Page 15 of Lore of the Wicked Wood
The thought of him taking it all away left her palms sweaty.
“What about the apartment?” She scrubbed her hands against her leggings, unable to look away from the intensity of his gaze. He wasn’t joking. “If you?—”
“The apartment is in my name, Everinne.” He rolled his neck, his dark brows drawing closer together, cementing the seriousness of his threat. “I will continue to pay your rent, butyou will be on your own for everything else. Food, clothing, your ridiculous number of shoes…”
“But—”
Veros lifted one hand, silencing her. He held more command in that simple gesture than anyone else she knew. Except for maybe the kralv. “That means if you want to waste your funds on alcohol and whatever else it is you do in your spare time, that’s on you. But I will no longer support your destructive habits.”
“Is this because I didn’t show up to your little party at the palace last night?” Everinne ran her fingers under her eyes, grimacing when the tips came away smeared with kohl liner and glitter. Certainly her brother wouldn’t stoop so low as to hold this over her head. It was just a party, he invited her to one almost every month.
“No. It’s because younevershow up.” His voiced was laced with anger and something that could’ve been mistaken for defeat. He slammed one fist down on the table, rattling her teacup. Then his hand relaxed and his posture stiffened, pained with disappointment. “Because I realized I can’t rely on you anymore.”
Her brother’s words hung in the air between them, the truth of their fraying relationship. “I can’t trust you.”
Everinne recoiled at the harshness of his admission.
She knew things were strained between them, but she didn’t realize he’d grown so agitated by her behavior. It was one thing for him to shun her or express his constant dismay. But he was the only family she had left, and for him to no longertrusther…
“Veros, I?—”
“I don’t want to hear your excuses.” Again, he refused to let her speak. A flash of pain was harbored in the depths of his eyes, but it was replaced by determination in the next blink. “You can only hide from your magic for so long, Everinne, and until youfind a way to embrace it, that power will always be in control ofyou.”
He rose from his seat, smoothing away the invisible wrinkles from his pants.
Everinne stumbled out of her chair. She had to find a way to stop him, to change his mind. To beg him to give her one more chance.
Veros strode across the kitchen and threw open the door to her pantry. He heaved a heavy sigh, one that was filled with exasperation, and he dipped his head to his chest, shaking it lightly. The shelves were bare, save for a nearly empty bottle of honeyfire, a loaf of stale bread, and half a jar of blackberry jam.
Everinne scraped her teeth along her bottom lip, wrapping her arms tightly around herself.
She never allowed herself to be embarrassed. It was a rare occasion for her to feel mortified or humiliated anymore. She’d taught herself to ignore what others said about her, to shield her heart and mind from caustic insinuations, to keep herself from feelinganything. But standing there in her kitchen, with Veros’s back to her and his shoulders taut with displeasure, shame colored her cheeks.
He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a bundle of pale blue notes. He licked his thumb, counted out an indiscernible amount, and she watched as he popped his jaw, then took the fistful of notes and slammed them onto the table. His eyes darkened, meeting hers.
“You will receive nothing else from me.”
Somehow, it seemed as though he was talking about more than money.
Without another word, her brother turned to leave. His perfectly shined boots echoed softly against the hardwood floor.
Everinne’s chest squeezed, and she absently rubbed the area above her heart where pain seemed to radiate.
“Veros?” Her voice was far more unsteady that she would have liked.
He stilled, reaching for the door.
“What do I do?” she asked.
Veros spared her a glance from over his shoulder, refusing to meet her gaze. “Go shower, Everinne. You reek of sweat and alcohol. Then I suggest you find some kind of employment, or else you’ll be starving before winter thaws.”
Everinne pressed her lips together as her brother walked out of her apartment, leaving her alone in her misery. But she couldn’t allow herself to wallow in the anguish that settled around her like a suffocating cloak. No, she would have to bury that emotion. Because if she thought too deeply about losing Veros, if she paid too much attention to the feelings she hid away in the darkest part of her soul, then the violence of her magic would awaken, tearing through her like a heinous monster. It would devour everyone in its path, taking her with it.
Sucking in a shallow breath, reminding herself everything she did was out of necessity, Everinne went to sit out on her small balcony, the one place where the rest of the world could not reach her.
Six
The dining hall was quiet save for the sound of Veros idly pushing food around on his plate.
