He sighed softly. “Then you understand my hesitation. The bindings placed upon her are not punishment, they’re containment. If I remove them without understanding why they were cast, she could become dangerous.”
Lucy’s chair scraped loudly as she stood, frustration flashing across her face. “Please. You can’t just leave her like this. She’s suffering. Whatever she’s done, she deserves a chance.”
Jared regarded her quietly for a moment, then reached into a small pouch at his belt. From it, he withdrew two small spheresattached to delicate silver chains. Each sphere shimmered faintly.
He placed them carefully on the table. “Bind her feet with these. When I remove the spell, they’ll hold her in place. They’ll ensure she cannot harm you, or herself until she’s stable.”
Lucy stared at the spheres. “Are they safe?”
Jared replied with a small shrug.
Byron exchanged a look with Lucy, then gave a faint nod. “Do it.”
Lucy took the chains in trembling hands. They felt alive, with energy as if whispering against her skin.
The air seemed to thicken as they re-entered the room. Davina remained motionless, her face pale but peaceful. Lucy knelt beside her and carefully fastened the chains around her ankles. The silver links glowed faintly as they tightened, then went still.
Jared positioned himself opposite Lucy, palms hovering just above Davina’s chest. A faint sound filled the room, low and resonant.
“Stay back,” he murmured. “The unbinding of Davina has begun.”
Chapter 9
Byron, Corey, Lucy, and Barnaby stayed to see the procedure.
Jared stood over Davina, his tall frame steady and calm. The markings along his forearms glowed faintly, alive under his skin, streams of silver and black twisting together.
He turned to Lucy. “Once I start, don’t interrupt me. No matter what you see. If you break the connection, you could lose her. Or worse.”
Lucy nodded silently.
Corey crossed his arms, jaw tense. “You’re not exactly filling me with confidence here, man.”
Jared didn’t even glance at him. “Confidence isn’t what keeps people alive. Obedience is.”
Jared lowered himself beside Davina and pressed one hand gently against her chest, another against her forehead
The air trembled and the temperature dropped instantly. Frost formed along the windowpanes, creeping outward like spiderwebs.
Jared spoke gently, “she’s been trapped like this for years.”
Lucy swallowed hard. “Can you free her?”
“Yes,” Jared murmured, “but I can’t promise what will wake up in her place.”
He began to chant again, and the air thickened. The silver chains around Davina’s ankles started to hum, vibrating softly. Her body twitched once, then again.
A low moan escaped her lips.
Davina’s back arched suddenly. A scream ripped through the room, sharp enough to rattle the glass in the cabinets. The chandelier flickered violently above them.
A surge of dark energy burst from her chest, black smoke twisting upward, forming shifting faces that whispered and hissed. The light around Jared flared brighter, the markings on his arms burning like molten silver.
“It's resisting,” Jared said, his voice strained. “Whatever’s inside her doesn’t want to let go.”
Lucy’s pulse pounded. “What do you mean, whatever’s inside her?”
Jared gritted his teeth whilst dragging out his words. “She’s po-ssessed.”
