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Chapter 15
Lily
“So, this guy watched you die and has no idea it was Oren using a trove blade to fake your death and kidnap you?” Nyx confirms the information he has learned this far.
I nod.
“He has no idea who I am. He doesn’t know that Oren brought me here to use my god-given power as a weapon—to hone Thalos’ shadows for his selfish reasons before I could learn to control them and use them against him,” I explain. "You know that Oren brought me here to use as his weapon, but you don't know the extent of the torture he used to break me and force me to comply."
Nyx’s leg bounces anxiously as he grips the armrests of the crimson chair, bracing himself for more.
“Oren was good at deceit and lies,” I remind Nyx, “and we did everything we could to hide how bad things were getting from you because we were afraid of what you’d do.”
Fierce gray eyes snap to meet mine, and the anger within tells me we were right to keep it from him.
“We?” Nyx’s question is a snarl. “Who are ‘we,’ Lily?”
The pain from my deceit clear in his voice.
“Loma and Tobias. They would heal me the best they could before I saw you. Tobias knew if you found out what was truly going on, you would have tried to kill Oren,” I answer.
“My father knew and did nothing?” his words are mumbled.
Nyx stares at the black stone floor of my quarters, his eyes fixed and unblinking. The tapping of his boot as it bounces up and down provides a rhythmic thud to fill the silence. The muscles of his jaw flex in time with his leg.
“He was protecting you. If he could have found a way to keep both of us safe, he would have,” I say as a small smile tugs at the corners of my lips, trying to calm him.
Nyx looks so much like Tobias it hurts sometimes, especially in moments like this. They share the same intensity for keeping those they love safe, and Tobias did all he could for me without angering Oren and putting Nyx in danger.
Gods, I miss him.
“I don’t think either of us realized just how far Oren was willing to go to get what he wanted. Your father had to watch horrific things happen to me, and he couldn’t interfere. But he always took care of me afterward, and during the worst of the torture, I would seek out his kind, hazel eyes to ground me. I always knew he was right there with me, no matter what happened,” I say, remembering the pain and all he had to witness happen to me, powerless against Oren’s wrath. Nyx’s face softens as I speak about his father.
Horrible memories cloud my mind and I’m transported back to my first day as Oren’s prisoner.
“What do you want from me?” I asked, the cold cuffs digging into the soft skin of my wrists.
Oren scowled, and a disapproving look twisted his features. “I want to see what can come of you in the right hands. You will obey me and follow my every command.”
I raised my gaze to his, baring my teeth. “And if I don’t? You’ll do what? Kill me? You already did that, remember?” I yelled, refusing to give in to a deranged man who stole me from my family.
Oren glowered at me with such contempt it caused the shadows to stir again. “There are far worse things than death, girl. It would be in your best interest to listen and obey.”
I shake my head, trying to rid the memories from my mind.
“Over time, things turned into a routine. I would ‘disobey’, and Oren would torture me, forcing Tobias to watch. As soon as Oren left, Tobias and Loma would work together to heal my wounds. The pattern repeated itself over and over for seven years.”
