Page 5 of Broken Shadows

I take in my surroundings through slitted eyes as I wait for whatever new suffering Edward has come up with in his attempts to exhume my magic. Candlelight flickers around the room, casting shadows over blood splatters, chunks of muscle, and pieces of flesh coating the walls.

How many more will die before my father is satisfied?It’s for the greater good, he said when he realized murder was the key to enhancing my magic.

I plan on spitting those words back at him when I bury him alive.

With every surge of death magic that left my body, there was a new person dragged from the streets to take the blast of my magic until I was depleted. I tried to control my power, but here, my death magic is too unsteady and reactive to my emotions and the living, and unfortunately Edward knows exactly how to provoke it. Through torture and hurt, he pulls out the fatal power and uses innocent people to absorb the shocks of it. After all, my death magic requires sacrifice in blood to grow stronger.

The victims are so-called godless people living on the fringes of society—the people no one would miss, as he justified it, when he went with the demon brothers to bury what was left of another one.

I wonder if myself-proclaimedsaint of a father realizes he’s also a damned serial killer.

I wish more than anything that I could use my powers on him. I’d do anything to feel that deadly hum buzz through my veins, then watch him explode and splatter against the walls. Unfortunately, the damn cross hanging around his neck—gilded, and upside down—is his protection against me. Againstallmagic.

My father comes into view as he stands over me. “Are you ready to succumb and release your magic?”

“Never,” I spit between clenched teeth. My gaze drifts to the remnants of dirt clinging to his fingernails, and his eyes follow my trail. “Does burying the bodies yourself bring you some peace?” I question, lifting my stare back to meet his. “Does it make you feel better about killing them?”

The muscle in his jaw twitches. “You murdered them, not me.”

“We’ll see what your God has to say about that,” I spit.

“You will not bait me with your words, whore of Satan!” he yells, losing the scrap of composure he dons like a second skin. His hands—once used to tuck me into bed and hold me when I cried—wrap around my throat, his fingers constricting. His wide, blue eyes fray into a smoky gray, as if my defiance has sucked the life out of him. The lines around his mouth deepen with each twitch as a battle of wills plays out in his expression.

His grip tightens, blocking any air from reaching my lungs. I squirm against the cheap foam mattress, wondering if I’ve pushed him too far this time. His fingers loosen when I attempt a dry scream, and he lets out a heavy sigh before releasing me. Spluttering a little as the pressure against my clavicle eases, I struggle in a shaky lungful of air.

His eyes drift to my chest, transfixed by the visible swells exposed by my poorly fitting hospital gown, realization filtering into his hard stare as his gaze shifts to the word tattooed there. His throat bobs before he turns away.

Lorcan’s claiming tattoo remains unblemished, the shadow ink a rich onyx despite Edwards' many attempts to flay it from my skin. I hold on to that miniscule spot of light in the darkness. It’s one of the few things this asshole can’t take from me.

I clear my throat, swallowing a few times before spluttering, “Nothing’s changed in all these years. You still covet my body with your eyes like a fucking pervert.”

He spins to face me, cheeks red as spittle flies in my direction when he shouts, “I don’t covet you. Everything I do isonlyto punish you!”

I grit my teeth. “I’m your daughter, you sicko.”

“You werenevermy daughter.”

An unhinged, muted chuckle rolls from my lips as he turns his back to me. “I am, and your denial doesn’t change that.”

“Enough,” he commands before grabbing a scalpel from a metal tray. “You will learn to obey. I’ll pull this evil out of you until you serve your greater purpose. I won’t kill you, no matter how much you try to bait me into doing so.”

I’m sure the words are intended for him more than me. I’ve lost count on how many times he’s come close to killing me during the time he’s kept me captive. After the fourth time, I stopped trying to keep count. The nights easily bleed together without sunlight or clocks.

He brings the scalpel to my fingers, facing the sharp edge into my palm. “Squeeze the blade, Evie. It’s time to serve your penance.” My father scowls at me. “Unless you want me to bring you another victim?”

I crack open my eyes as best I can as I slowly squeeze the blade tightly in my palm while glaring at Edward.

The steel bites into my skin, a sharp sting that blossoms into searing pain radiating down my wrist. Hot blood trickles down my fingers. Each thick drop lands audibly as it feeds the steady pool of blood on the stone floor beneath the bed. His lips purse, exaggerating his wrinkles, as he glowers down at me, anticipation tugging at the corner of his thin lips.

I force my gaze away from his face, allowing them to linger on anything other than the pain as agony slashes through me. The iron deeply embedded into the stone wall grabs my attention, each piece evenly spaced apart, likely part of the original foundation.

The pain sharpens my focus as tears flow freely, streaming down my temples and saturating my hair.

Burning prickles over my palm, the sensation heightening with each throb of my heartbeat. I repress the scream building at the back of my throat as my skin yields to the blade. A whimper escapes my lips, barely audible as I fight the urge to let go, knowing if I do, my father will drag another innocent in for my death magic to tear apart.

Another sharp intake of breath follows as I hiss through clenched teeth, the metallic tang of blood filling my nose.

“Good,” he says. My fingers uncoil slowly one by one as I release and drop the blade with a shuddering exhale. Every shiver running down my spine, jolting my body, strengthens my resolve not to scream. I refuse to let him see how much pain I’m in.

---