Page 26 of Sorrow & Strangers

“Fool!” I admonish, closing the distance between us and yanking the dagger out of her again.

“Leave,” she commands, her eyes glimmering with something close to hate, but not. “Or I’ll do it again.”

I slip my hand into her hair and fist it. She wants to play like that? Fine.

“Try it and I’ll kiss you.”

Her breath catches. “You wouldn’t dare.”

I chuckle darkly. “You have no idea what I dare.”

There is nothing I wouldn’t do when it comes to her. No line I wouldn’t cross, no person I wouldn’t kill, no realm I wouldn’t destroy.

I lean in. “You want to order me? Make it so I have no choice but to obey.”

Then I’ll make you obey me in all the ways you like. I’ll make you beg.

A tremor runs through her body. “I hate you.”

“If you did, you would have used these weeks to learn to keep me out, but you didn’t,” I say, smirking cruelly.

“Because I didn’t think of you once,” she snarls.

I laugh. “Liar. Gather your power, learn how to use it, or this will be every night.”

Chapter Sixteen

Summer

The anger surges through me, burning bright and furious. I feel it reverberating through my bones, and the feeling of it is intoxicating. This feels different from before I went to Eden. Before it would start to wane the second it ignited, but now it flows strong and fierce, building in intensity.

“Get fucked,” I spit at him, letting the fire run rampant through me, allowing the heat of it to fuel me.

He scoffs, his smug aura smothering me. “If you really hated me, little fae, you’d try to force me out, but you enjoy seeing me,” he says, his tone rough and filthy.

“I already forced you out. You came back,” I snarl, his arrogance only feeding my rage. “Get away from me.” The words singe my tongue, but I love it.

His answering chuckle is dark, and it sends a delicious shiver down my spine, one that I channel into my hatred. “Try again.”

Another laugh echoes through the cave. This time it’s Aqua’s, and the fear creeps back in, depriving my anger of oxygen.

The stranger waves his hand, and the dream collapses around us. “Try again,” he growls into the darkness.

I claw for those last remaining embers floating within me. “I fucking hate you,” I growl back.

I lurch up on the couch, and sweat drips into my eyes, making them sting. Frowning, I brush it away, the muscles in my arms quivering with the simple movement. My whole body aches as if I’ve been through the most intensive workout of my life, and my lungs burn like they do when I’ve been running for hours.

Alice is still snoring softly beside me. My nightmare didn’t wake her, which means I wasn’t screaming. My frown deepens, and I slowly extract myself from her before going upstairs, taking care not to look at Connor’s door. I walk into my room and stop, wondering if I accidentally went to the wrong room. I step back into the hall to double-check, but no, this is Rafe’s old room, now mine, but it has been redecorated again. Alice must have done it while I was gone, to distract herself from being here alone and beside herself with worry for me.

I step into my closet, and I’m not even a little surprised to see all the new clothes. Alice must have been desperate to fill her time without me here. My gaze is drawn to a pair of dark blue yoga pants, and I brush my fingers over them, enjoying the buttery feel of the fabric. I pull them free from the hanger, along with a matching sports bra and slimline, lightweight jacket. Quickly changing, I step in front of the mirror and slide my hands over my hips. The last time I wore anything this fitted was months ago, yet I’m pleased to see that my body has filled out a little, not as much as I’d like, but it’s better.

The halo warms a little, and I glance at it, still wondering if I’m imagining it or not. I reach for a pair of white running sneakers and pull them on, taking this one step at a time. I haven’t worked out in a long time, and while my limbs and muscles ache, I have an overwhelming urge to move my body. The last time was the morning I was kidnapped, the day Connor was⁠—

I close my eyes and try to push the image of him lying on the ground, bruised, broken, and bloody, from my mind. But when I open my eyes, the image lingers, making my stomach roil. I shake my head and push past the nausea, leaving my room.

I consider taking my headphones but I want to be alert the whole time, aware of my surroundings. Though if I couldn’t fend off Aqua when I was fit and well trained, now that I’m weak and feeble, I’ll be even easier prey. My will falters, and I hesitate, fear nearly paralyzing me again. Aqua is dead. I should be safe now.

She’s dead, and you’re safe.