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My breath shatters.

I claw at the arm holding me, nails digging into fabric and skin.

Edwin.

His face appears in front of me, cold and unreadable in the fading light. The fact that it’s him brings only slight relief, which quickly turns to terror when I realize there’s nothing human in his expression.

My feet slip on loose rocks.

The drop is a dark mouth beneath me, opening wide for my consumption.

I don’t need to see the bottom to know it would destroy me in an instant.

“Please, Edwin,” I gasp, appealing to whatever part of him cares about me.

He could kill me.

He could let go.

But he says nothing. He only watches me, his grip firm, his eyes reading mine like he’s deciding my fate. I clutch at his arm harder, trying to bring him back to himself, but his hold only tightens until air stutters in my chest.

“Can you fly, angel?”

My heart stops.

No.

He wouldn’t.

His hand loosens from my throat.

I stare at him without blinking, searching for another meaning.

Then my fingers slip.

My balance goes with them.

The world tilts, and I fall backwards with a scream breaking out of me.

The drop lasts less than a second.

Then I jerk to a stop.

Edwin has my dress twisted tightly in his fist.

He holds me suspended at a terrifying angle over the bluff, too far back for me to save myself, my spine arched over the emptiness. It lasts only a second, but terror cracks straight through me.

Then he hauls me upright so hard I crash against him, gasping.

My palm slams into his chest while I scramble for footing. He doesn’t let me move much. One arm remains wrapped tightly around my back, holding me exactly where he wants me, as if he has all the power.

“You were sent to me, Zaiya,” he says. “An angel searching for her wings.”

His fingers trail up my throat and settle against my cheek. His thumb drags across my lower lip, catching the tremble there.

“You’re mine now. And you’ll have to trust me, because I’m going to put you through something painful, something you won’t enjoy. But you’ll come out the other side with wings spread, ready for flight.”

I can barely breathe. My chest heaves against his, and I feel his heartbeat answering mine.