Page 10 of Cursed

It intrigued me.

It excited me.

Had we pushed her too far?

Or not far enough…

“I like this defiance,” I purred, leaning in until our faces were mere inches apart. Her frantic breath ghosted over my lips and I fought the urge to bruise them with a kiss. “It has a certain... enchantment to it.”

Her eyes hardened at my words and a flicker of distaste flashed through her expressive gaze. But the growing panic was still there, stronger than before.

“I don’t care what you like,” she spat out. She was bolder than I’d given her credit for.

“You should, little bird,” I murmured as I ran a finger down the side of her face. Her skin was smooth and warm beneath my touch. “Because whether you like it or not,” I paused for just a moment, “you belong tous.”

If she had been stronger, the venom in her gaze could have seared the flesh from my bones. But she was weak—her magic was weak and so was her bravery.

A ripple of laughter escaped me as I watched her struggle against the forbidden magic that bound her.

“Let me go!” she shrieked. Avril kicked and twisted with all the force her little form could muster.

“Hm,” I hummed uncaringly, as I stepped back and made a sharp gesture with my hand; the magic echoed my motion and released its hold on her.

She let out a furious cry as she dropped to the floor and staggered back against the wall and leaned against it, gasping for breath.

“I hate you,” she hissed.

“Good,” I replied. I dismissed her with a wave of my hand. “Get out of my sight.”

Without another word, she stumbled blindly toward the exit, her breath coming out in ragged gasps. Her slim figure melded with the darkness before she disappeared completely, leaving only a haunting echo of her harsh words lingering in the hushed silence of the library.

Satisfied, I sauntered over to the armchair I had previously occupied and sank into its worn luxuriousness. A twisted sense of accomplishment spread through me as I replayed our encounter. She was still vulnerable, and I wondered just how fragile her resistance would be. Whether it was revulsion or fascination that sparked those fiery eyes of hers didn’t matter. What mattered was that I had incited emotions she had worked so hard to hide. Fear... anger... desire...

I was still in control.

My father might have announced his intentions toward her, but she wasmine.

Ours.

But something else simmered at the core of all of this—why did Lucian wanther? There were countless women among the ranks of the Necromi who would do almost anything to gain Lucian’s favor…

A smile curved over my lips as I thought of his most recently deceased bride.

Perhaps one of them already had.

But Julia’s brief tenure as our new stepmother didn’t answer my questions.

What did Lucian want with the daughter of a traitor?

And what would I have to do to find out the truth?

I saton the window seat, concealed by the heavy damask curtains, and stared out at the gardens that stretched out around the mansion. The gray light created strange shapes and shadows in the thick mist that covered the estate like a shroud.

I struggled to remember the last time I’d seen the sun or basked in its warmth—

This place seemed determined to consume me.

Every day came with a fresh assault on my senses and my sanity.

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