Page 50 of Centaur Bolt

“Embrace the pain,” she murmured as she moved in close. “It’s more powerful than pleasure. It’s something you’ve never understood.”

I glared at her. “I think the bloodmagic has warped your perception.”

Her lips curled into a sneer. “It has opened doors that would have forever remained closed to me. You think you know better?” She reached to wrap her hands around my jaw. “I will show you.”

She unleashed the bloodmagic. With her fingers against my skin, the pain coursed through me—and I pushed my beast to feed upon it. It wasn’t as difficult as I’d feared. My groan was matched by her soft moan. Her lust curled through what she pumped into me—she was getting off on my pain.

She didn’t seem to notice when I raised my bound hands and wrapped fingers around her wrists. I drank greedily, sucking in as much of the energy as I could—and then I went hunting.

Isobel flinched when the tendrils reversed the flow of energy into her rather than away. I plunged into her body and went in search of her heart.

“What is he doing?” Aurora sounded alarmed.

Isobel’s eyes were locked on mine. Every time I traced the blood vessels to my goal, she pulled bloodpower from the coven, and blocked me.

I pushed harder, but then her lips curled into a smile.

“He’s trying to kill me,” she murmured. “Just like his sister killed their father.”

That comment stopped me cold.Sister?

She took advantage of my shock, pulling free from my grasp and backing away. “You did a good job on that mercenary, though. We found him in the alley with a shredded heart.”

My own heart pounded. “What twin sister?” I demanded.

She tweaked a brow at me.

I lunged, hitting the end of my chain so hard I almost fell. “What sister?”

She laughed, and then turned to Finn and Aurora. “Do not touch him. He is stronger than I expected. Use Laila for your games, she will be eager to comply. He won’t hurt her.”

Then she spun back to me. “Just to make it clear who is in control, here…” She raised her glowing hands, and let loose.

Only then did I realize she’d been holding back. She’d deliberately baited me to see what I could do. The power she unleashed blasted through my feeble shields, curled around the collar, and pierced me like a red-hot sword. I writhed on the ground, trying not to scream.

I didn’t succeed.

When I returned to consciousness, they were gone, leaving only the two Bellatis to watch over me. I managed to crawl back onto the bed and curled up into a shaking ball.

I had asister.

Would I ever discover the full depths of Isobel’s lies? Somewhere out there, was mytwin.

Suddenly, my memory took me there. To the cave complex beneath the palace we’d lived in with Galeran. Finn and I had been leading Trantils laden with crystals through the gate. I’d sensed an energy that meshed with my own.

Less than an hour later, my father had died.

I hadn’t seen her, but I knew it as certainly as I breathed—my sister had been in that cavern. Was she the green-eyed woman of my dazed daydreams? Somehow, it didn’t feel right. The dream woman was different. Someone who hooked into my soul, but in a different way.

I hugged my knees. It didn’t matter. My future didn’t include any happy family reunions. Despite using the only weapon I had left against the Sorceress who owned me…

And she’d still won.

18

Riley

When Kiko and I exited Cara’s quarters, there was no sign of Vali.

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