Page 186 of Dance of Deception

“And when I do, I’ll have to decide: do I let you bleed out with her watching, or keepyoualive long enough to watchherdie…”

42

LYRA

I burst out the door,my feet barely touching the ground as I sprint from the house of nightmares.

My eyes snap to Carmine’s Lamborghini, parked at the edge of the driveway. I hurl myself at it, my fingers fumbling on the door handle before I yank it open and slide into the driver’s seat. My hands shake violently as I grab the wheel.

I don’tactuallyknow how to drive.

Guess I’m going to have to learn fast.

The roar of the engine shatters the silence as I jam the car into reverse. Then the front door to the house slams open, and Arkadi staggers onto the front porch.

His face and hands are dripping with blood, but I can’t think about what that means right now.

I do the only thing I can: I slam my foot down on the pedal as hard as I can.

Instantly, the car lurches backward violently, tires spinning on the gravel, slipping out of my control.

The car skids sideways, veering right, then left, then the world tilts when the rear tires tip into the deep drainage ditch that runs parallel to the driveway.

I spin the wheel, but it’s too late. The back of the Lamborghini slams into a tree with a brutal, crunching sound.

Pain explodes through my skull as I lurch forward, hitting my head on the dashboard. For a moment, all I hear is the ringing in my ears.

When I force myself to open my eyes and look up through the cracked windshield, my pulse spikes instantly.

Arkadi is storming across the yard toward me.

A fresh wave of terror rips through me. I fumble with the door handle, my fingers slipping as I scramble to get free. Finally I manage to get out, stumbling and still disoriented as I fall to my knees in the dirt.

I scramble to my feet, bolting for the dark, inky blackness of the trees. My feet pound the dry underbrush, branches whipping at my face and arms as I crash into the forest. My breath comes in ragged, panicked bursts, but I don’t dare stop.

Behind me, I can hear him, getting closer.

“You don’t have to run, Lyra!” Arkadi’s voice snakes through the trees, enveloping me like a suffocating fog. “You were meant for more than this! Is this all you want to be?” he roars. “Some accessory for a man you were forced to marry!?”

I push harder, my muscles screaming. The branches claw at me, but I don’t slow.

“Don’t fight your destiny.” His voice is closer now, his tone low and persuasive. “There are sheep and there are wolves, Lyra. I raised you to be a wolf.Like me.”

“You didn’t raise me!” I choke out.

A dark chuckle. “Didn’t I? Imadeyou. I shaped you!”

I trip on a root, almost going down before I catch myself. I can’t keep up this pace forever. He’s faster.

“How did my mother die?!” I scream into the night, desperately gasping for air.

Arkadi is stalking through the brush, his presence a shadow behind every tree.

“You want me to lie to you, don't you,” he growls. “Make it nice. But I won’t do that. She diedscreaming, Lyra.”

A choked, shattered sound claws its way out of my throat.

Arkadi’s voice doesn’t stop. “She fought, though. Oh, she fought. I almost admired her for it. But in the end, she was soft. She was weak.”

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