay.”
Nyxthra’s laughter filled my head.Tell him he was the worst choice. Tell him you should have married anyone else.
I shook my head. “I need to get out of here. I feel like I’m suffocating.”
He flinched like I’d struck him. “I’m suffocating you,” he said quietly.
I didn’t answer him. I couldn’t. If I said another word, I’d break. So I pulled my hand from his and walked out the door.
The cool air hit my face like a slap. My steps were uneven, my breath shaky as I moved through the woods behind our home. I could still feel Abram’s gaze burning between my shoulder blades, that look of confusion and hurt twisting deeper into me the farther I got.
Nyxthra hissed in my mind.Running from him when you should be making him bleed for forcing you feel this way. Go to your coven and make them bleed for how they’ve treated you. Then go find your father…
