Page 175 of Magic of the Damned

“Because Areleus is right. Despite my intentions, Ophelia will want me, and hiding isn’t an option. I want this over and—” I let the rest remain unspoken. He didn’t need a reminder of how much I wanted out of their world because it would be impossible for him not to believe he was included in it.

“I’m part of this world.” His fingers resumed rubbing the skin of my lower back, making me put a great deal of effort into staying focused. “It can’t be separated, no matter how much you want it to be that way.” He burst the delusional bubble I was clinging to.

“Have you tried?” I pressed. Why would he? Immediately I regretted the question although I was curious about the answer. The silence stretched without an attempt at a response. I took it as a tacit no.

When his lips parted to answer, I covered them with mine. A hard raw kiss that he quickly responded to. His fingers sank into my hair, pulling me into him. His tongue exploring my mouth with a primal lust, my body responding. Nipples becoming hard against him. The friction of our bodies pressed together, heightening the response. His hardness pressed against me. We pulled away, both of our eyes traveling to where we connected, aware that nothing could be done about it now. I shifted my weight and scooted back a little, which only served to make his arousal more obvious. He smirked.

“Helena, Peter, and Ophelia,” I whispered, as if he could forget those issues.

A shadow crossed over his features, darkening his eyes. They sharpened as they held mine. “I don’t like the idea of using you as bait?—”

“Incentive,” I corrected with a half smile.

He wore the frustration heavily in his expression. “I found Dark Casters before and I could do it again.”

“Both evaded being found by you, and Ophelia is more skilled than Peter.” And, I suspected, ruthless. “It’s not just subjugating the others you have to worry about, it’s the fall of this realm. Or worse, whatever her plans are for it.”

“And it’s only a matter of time before she finds a way to use Helena,” he added, “or Helena allows herself to be used with the promise of more power.”

I’d considered that briefly but didn’t want to bring that to the forefront and have it be a reminder that he couldn’t wholly trust his sister. Surely it affected his motivation for finding her.

“It would have the best results and satisfactory outcome.”

“With Peter and Ophelia dead.”

Failing in my attempt at a neutral voice, sorrow and judgment seeped into it. “The way the Dark Casters were handled is why things are this way.”

“It’s this way because of how they are. You’ve heard their plans. Fully aware of the lengths they are willing to go through to achieve them. What options are there?”

“You’ve managed to restrict the others’ magic and imprison them. I don’t believe they should go unpunished, but does it have to be death?”

It was always death. Destruction and death. Perhaps I was more optimistic about them than any of their behavior warranted.

Amber eyes scoured over my face; his lips formed a pensive line. When his head canted to the side, it curled into a smile. “You believe this show of kindness would change things?” he asked, curiosity woven in every word. It made me recall him telling me how the long years of living had removed them further from their humanity. Dominic’s piercing curious eyes turned softer. I served as a reminder of something that had diminished in him and his family.

“I don’t think it would change things significantly, but with everything that has happened, I believe the slightest display of ki—” I nixed the use of “kindness” because for some odd reason they had an aversion to it. And “compassion.” As if I was calling them insignificant and ensuring they would be perceived as pushovers. “Valuing lives other than yours and your family’s will work in your favor. The Awakeners, they’re just looking for a reason to dissent and start over again, no matter the promise of punishment.”

He had to have seen their humbled looks of regret. They were a poorly organized group with grand ideas, without the power or the means to be successful in their plans. They weren’t even cohesive enough to collectively agree or decline allying with the Dark Caster. I was certain if the same was posed by the Conventicle or the New Conventicle, they all would have been in or out. There wouldn’t have been any defectors.

Dominic inhaled a breath. Exhaling it, he stood, holding me as he did. He eased me to my feet, then took my hand. “I love hearing your perspective, it comes from such a pure place,” he said, traipsing toward the door, taking shorter steps to help me keep up.

“Is that the polite way of saying naïve?” I asked.

“No, I meant exactly what I said.” Accustomed as he was to the options of killing everyone, letting destruction reign, cleaning up the mess, or sheer violence and subjugation, I was a different voice and less sought after alternative.

“I don’t know if it’s the most pragmatic way. Don’t hold it against me if it isn’t a consideration I can make,” he said, stopping in the hallway midway to his office. “If you are to be a lure, then my sole objective is to ensure that you come back to me. I won’t be gentle with lives if it is at the risk of yours.”

How could I object to that? Nah, sacrifice me to save people who’d let me die for a Starbucks gift card.

I nodded. He turned and we continued toward his office. “I have a plan that will work. It is more dangerous than I’d like but the best option. I don’t believe you will be in the most danger.”

“Then who will be?”

“Me.”

CHAPTER 12

Me. Dominic’s last words were playing on a loop in my head. He would be the one in danger? What plan would put him in danger? Would he sacrifice himself for his sister? Making our way toward his office, I tugged his hand. “Emoni,” I whispered. With his life in jeopardy, I felt even more protective of my friend. Despite knowing she was safe with Anand, I felt an overwhelming urge to see her for myself.

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