Karwyn disappeared into the adjacent room. Lora tried to follow, but Karwyn raised his hand and halted her in place with the deadly grip of his air magic. Soon after, he came back, a rolled-up paper in his hands.
“Shall we add a new clause to your contract?” he asked, crowding her into the corner of the room. “For every loophole you think you have discovered, I get to kill one of your loved ones.”
Lora’s hand shook. She wanted to grip the spelled paper in her pocket that Eyden had given her, but she was afraid Karwyn would track her every move. “You can’t make me sign anything ever again.”
“Never? I would not be so sure of that,” Karwyn bit out.
Lora moved closer to Karwyn. “What is there left to take from me? I have less than a week left. You can’t hurt my family. You can’t kill me…yet. You already tookeverything.You’ve limited my world to a point where there is now absolutely nothing you could possibly threaten me with.”
“Big words, cousin,” Karwyn sneered. “Too bad you are wrong. You know I could send your family a nasty letter about how you are choosingmeover them.”
Lora shook her head, thinking of her own letter that Eyden would have given to her family by now. “Go ahead, be my guest.”
Karwyn forced her back as he put a hand on the wall next to her head, caging her in. She refused to flinch. “I can torture you until youbegto sign.”
“I’ll die anyway, so what’s the point? Actually, why aren’t you doing the ritual sooner?” Lora searched his eyes. “Youcan’t,can you? It has to be Caelo Night. And it has to beme.I’m your only hope.” Lora laughed; it sounded hysterical to her ears. “I wonder, what was your reaction when you found out you still had family left but you had to kill them to get what you want? Did you hesitate even for a second?” Lora pushed him back with both hands, catching him off guard. “Do you even have asliverof a soul?”
Karwyn’s eyes burned brighter, a deadly glint shining through. “A soul does not get you any further in life.” He came at her faster than she could track. His hands went to her throat, pushing her against the wall. The wood creaked behind her, assaulting her ears. “Did I hesitate?” He squeezed her throat. Lora’s hands clutched at his, her breathing laboured. “We are the same, little cousin. Only one of us can make it out on top. If the roles were reversed, you would have done the same.”
“We arenothingalike,” Lora forced out, struggling against his hold.
Karwyn’s face was a few inches from hers, his eyes deranged. “I see that rage in you. That hatred for yourself. That search for a way out. The answer you are looking for ispower.AndIwill be the one to have it.”
Lora could feel his fingernails digging into her sensitive skin, but she was too distracted to fully feel the pain. Her thoughts caught on every word he’d spat at her.We are the same. I can take it from you, a half-fae.Her breath caught as she realised what he meant.
“You’re like me,” Lora gasped, trying to catch her breath. “You’rehalf-fae.”
Karwyn’s face twisted in disgust before he knocked her head against the wall; the wood sounded close to splintering. “Do noteversay that again!” His face drew frighteningly close, his eyes pure madness. “I will make your death so painful that you cannot even imagine it. I will tear you apart until you beg the universe to turn back time to undo this exact moment.”
Lora swallowed, tears burning her eyes as she struggled to breathe. “You’re half-fae.” She dared him to react, dared the fire in her to rise.
Karwyn threw her head against the wall another time. She heard the wood splinter for real this time. Pain radiated through her skull, and angry tears streamed down her cheeks.
“You’re half-fae,” she croaked out, sick of giving in to Karwyn’s demands. Her skin turned hot, power spreading through her. She felt the fire in her wake, and for the first time, she had no desire to extinguish it.
Karwyn made a move to strike again, but Lora was ready. Fire erupted from her, burning his hands. At the same time, she delivered a painful kick between his legs.
Karwyn loosened his grip, bending over. Lora moved her hand into her boot, a calm washing over her as she felt the dagger in her hands. But it was short-lived. A strong wind ripped the blade from her hand.
Tracking her dagger, Lora moved to retrieve it, but something tangled her legs and she tripped.That bloody wind.Leaning over her, Karwyn tried to press her into the ground. Lora threw wild punches, catching him in the jaw. She reached into her jacket pocket, but Karwyn was faster. Dread came over her, but he didn’t grasp what she was looking for, instead removing her phone.
“You have lost your phone privilege,” Karwyn yelled before throwing the device across the room, his wind quickening the movement. It clashed against the wall, the screen cracking.
Her heart stopped for a moment. Her phone was her last connection to home. Without it, she couldn’t even look at her family. Karwyn had taken from her again andagain.And for what? Because he didn’t want to be half-fae?
He’d said they were the same, but they were opposites. She wanted to be human, to benormal—or at least she used to. In this moment, Lora craved the power to overthrow him.
They were the same? Well, then she would show him how deep her hatred ran.
Throwing up her arms, fire blew in Karwyn’s face. He flinched back, and Lora took the distraction to ram her knee into his crotch before scrambling to her feet. She kicked out her leg as he tried to grab her ankle. Her boot connected with his nose.
“You will pay for this!” he screamed as blood ran down his face. He sprang to his feet.
Lora balled her hands into fists. She knew they couldn’t kill each other, but it still felt like a duel to the death. In one move, Karwyn’s air pushed her back. But she was ready. The fire in her reacted to him. It flowed out of her easily. A circle of fire stretched around him.
But his air was strong, keeping her flames tamed. Lora hastily reached into her pocket, finally fishing out the fire message she had prepared for Eyden.
Just as she burned the piece of spelled paper, Karwyn increased his wind, and her flames died. She threw fire at him again, and he threw air. Nothing but ashes remained, drifting around them, throwing them into chaos.
