Page 87 of Touched By Darkness

“Answer me, or I’ll make you regret it.”

“I don’t have any enemies. What enemies could I possibly have? I’m new here.” She looks at us then, and the glassy sheen to her big eyes makes me want to see real tears trailing down her cheeks. “The only people I know are you guys, your uncle, and Dmitriy. My circle of friends isn’t exactly big.”

“Or maybe someone wants to hurt Daemon through you?” Alaric speaks up while Ronan lights a cigarette.

“If that’s the case, then why did this person chase me in the library? Or that time in the woods? Daemon was nowhere around then.”

Alaric narrows his eyes. “Why did the person run away and leave you unharmed after stabbing Daemon?”

“How would I know?” She throws her hands up. “Have you seen Daemon? He’s scary as fuck.”

Daemon’s lips kick up in a smile, but he says nothing, content to witness her flounder.

“Tell us about the darkness,” Alaric demands. “How do you lose control?”

“I don’t know what to tell you…”

“Just start from the beginning.”

So that’s what she does.

She tells us everything.

ChapterNineteen

AURELIA

“What are you doing out here in the backyard?”

I jump at the sound of Daemon’s rumbling voice behind me, and the flame that dances on my palm flickers out. Overhead, the stars twinkle, while in the distance, a fox barks. The night is alive with sounds.

“I’m practicing my fire magic.”

Calculated steps carry him closer to me. “You’re not planning on running away, are you?”

“I didn’t realize I was your prisoner?”

A sense of deja vu washes over me. This feels oddly familiar to when Daemon taught me how to fly.

“There’s a crazy stalker on the loose.”

“If he wanted to kill me, he would have done so before you joined me out here.”

His eyes assess me, unraveling every layer until I’m bared to the core with nowhere to hide. It’s hard not to fidget and even harder not to gravitate closer to him.

“There’s that smart mouth again.” He stops in front of me. “Show me your flame.”

Heat crawls up my neck. The way he looks at me is so intense that I step back, if only to allow myself breathing room away from his overwhelming presence.

He follows me step by step until my back meets a tree.

With nowhere left to run, I hold my breath. I can’t think when he’s this close, never mind try to escape him.

“Show me your fire.”

“Why?”

“Stop being stubborn and do as you’re told.”

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