Page 52 of Court of Evil

The tricky bastard. I’ll make him pay for this later.

My head is yanked to the side. I could fight him, but I don’t, and instead I brace myself. A moment later, those wicked fangs sink into my neck. My body spasms from the agony, but I force myself to relax.

Just when I start to feel weak and woozy, the man removes his fangs, and I stumble forward as I look at him. I reach up and cover the wound.

His eyes flare like he’s trying to fight the connection. My blood stains his mouth and chin as he reaches for me, his hands clenching and unclenching.

“It’s a spell that links us. Your instincts are demanding you stop. If I die, you die,” I explain. “Give me a chance to be different, to be better than them.”

Taking a chance, I drop my hand and step towards him. He watches me approach, his eyes wide and scared, like an animal waiting for a blow. I press my palm to his head, and I fall inside his mind.

CHAPTER 22

Ilook past the glowing darkness I am trapped in, and I see her—the woman who dared to invade my space.

We are inside my mind. I don’t know how she did it, but I know she did. She stands before me, small and determined, her hair the colour of fire. Her hands hang at her sides, even as I prowl her way.

“Stop,” she orders. “You cannot hurt me here, so why bother?”

“Why are you doing this?” I shout, hating being trapped. I can feel it both internally and externally, like their chains are on me again, keeping me in the dark as I slowly starve.

She flicks her fingers, and a low light glows around us like she can hear my thoughts. “You are not trapped, not like before. I will never do that, but this is the only way I could stop you from dying. If you can’t be stopped, then you will need to die. I can’t let someone walk around killing innocents. This is your last chance. Either we work together or we both die.”

“Why would you risk your life?” I ask.

“Because I believe you can be saved. I believe that there is someone inside who doesn’t wish to be what they made you into.I believe you are more than this monster, and you were never given the chance to be anything else.”

“You do not know what you speak of,” I retort. How dare she?

She attacked me just like everyone else.

Does she not see I have no choice? If I do not satisfy the monster they created inside me, then the pain becomes unbearable. I do not wish to hurt others. I do not wish to bethis.

I did not ask to be created.

Images flare between us, as if projected from her. They are of her, chained to a chair, covered in blood and being tortured.

I stare at the images, my stomach churning.

“You are not the only one who has been hurt by this world,” she says softly. “You just wanted to appease them, to make them proud, didn’t you? You cannot help who you are, though. None of us can. I know pain and betrayal. We are not so different. Yes, I risked my life, hoping you could be different if someone gave you a chance.” She trails off, and the images fade. “My name is Tate. I am a hunter, but some of my closest friends are monsters. I kill, but I always want to save. I seek revenge and blood, but I hate the way it makes me feel. I am neither good nor bad, but something in between.”

“I am evil. They told me so,” I hiss. “It is not worth the risk.”

“We are all evil here. We have all been abandoned, hurt, trapped, and betrayed. Together, we can be more, but it is your choice, not theirs—not this time. What you want to be is your choice.”

I stare at her, wondering if this is another trick, but I can sense the sincerity in the bond tying us together. She doesn’t want to kill me, but she will if she has to. She wants me to trust her. She wants me to be better, and something deep inside me wants that too.

I don’t know if I can endure it—the madness is thick within my mind. I know she senses it, but she doesn’t say anything.

“Name, my name is Addeus. My creators gave it to me. It means?—”

“Halfling,” she finishes and holds out her hand. “Would you like a different name?”

“No, I want to remember what they did to me and where I came from.”

She smiles, and the darkness around us slowly fades until I am back in my body. She smiles in reality. “It’s nice to meet you, Addeus. Welcome to the team.”

I jerk back as a man pops up in front of me, grinning.

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