Page 72 of Beg the Night

Thank god the guards chose that moment to pour wine into our glasses. Without the interruption, I might have actually exploded.

I forced myself to look at my sister. If I looked at Director any longer, there’s no telling what I’d do with the knife on the table in front of me. Then I continued to survey the people around the table. When I stopped on the unfamiliar man, I frowned. “And who is he?”

Next to me, Athena picked up her wine and gulped, her whole being radiating tension.

“This is Benedict. Katherine’s claimed. The two of them are here to walk you through the ceremony.”

I tried to bite my tongue. But I’d never been good at keeping my opinions to myself. “We need teachers? Really? I think we can figure it out for ourselves.”

Director did not look amused.

“It’s actually more complicated than you think,” Katherine added.

The woman was so clearly nothing like her sister. She was the kind of woman who instantly made me put my guard up. I wasn’texactly sure what it was that made me distrust her. It could have been her smile—clearly fake. Clearly rehearsed. What the fuck was there to smile about here?

Or maybe it was the way she looked at Athena.

They were sisters. I would die for my sister. Literally. But her expression was full of calculation rather than fondness when she looked at her sibling.

I didn’t know Athena well. But I knew she wasn’t the type to be this cold to her own blood. Especially the only family she had left.

“More complicated?” I repeated. “How so?” I fought the urge to reach for my own wineglass.

Katherine cleared her throat and looked down to her lap.

“That’s what we’d like to talk to you about, actually,” Director spoke. “It’s more than simply being together physically. There’s an aspect of magic sharing that you’ll need to be prepared for.”

“Magic sharing? What are you talking about?” Athena asked.

“Since you’ve agreed to perform the ritual, that means that when the blood moon reaches its apex, you will feel a pull. A summoning of your magic, of your partner’s magic. It’s so the powers inside you can combine.”

“And what if I don’t have any magic?” she asked.

Mags’s lips kicked up for a fraction of a second. See? I wasn’t the only one confident that she was hiding something. Something powerful.

“Whatever magic you do or do not possess, it will open itself to him, but only if you willingly merge. Your magic will not betray your intentions.”

That was a fucking lie. My magic had betrayed my intentions twice already, and it had come damn close on many other occasions. Even seeing Athena in that dress had my power ready to betray my every command.

“Then what?” I asked. “When it’s over, we’ll be normal again?”

Director’s gaze hardened. “You will never be normal again, Sinner. This ceremony will make you unstoppable. You will unleash a new level of power within yourself. Your abilities will be stronger than you ever expected they could be.”

“But I’m already a tier three. How could I possibly become more powerful?”

“You are anunclaimedthree. A claimed three could tear you up on the battlefield.”

The words fell across the table, making my heart lurch. “And the battlefield? That’s where we’ll go next?”

One servant after another appeared, each with a tray of food. The smell immediately had my stomach churning.

“We’ll discuss all that later,” Director said, waving to the group of people hovering near the door that likely led to the kitchen. “Once it’s all done.”

Done.Like it was that easy. I would be stealing Athena’s innocence tonight. There was no end to that.

It would haunt me forever.

“May I use the bathroom?” Without waiting for Director to reply, I pushed my ridiculous gold chair back and made my way to the door.

---