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“Have you been here the whole time?” he finally asked. “Here, as in sleeping in this room.”
“In a sense, but if you’re asking if I was with you last night, the answer is yes. I think I was.”
He moved to a chair and flopped down, hunching over as he looked up at me with sullen eyes. “The last time I asked you a question, magic took over. A type of power like I’ve never seen. Am I going to cause that again? Will questions provoke some other curse?”
“No.”
“Then explain it to me.”
I took the chair on the opposite side of the fireplace, now full of only cherry hot coals, not a single log left to burn. “How far back do you want me to go?”
“As far as it takes to make this make sense. What is your power?”
“Like any witch, I have several. But specifically, there are two that are required to begin this… curse, as you called it. True Sight tells me how someone is feeling, the depth of their soul without having to ask. But it goes beyond that. Because I am the Heart Seeker, I can detect the blackness. The symbol that indicates they need somebody to intervene and aid them.”
“So, what happened? I ran into you last night by happenstance, and you just decided I would be the perfect little candidate for your power?”
I shifted backward in my chair, looking out the frosted window into the lilac-painted sky, wondering how the world could be so beautiful and yet so terribly cruel.
“It’s not that simple. There’s a tie between the goddess and I. She blessed me when I was just a child. Came to me in the dead of night, proclaiming I was to be her Heart Seeker. Before every Winter Solstice, I hunt those that are the most lost and call upon her Spirits to help the witches see her generosity.”
He grimaced. “I’ve seen some pretty fucked up shit in this word, darling. I can promise you, I am not the worst of the worst.”
“It’s not about being a terrible person. The worst people are already damned. She believes this to be salvation. And I don’t choose the targets. The power within led me to you.” I stood, becoming uncomfortable with talking so openly about my magic. “I’ve seen shitty people, too, Atlas. People that I didn’t believe deserved the goddess’ mercy.”
“This is not a mercy. It’s torture. This is living in every moment that’s haunted me since they happened. This is taking a knife and shoving it into an old scar, just to see if it will still bleed.”
Placing my warm palm on the window, I turned my back to him, letting the cold seep into my skin. To remind myself that this world was far greater than the tension in this room. Perhaps he would kill me. “I know it feels that way, but—”
“No. Don’t defend this. Unless we have evening plans to dive into your worst memories, you don’t get to tell me what this is supposed to feel like.”
My hand collapsed to my side. “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
“Call them.”
I jerked around. “What?”
He stood, planting his feet. “You said you could call upon her Spirits… call them. Here. Now.”
“Trust me, you do not want me to do that. You’ll meet them soon enough.”
He crossed the room to take my hands. “I don’t want this. I didn’t ask for any of it. Your magic is wrong. My heart is not marked. Broken things are never put back together without flaws, Marley. The damage will always be visible if you’re willing to look hard enough. I am the same as everyone else.”
I pulled my hand away to place it on his chest, pushing the magic forward so that I could feel that mark, reassure myself I hadn’t gotten the wrong man. But as that link between us tightened, electrifying my touch, I yanked it away, staring up into his eyes and whispering, “It is there, Atlas. And I’m so sorry for it.”
He ground his teeth together, fury turning his face into something that might have been terrifying had I not already cared for his soul. “Call. Them.”
“You’re not ready. The three Spirits are Past, Present, and Future. If at any point, Future thinks you’re unsalvageable, it’s over. You will wander this world alone for the rest of your life, and there is nothing anyone can do about it.”
“I’ve got news for you, darling. I’ve been alone for most of my life.”
I pressed myself forward, grabbing his collar so he could not look away. “You are not alone beyond anything but your own choice and perspective, and therein lies the fucking problem. I’ve dealt with many witches. It’s not always love and fear of commitment. Sometimes, it’s obsession with worldly things, sometimes, it’s people that will not let go of a grudge that has festered so long, it’s hurting others. Sometimes, it’s a mother grieving from child loss. Or a father, wondering how on earth he will raise his children without his wife.”
“How does it end?” he asked, eyes glancing between mine as if I held his fate within the answer.
Time slowed as his conviction wavered, albeit still swirling with anger, and another emotion came through. The lust I’d seen from him the night before. And though I felt him trying to shove it away, being this close made it nearly impossible. His tongue darted over his lips. A betrayal of his intended fury.
“It always ends with a choice,” I managed, utterly captivated by him. “You can either choose to heal and move forward, or you can continue on your path and damn yourself. Unless…” I faltered when his throat bobbed, nearly losing all thoughts.
