Page 208 of Bound By Crimson

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Her whole body shivered.

Hope clawed its way back—bruised and shaking.

It was just a glimmer.

But enough to keep her alive.

Chapter Seventy-Six

Decades Between Loneliness

The paper was soft at the corners.

Worn, but not yellowed.

Handled carefully and often.

Lyric opened the cover and immediately smelled lilac and something fainter—like ashes.

She turned to one of the first pages.

She changed the name again today.

It’s Edwina now. Says it sounds strong. Legacy, she says. I hate it.

I told her I liked the name Lyric. She laughed. Called it whimsical nonsense.

But that’s her name. Lyric. No matter what anyone says.

The handwriting was clean at first. Neat loops. Steady pressure.

But a few pages in, it began to slip—like Eden had started writing faster. Sharper. Angrier.

She watches everything. I pretend not to notice. It’s safer that way.

Malachai clings to me when she’s nearby. He can feel it too. He’s only ten. He shouldn’t have to feel it yet.

I tried to talk to my father. He told me to be patient. That she’s traditional. But he always bends to whatever she says and does.

No. She’s dangerous.

Lyric flipped forward.

The ink grew darker, like the pen had been pressed harder.

I’ve been feeling sick lately. I swear she is poisoning me. Could she be that evil?

A few pages later…

There’s something in the tea. I stopped drinking it. She noticed.

She’s in my room when I’m not here. My closet’s always slightly wrong. My drawers aren’t how I left them.

She talks about purity like it’s kindness. She talks about family like it’s ownership.

Sometimes I smile at her and imagine driving a knife straight through her throat. I know she’d still smile back.

Lyric held the book tighter.

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