Page 58 of Chaos Carnival

I opened my mouth to make a comment about Stone's unexpected nurturing side, but caught Lux's warning look and thought better of it. Instead, I settled for, “As long as she doesn't eat the furniture, I guess.”

“She won't,” Stone assured us, then quickly changed the subject. “How are things with Lilith?”

The mood in the room shifted instantly. Tess moved closer to me, and I wrapped an arm around her waist.

“There's been some complications,” I began, as Tess tensed beside me.

As we explained what had happened with the webs, I noticed Eris peek out from behind the couch, her unnatural eyes homedin on Tess. Maybe she sensed something in her now, one magically altered being recognizing another.

Stone's face darkened as we described the incident at the restaurant, his jaw clenching in that way it always did when he was pissed off. Lux listened with interest from his perch on the arm of the couch, occasionally nodding as though pieces of a puzzle were falling into place in that calculating mind of his.

“So now what?” Lux asked when we finished. “These threads are just a part of you?”

“The lines whisper such pretty lyrics,” Tess said dreamily, then blinked hard. “But they're hungry songs. Always so hungry.”

A soft bleating drew our attention momentarily, but I was growing more concerned about Tess. Eris emerged from behind the couch and slowly approached Tess, her trembling less pronounced.

“Well,” Stone said, watching his traumatized charge with something like pride. “What's the plan for Ad—“

“Oh!” Tess interrupted, her eyes suddenly wide and unfocused, pupils dilating until barely any color remained. She stumbled back, pointing at Lux with a trembling finger, her other hand clawing at empty air as if trying to grab invisible strings. “The ravens are circling you. Black wings and betrayal, betrayal and black wings...”

Lux stiffened. “Tess—“

“She's coming for you,” Tess continued, her voice taking on a sing-song quality. “The witch with feathers deep inside. You'll choose her over everything. Over everyone.” She chuckled, the sound sharp and brittle. “The strands show me. They show me everything now.”

“Tess, look at me,” I said firmly, trying to get her attention, but she twisted away from my grip.

“You don't believe me.” Her eyes darted between all of us, hurt and wild. “But the lines never lie. They can't lie. They're made oftruth and forgiveness and—” She broke off, pressing her hands to her temples as if trying to keep her skull from splitting open.

“She's not well,” Stone said flatly. “We can't take these ramblings seriously.”

“They're not ramblings!” Tess snapped, suddenly fierce. “I saw it. Clear as blood, sharp as crystal. Lux will fall for the raven witch, and he will choose her over us. So much blood.”

Lux crossed his arms, his usual easy demeanor replaced by something harder. “I would never betray my brothers.”

“The heart doesn't ask permission before it breaks everything,” Tess whispered, eyes wide, swaying lightly. Eris bleated softly and pressed against her legs, as if trying to steady her.

I pulled a trembling Tess closer into my arms. The clarity she'd shown just hours ago after our morning together was already fading. These moments of lucidity were getting shorter—what had started as half a day of peace now hardly lasted a couple of hours. “We can't trust everything they show you, love. They're changing how you see things.”

“Or maybe,” Tess said with another unsettling laugh, “they're finally showing me how things really are.” She turned to Lux, her eyes clearing for just a moment. “I don't want it to be true either.”

The tension in the room was palpable. Stone had moved closer to Lux, his protective instincts clearly triggered.

“I think we should head home,” I declared, already calculating how long it would take, because she needed me again. Not that I minded, but her laughter had taken on that manic edge and it worried me. “I'll text you.”

“Rest won't change it,” Tess murmured as I helped her to her feet. “The ravens are coming...”

As we made our way to the door, I caught sight of Lux's troubled expression and Stone's darkening scowl. This vision,true or not, had planted seeds of doubt that would be hard to uproot. And Tess, lost in her thread-induced delirium, seemed both tormented by and delighted with her role as unappreciated prophet, the webs waiting to show her more horrors dressed as truth.

Chapter 27: Crimson Retreat

Tess

Theridehomepassedin a blur of fractured light and whispered prophecies. By the time we reached Maverick's apartment, the strands had completely consumed my perception again. The door clicked shut behind us, and the sound rippled through the air like rings in water. Everything was too bright, too sharp, yet soft at the edges—like the world had been wrapped in gossamer and dipped in feathers. I wanted to reach out and taste the colors.

Maverick's hands cupped my face, drawing my scattered attention back to him. His touch felt both immediate and eternal, every moment of contact echoing through multiple dimensions. When his lips met mine, the chaos in my minddimmed just a little. Just enough to form coherent thoughts, though I wasn't sure I wanted them anymore. The ribbons were so much prettier.

“The lines like you,” I whispered against his mouth, delighted by the way they danced around him like curious children. “They sing different songs when you're close. Such lovely melodies of blood and forever.”

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