I shivered, goose bumps rising along my skin, and I winced at the sudden intimacy when he brushed his thumb along my cheek.
My eyes slipped closed at his gentleness, as if he knew that single touch would force my body to surrender to him.
“Kneel,” he ordered.
Before giving me a chance to obey, he placed his hand on the top of my head and forced me down.
Pissed off, I tried to stand, but he shoved me back down.
The man who’d escorted me to the room approached us.
“Who kneels before the Son?” he asked, his voice sounding monotone, as if deliberately disguised.
“Electa mea,” Enzo replied.
My chosenin Latin.
“Is she unclaimed?”
“Yes.”
“Mark her. Name her. Bind her.”
A low chorus rose from the masked figures around the chamber.
“A Fawn claimed is a Fawn protected. With blood, she is chosen. From us, she shall be free. Stay loyal. Do not run.”
The words vibrated through the room like a biblical prayer.
Enzo grasped my hand and pulled me to my feet before lowering my hood. My breath caught in my throat.
He turned my wrist in his grip, exposing my palm. For a moment, he studied it, his index finger tracing the line like he was reading a map and searching for his next stop.
When the man beside him handed over a knife, my fingers curled inward.
The blade caught the light, and I recognized it as the one he’d played that stupid knife game with.
My pulse pounded when he traced the same lines as before with the tip of the blade.
I squeezed my eyes tight when the blade pierced my skin, sharp pain shooting up my arm. A single tear slipped free before I could stop it.
“Eyes on me,” Enzo snapped. “Do not fucking look away.”
The command was quiet, meant for only me to hear.
My eyes flew open just as the blade dragged across my palm. Another sting burned through my wrist as it split my skin. Blood welled around the fresh cut.
“Electa mea,” he said in a low rumble.
I wished I could see his face.
The mask hid every clue to what he felt in this moment.
I kept my cut hand still, afraid one wrong move would ruin the ritual.
Enzo freed his other hand from the robe and returned the knife back to the man beside him. Then he peeled off his glove and extended his palm.
Without hesitation, the man sliced into it.
