Page 81 of Soul Forge

The vampires appeared in the doorway he’d stumbled out of, freezing when they saw her with her feet dangling off the ground. She made eye contact and shook her head, pleading silently for them to retreat. Clover grabbed Yani’s arm and moved him backwards, concealing them inside the room again.

“You don’t want to hurt me. You’re safe with me, remember?” She lifted her wrist to show him the oath rune, hoping the sight of it would snap him out of his anger. It was hard to tell where he was looking when his eyes were entirely black, but his snarl relaxed, head cocking to the side as he studied her.

“Why are you here?” His voice was a soft hiss, confirming that the demon was very much in control. The reminder that she’d decided against the Compulsion harried her thoughts, encouraging the panic that spread through her like a poison. She was acutely glad Reiner had decided to go with Gira.

“I needed to e-eat,” she stammered. “I was on my way to the kitchen.” She held her hand up, palm out, and fingers spread. “I’m not here to harm you, Sypher. I know you don’t want to hurt me either.”

She felt her feet touch the floor again, though the hand fisting her shirt didn’t relax its grip. The demon was staring at her palm, studying it like it was a riddle he couldn’t crack. She kept it where it was, waiting nervously. He took the hand away from his neck wound and surveyed it, ignoring the red staining his skin.

He was testing her, she realised. He was waiting for her to recoil from the blood. He wanted to see if she was afraid of him.Would her fear anger him? Would he write her off as the same as the other wielders? Or would open defiance be what tipped him over the edge? Maybe he’d kill her. There’d be no way to stop him if he chose to end her life.

You have no idea what to do, do you?The voice of doubt was unwelcome, whispering in her thoughts.You’re going to die before you’ve even started.And it was right – she had no clue what the correct move was. She could refuse to be afraid and have her throat torn out. She could show her fear and get the same result. His dark gaze gave no hints, his face unreadable beyond mild curiosity as he watched the battle in her eyes.

She wanted to scream, to yank her hand away and try to run, but a prickle across the back of her neck told her not to. It told her to stay. Her instincts were telling her the right thing to do was to stand her ground.

So, Elda refused to back down, ignoring the uncomfortable feeling of the sticky crimson liquid on her skin when he laced his fingers through hers. She curled hers over his knuckles, daring to look him right in the eyes.

She swallowed the flutter of panic when they remained completely black. The nerves tried to bubble up through her chest and tumble out of her mouth in a hysterical laugh. She pressed her lips together to keep it in.

Elda knew he could see the pulse fluttering in her throat, but she kept her chin up and waited him out, never breaking his stare. The grip on her collar slowly relaxed, the knuckles at her throat finally retreating so she could breathe properly. Even so, the demon remained firmly in control of Sypher, his eyes staying stubbornly dark. He braced his free hand – the one that had been an inch from her throat – against the wall at the side of her head.

“Strange creature,” he murmured, his voice a mix of the demonic hiss and Sypher’s honey-smooth baritone. “Twice, I’ve terrified you. Twice, you’ve stayed.”

“You get what you want if I run,” she replied, glad her lips didn’t tremble.

He arched an eyebrow. “And what might that be?”

“You want me to be like the others. You want me to give you a reason to get angry because you know I won’t Compel you.” She maintained eye contact, goosebumps rippling across her skin. “You’ve been locked up inside someone else’s mind, mistreated by everyone, and left alone your whole life. If I abandon you now, I’m just someone else to add to your shit list.”

“What makes you think you’re not on it already?”

“You haven’t killed me yet,” she asserted, desperate to believe her own assumptions.

He moved closer, still showing no signs of returning to his normal self. The short distance between them closed until their chests touched, his face an inch from hers. The scent of vetiver and leather mixed with the metallic tang of his blood. Her knuckles touched the wall, pinned there by his fingers still twisted through hers.

Even though they were the same person, the demon was so different from Sypher. Where the Soul Forge was fire and strength, this creature was frost and cunning. His face was the same, but the paling of his skin made his eyes glitter in the deepest black, the dark veins creating webbed patterns over his left cheekbone. Even his sharpened teeth only added to his breathtaking appearance. He was snow and ice, pure and deadly, as beautiful as he was dangerous.

“You’re bad for me,” he purred, putting his lips next to her ear. His breath tickled her skin, freezing her in place. A new kind of shiver walked the stairs of her spine.

“W-why?”

“Because you make me weak.” Her eyes widened when he drew back, his lips a breath away from hers. “I don’t want to kill you.”

“Then whatdoyou want?” she whispered, her voice hitching with nerves. He flashed a wicked smile, his free hand finding hers where it hung by her side. She was helpless when he caught her fingers again, both arms now trapped against the wall, her body pinned by his.

She knew she should be fighting him. She could try to raise a knee and catch him in the groin, possibly giving herself an opening to escape. But that would make him angry. He might kill anyone who crossed his path because she couldn’t stand her ground.

And in the back of her mind, further than the voice of doubt, further than her deepest thoughts, a single realisation began to form. The sparks where his palms touched hers were spreading. His breath, fanning her face, was scented with mint and herbal tea. It was insane, she knew. Absolutely insane. But she didn’twantto make him let go.

“Tell me what you want,” she said again, her words a breathless tremble.

“Oh, Varro, you can’t handle the things I want from you.” His smile widened, lips brushing ever so lightly against hers, just enough to leave them tingling, but not quite a kiss. “But I’m looking forward to the day you beg me for it.”

Sypher blinked, his eyes igniting when the demon thrust him back into the hallway, retreating as quickly as he’d arrived. He didn’t seem to recognise Elda’s face just an inch away from his. He staggered backwards, shaking his head like he was trying to clear a fog.

“What just happened?” he asked, pressing a hand to his forehead.

“I d-don’t know,” Elda whispered, the reality of her situation slamming into her with all the weight of a boulder. She’d wanted him. She’d wanted ademon. Her terror had done nothing to deter her, and the shame was already beginning to sink its teeth in. What would Sypher say? Did he know already?

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