Page 16 of Torn Ivy
“Bram has been doing some freelance work for us, taking out strategic allies of Death. He has several beings who deliver him souls, on the down low for extra treats.”
“That fucking warlock. I knew he was a piece of shit,” I spit out.
“Wait,” Ivy interrupts, her eyes narrowing at me. “You’ve been working for them? This whole time?”
I shift uncomfortably under her intense gaze. “No. Very recently. I was trying to find a way to get closer to Poison. I didn’t know who they really were. I just knew they wanted to take down The Syndicate.”
“You were trying to get closer to Poison?” she asks. “Why? So you could kill me, too?” Ivy’s temper has flared, dramatically increasing the pink energy around her.
“Don’t be ridiculous,” I snap. “I didn’t want to kill Poison.”
“No, just abduct her and chain her to the wall until she agreed to be with you,” Tate snarls.
“What?” Eyes wide, Poison stares at me. I make the differentiation now because I’m in seriously deep Dragon dung.
“No,” I lie. “That wasn’t exactly?—”
“Okay, everyone, just calm down,” Josh interjects, holding up his hands. “We’re all on the same side here, and your personal shit can wait.”
“Are we all on the same side?” Ivy asks, looking around the room with suspicion. “Because from where I’m standing, it seems like everyone’s been lying to everyone else.”
She’s not wrong. The tension in the room is overt with all the secrets and lies bubbling to the surface.
“Look,” I say, trying to defuse the situation. “We can argue about who kept what secret later. Right now, we need to focus on the bigger picture. Death is after Ivy. Are we assuming he wants her because of the chaos magick or because he knows she can kill him with it, so he wants to keep his enemies closer?”
Ivy’s eyes narrow at me. “Good question. Why does Death want me so badly? Is it just because of this chaos magick, or is there more to it?”
Josh and Cathy exchange a loaded glance that sets my teeth on edge.
“There’s more,” Josh admits reluctantly. “We believe Death wants to use you as a weapon. Your chaos magick, if properly harnessed, could potentially destroy entire realms.”
“What?” Ivy whispers, her face pale.
“Death has been accumulating power for centuries,” Cathy explains. “But there are still realms beyond his reach. With you under his control, he could expand his dominion even further.”
“Fuck that,” Torin growls. “We’re not letting that happen.”
Tate nods in agreement, but I notice his eyes keep darting to Vex. There’s definitely something going on there that I don’t fully understand.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask, trying to focus on the immediate problem. “How do we keep Ivy safe and stop Death?”
“We train her,” Josh says firmly. “Teach her to control the chaos magick so Death can’t use her as a weapon.”
“And then what?” Ivy demands. “I just waltz up to Death and kill him?”
Vex grins. “Something like that, yeah.”
“You’re insane,” Tate snaps. “We can’t send her against Death. It’s suicide.”
“We don’t have much choice,” Josh argues. “Death won’t stop coming for her, and if he gets his hands on her, the consequences could be catastrophic.”
I watch the argument unfold, my mind still trying to process that Ivy has chaos magick. That is some seriously mythical shit right there.
“Enough,” Ivy says suddenly, her voice cutting through the bickering. The pink energy around her pulses ominously. “This isn’t for any of you to decide. It’s for me and me alone.”
“Beg to differ,” Torin says, his gaze boring into hers. “You don’t get to experience what we have and then dismiss us as something not worth your time.”
“I never once said that?—”
