Page 4 of Bound By Darkness

She rises and wipes at the dirt clinging to the back of her cloak. As she does, it highlights the perfect outline of her body, and my longing grows deeper. It’s fucking agony not to touch her—not to slip my hand beneath the fabric of her dress and find the protruding nipple of her breast. Not to move my hand along the smooth midline of her stomach, not to feel her wetness, or taste her mouth as I enter her, plunging again and again into her glorious body.

She lingers for a moment, but then turns and walks back toward Cambion and the others.

I follow her.

When we reach them, morning is creeping into the valley. The sky is a light blue and the air is chilled. More birds have joined the initial morning chorus, and their pleasant sounds surround us. Cambion is crouched on the forest floor, the back of his silken robe facing us. It’s now ripped and covered in mud, which is just as well.

Before, he looked like a fucking sugar confection.

In front of him, I see the sparks of embers as he works on the stone.

Revenant is propped against a tree. He’s organizing his bag of poisons, placing vials in individual sleeves lining the interior of the purse. Beside him, the sprite snores at a surprising volume for such a small creature.

Revenant’s face is pale and waxen. Looking at the lightness spreading in the sky, I know he’ll soon need to seek shelter.

“Was that true, what you said?” Eilish asks him. “About theCrawler Mucusbeing lethal when inhaled?”

Revenant removes a vial of yellowish liquid from its sleeve and looks it over carefully before handing it to Eilish. She takes it from him and holds it up the sky. With the morning’s rays backlighting it, the color appears almost amber, rather than the shade of pus yellow I’d seen before.

“It was a lie,” he admits.

“A lie?” Eilish repeats.

He doesn’t look up from his poisons. “Crawler Mucusis very rare. Most people don’t know what it is, making it an easy lie.”

“What does it do?”

He shrugs. “If it comes into contact with you, you become paralyzed, but only for a moment. Inhaling it had no effect on Anona.”

Eilish nods before passing the poison back to him. “That’s a shame. I was hoping it would kill her.”

“She’s been poisoned all the same,” replies Revenant, sliding the toxin back into its appropriate sleeve.

“How?” Eilish asks.

“If you recall, some of the vials fell to the ground in the scuffle?”

“Yes.” She nods.

“Truth Serumshattered and landed on Anona’s foot,” Revenant continues. “In small doses, the serum forces its victim to speak the truth. In large doses, however, it can cause major hallucinations, memory loss, and in severe cases, insanity. Judging by the amount that spilled on Anona, I believe we’re looking at a severe case.”

Eilish smiles at him and my stomach drops. I think I see a glimpse of the darkness within her, and I swallow hard.

“Good,” she says before her expression changes, as though she’s considering another subject. “Why didn’t you try using theTruth Serumon me? To restore my memories?” she asks. “Or on yourself?”

Revenant shakes his head. “TheTruth Serumwould only have allowed either of us to tell the truth from our conscious minds. It lacks the ability to delve into the subconscious, where our true memories dwell.”

“And theTransmutation Stonecan do that?” Eilish asks.

Cambion glances over at her and nods. Eilish returns her gaze to Revenant and he looks back at her. Neither of them say anything and the silence between them makes me uncomfortable.

I clear my throat. “Anona and Dravon are still a threat,” I say. “We can’t know for sure how the serum will affect her. We shouldn’t stay here long,” I finish, finding myself disliking this easy and candid association that seems to be forming betweenthe two of them. It wasn’t just my imagination—Revenant has definitely softened towards Eilish upon learning of her dark side. I’m not sure why.

Regardless, I want him gone.

“I agree. We shouldn’t stay here long,” Revenant responds as he looks at me. He places the straps of his satchel over his head and stands. “Let’s just hope this stone gives us the answers we seek.”

I look to Eilish. Her eyes are averted, and she seems pensive. She approaches Cambion. Revenant looks pointedly at my hand and then at me. I forget my palm is stained with blood. No doubt, he scented it. He raises his eyebrow in question, but I angrily turn away from him and follow Eilish to where she’s watching Cambion.

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