Soon the knight vanished. In the vial, the glow brightened. It was almost full to the top now with my soul.
Fuller.
I felt smaller. Like I was shrinking inside my own body, becoming less and less with every second.
"You're doing wonderfully," he said softly. Almost affectionately. “What will it be for trial three? I feel I should make this one momentous. Something memorable perhaps.”
Erethis tilted his head, studying me like I was something fascinating under glass.
"What do you fear, my Lady?" he asked, his voice soft and probing.
I didn't answer.
Couldn't.Every breath was agony, and blood was still pouring out of me.
Erethis smiled and tapped the side of his head. "No matter. I know just the thing."
The arena shifted again.
And this time, stepping out of that darkness came?—
Thayden.
Thayden. The monster who pushed me to this place with his threats.
As always, he looked sharp. Dressed like a nobleman.
But he wasn't alone.
Behind him, three figures emerged.
Mother. Grandmother. Emabelle.
All bound to stakes. And burning.
A sound ripped from me like that of a wounded animal. But that was nothing in comparison to the screams that tore out of my family as the flames consumed them from the feet up.
The hungry fire devoured their clothes, their skin, their faces. And still, their bodies twisted against their bonds, desperate and futile.
The sound of agony had no end.
I couldn't look away. Couldn't stop seeing the way the fire ate through the people I loved.
That was what was going to happen to them. They’d die just like that. I was sure of it.
Gods above, I desired nothing more than to run over to them and save them, but there was nothing I could do. My body wouldn't obey.
"You absolutelyreekof love. And ofloss," Erethis murmured, leaning forward. "How exquisite."
I kept my eyes on my family.
"You fear marriage to the wrong man," Erethis continued, his tone clinical. Dissecting me with words. "You fear losing yourself to someone else's will. Becoming property to someone you don’t love. Athingto be owned." He paused, his smile widening. "But more than that, you fear loving someone you can't have. Someone who will destroy you just by existing. How interesting that the man you’re about to marry is not that man. Your heart belongs to the Fae prince."
The words struck me deep. I barely had time to process them when Wolfe materialized across from us, his eyes burning with cold fury.
He wasn’t real. None of this was real. Except the pain. And the truth. A truth I couldn’t remember, but this demon had seen straight through me.
Thayden moved, cutting into the moment.
