Page 125 of Cursed

Down one path, Lucian awaited—arms open, but with a knife behind his back.

My stepbrothers waited at the end of the other path, ready to fulfill every dark promise they had made.

Lust. Possession. Power. Freedom.

Everything I craved.

A knock on my door made me jump.

I tucked the grimoire under my arm and gestured vaguely at the door. The door opened slowly, and I smiled as a lithe form emerged from the shadows.

They had sent Valen to fetch me.

A smart move.

He brushed his hand through his unruly brown hair and a smile touched his full lips, but only briefly.

“Are you ready?” he asked.

I hugged the grimoire to my chest and relished the prick of the dark metal against my skin as I held it. “Yes.”

He led me down the stairs and through the winding hallways of Withermarsh, into a section of the mansion I hadn’t seen before.

“Does Lucian know about this place?” I asked.

Valen chuckled. “It’s his house. I’m sure he knows about everything that goes on within these walls. Or underfoot.”

A chill raced through me. “Are— are we safe here?”

Valen shrugged. “There are spells over the walls and the door—and the hallway is concealed. But who knows?”

I stopped walking. “I don’t like that.”

Valen turned and his dark eyes burned into mine. “Then go back upstairs.”

I didn’t like that option either.

“Well?”

“Fine,” I snapped. He flicked a glance at the grimoire in my arms before leading the way once more. The tattoos on his arms rippled in the dim light that filtered in from cracks in the heavy drapes that covered tall leaded-glass windows.

We wound our way through the house and down into lower levels I hadn’t realized were even there—the temperature dropped and the stone walls were wet with moss and moisture as we descended into the bowels of Withermarsh.

Valen finally stopped in front of a massive door crafted from solid black oak. Enchantments glowed faintly around its edges and slithered down into the ritually carved metal handle.

Valen placed his palm against it, and murmured words I couldn’t make out.

But as he spoke, the grimoire seemed to tremble in my arms.

Maybe I was just imagining it.

The door swung open, revealing a room that immediately stole my breath away.

As we stepped inside, dank air wafted towards us along with the scent of dried parchment and burning incense. The room was dark, lit only by smoky sconces that cast a strange light into the stone chamber.

THUNK!

I bit back a gasp as my eyes focused on a large sliver blade that quivered in a target on the wall near my head.

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