Too still.
A chilling grin stretches across her lips, the sharp edges of her teeth barely visible. Silent tears slip down her cheeks, sliding past her jaw before disappearing into the hollow just above her collarbone. Her face doesn’t shift, doesn’t flinch. Just the smile … and the quiet unraveling beneath it.
The acrid scent of burning popcorn thickens, crawling into the back of my throat. I huff it out, teeth bared, fighting the tremor beneath my skin.
She’s tipping too far, too fast. I need to pull her back before she burns too hot. Her magic is untethered and wild. If she pushes too far before she claims her power, it could tear her apart—mind, body, and soul.
I try licking her hand to dampen her anger, but the attempt only seems to enrage her further. Sitting on the edge of the chair, she leans forward while her hands grasp the arms so tightly her knuckles turn white.
Aurora’s chilling grin transforms into a menacing smile, as if her sole purpose in life is to harm the old vampire.
Right now, she’s in control of the Cù Fèidh, who responds violently to her fury.
Aurora maniacally giggles at Renato’s pathetic whimpers when the beast tightens its jaws around his throat. Although he could survive a broken neck, I’m not sure Renato would ever forgive Aurora for such a transgression.
I have to stop this.
I let the shift roll through me, settling back into my Løkkda as I drop to my knees in front of her.
She’s shaking.
I can feel the rage radiating off her, just beneath the surface. Her whole body is tight beneath my hands, her jaw clenched so hard I half expect to hear it crack. I cup her face, my thumbs brushing slow, steady circles against her cheeks.
“Come back to me, Aurora,” I murmur, my voice trembling with something close to desperation.
When she was upset earlier, I brought her back with my voice and my touch. Perhaps that will work again.
“Little lupine, all is well. Although I enjoy watching Renato struggle, it would be in neither of our interests if he were to die at your hands. Let him go. You don’t want his blood on your hands, not like this.”
The moment she shudders, her power recoils sharply inside her, snapping back into place. The Cù Fèidh rushes back into me, merging with my shadows in a frantic, instinctive retreat.
The room goes thin. Not quiet, just …thin. Like the air shifts, too soft for sound but enough for instinct to notice.
I exhale, trying to ground myself, but something itches at the edges of my mind. Something’s off. Even the shadows hesitate, twitching against my skin, before pulling back into silence.
She’s powerful. I’ve felt it. But this wasn’t power. It was something ancient. Something buried. Something that’s waking up.
Then again, what do I really know about the Daughters of the Morning Star?
I press a lingering kiss to Aurora’s forehead, my fingers sweeping away the last of her tears.
Then, I shift. Shadows ripple and coil as I melt into my Umbraeth, darkness folding over itself. I surge toward Renato, wrapping around him in a suffocating grip. He thrashes, but there’s no escape. And the more he struggles, the tighter I squeeze.
“Renato, I do apologize for Aurora’s passion,” I purr, letting my shadows tighten—not to strike, but to remind him who the fuck I am. “She’s rather fond of me, don’t you think? All of this … because you lost your favorite toy?”
The shadows wind around him, a parody of sympathy pressing in with every breath.
I let him hang there, wrapped in suffocating darkness.
Let him feel it.
Let him understand. He is nothing here. He exists in this moment because I allow it.
“I will go to the ends of the fucking Earth to protect her. If I speak with my sister, can we forget about this minor incident? I offer no guarantees you’ll like the outcome, but I will do my part, as promised. You will also not turn your wrath—or your draughs—on me or Aurora if your son is already dead.”
I tighten my hold, bracing for the violent rage, but Renato goes limp and nods.
Finally, he exhales through his nose, polished and painfully fake, like a CEO pretending everything’s fine while the company burns down around him.
