Page 19 of Darkest Heart

“No.” She punched his shoulder, and he pretended to nurse it. “And don’t tell me what to do.”

“You never fail to prove me wrong.”

She clicked her tongue, and Ravena stepped out in front of us. Her expression was nothing but serious, and I felt bad for enjoying their banter. But it was the only thing holding me back from going insane. If I didn’t have my family, then I would be lost.

Erianna gripped my arm, as always, sensing the shift in my mood, and walked with me inside. Normally, I wouldn’t allow myself to be led by anyone, but she was the closest I had to a sister, so I didn’t mind. It felt nice to have her care.

Ravena knocked three times, and a slot in the top of the door slid open, a pair of steel-colored eyes peering from behind it. He didn’t say a word until Zach spoke up. “We have an appointment,” he said, moving Ravena to the side, who didn’t seem to appreciate it. “With Salvor.”

Where did I know that name from?

As the door swung open, an ominous, green hue poured out onto the cobblestone. I realized?this wasn’t any back-alley club. The doorman’s long-sleeve tattoo peeking out under his rolled-up sleeve, branded a skull and leaves.

This was the headquarters for the most dangerous organization in Sanmorte?Malum Dominor.

SEVEN

Olivia

In my dreams, Sebastian held me so tight I could feel his heart thumping to the rhythm of mine. There, he would spread his wings, and glide me over the mountains and trees, far away from this place. We would be free with our friends. But that wasn’t reality.

A voice tinkered in my mind, the place between asleep and awake, where for a few seconds, dreams and reality collide. “Seraphina.” Before I could talk back, or process what was happening, my eyes were open, and whoever was there was gone.

Blinking rapidly, I took in the scene. I awoke on a bed for the first time since being kidnapped. I peeled back my eyelids, then sat upright. A snarling sounded beside me, and I jumped as the aniccipere I’d spoken with earlier came into view. He stared out of the window, staring at the inky night. I pieced together the hazy memories from before, wondering how long I’d been asleep. I remembered him bringing me to the room, giving me water and some stale crackers, then…nothing. I must have passed out.

My stomach ached more than before. I held my hand over my navel, feeling the loud gurgles ripple. I wasn’t used to the food. Nausea crept in like an old, unwanted enemy.

I whipped my head to the creature as he spoke, continuing to stare out at the headstones in the cemetery silhouetted against the moonlight and woods outstretched behind it. “I let you sleep for the whole day,” he explained. “I figured you would recall more when rested. I have kept to my end of our agreement and more. Begin.”

I tried to swallow, but my tongue felt too big for my mouth, and my throat burned. “I need more water,” I said rapidly, bringing my hand up to my neck. Beady eyes locked onto mine, and in them was a darkness so deep, I had to look away for fear of drowning in it. Eyes really were windows to the soul, and in theirs was a vibration so low, just being so close to one sent a shiver down my spine. Averting my eyes to the dusty, dim lamp, I saw him glaring in my peripheral vision. I wondered if he was contemplating killing me. He needed me to talk, but their nature was carved from hatred and anger, and it showed in every movement and sinister expression.

He turned, the top of his head grazing the ceiling as he hunched forward, crossing my path of vision. The gray skin on his arms had lost all connection with the bone below. The door swung open, and he crouched through, leaving behind the scent of rotten flesh on his breath.

I listened to his footsteps, fading as he descended the steps. Once he was far enough away, I brought my hand up, splaying my fingers over my racing heart. Panic clawed through my mind, my survival instinct the only thing keeping me from breaking. I knew if I cried even one tear, that I wouldn’t be able to stop.

He’d killed the woman regardless of my agreeing to talk. She was dead, and I had to pretend not to care. My throat tightened, my shoulders tensing as my emotions waved through me. The urge to escape was overwhelming. Tilting my head, I stared at the window, desperately searching for a hint of magic, but there was none. I lifted an arm, but I was still weak. I’d have asked for more food if I didn’t think I would vomit with it in my mouth or that he would strike me for asking.

Stay strong. You must stay strong.I repeated the words to myself, curling my arms around myself, and lacing my thumb over my forearm over and over. Keeping a cool composure and showing a lack of feeling was not a trait I’d ever possessed, but I had no choice. Weaknesses here in the pits of Sanmorte were deadly, and not just to me.

Before I could fully regain control of my mind, I could smell him. The putrid stench mixed with decades of dust and mold in the building suffocated my senses. I thought I’d be used to it by now, but every so often, I became so acutely aware of it, and my immortal senses didn’t help.

He crouched back through the door, then curled his body up, towering over me. I raised my head, meeting his stare as he thrusted a grimy glass at me, filled with water. I looked at the liquid, not hovering over what the floating bits were, and brought it to my lips. The water coated my tongue, thirst overpowering everything else as I gulped down the entire glass, hovering it over my mouth to consume every drop. There was no hint of poison in it, and my grip tightened. The marks on my wrists had healed, but the phantom tightness of the restraints being there remained, despite being free.

I placed the glass down on the bed and shimmied myself back to rest against the wall. Despite sleeping for as long as I had, I was still exhausted. I didn’t bother thanking him, knowing politeness wouldn’t work any magic on the aniccipere. They only responded to what they knew.

The chair legs screeched across the ground, stinging my eardrums as he pulled the seat close to me, sitting his decrepit body onto the hard wood. “Talk.” He leaned forward, thin arms propped upon his knees, his nose twitching as he evaluated me.

I didn’t want to talk, to let slip anything that might help them overpower the monarchy, but there was no way out of this without saying something. “Can I have something to eat?” I asked, stalling.

A growl escaped from somewhere deep in his torso, reverberating in my ears. “No,” he spat. “You will talk, now.”

“Fine, but I will speak with Astor,” I said back, trying not to show a hint of fear. They responded to strength, and I had to show it.

“Stay calm no matter what.”The voice sounded in my mind, as if it were my own thought, but the voice was not familiar.“Do not show you are afraid.”

He reached me before I could react, ice spilling into my mind, freezing any thought as his fingers were grappling my throat, pinning me to the bed. His flesh-rotted breath was hot against my nose as he brought his eyes to mine. “Listen, bitch. I gave you water, you said you would talk, so if you do not start spilling those secrets, I will peel each layer of this pretty skin until your screams of agony are a chorus.” Drool fell on my chin from his tongue, slipping down onto my chest. My body went into flight or fight mode, and for a moment, I felt a hint of magic. It purred below the surface, wanting to reach me as I wanted it. But it wasn’t enough yet. I’d gone without the poison now for almost two days. If I could just stretch to a third, I might be able to touch it. “Understand?”

I nodded, and he pulled away, just enough that I didn’t feel my skin crawling under his touch. “You want to know what the gods told me? Why?”

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