Chapter 53

Lilitha must have dozed off because it seemed like no time at all when she snapped her eyes open at the sound of noises at the door. She staggered to her feet as the lock clicked.

Backing away, she watched as the door creaked open. There he stood, golden hair now pulled back in a ponytail, plain clothes beneath his cloak. His sword and heavy boots were intimidating, and his blue eyes flashed. It wasn’t some terrible nightmare. It was all real. Shockingly real.

He was alive. Damon hadn’t killed him, after all. And Mandalay thought ~she~ was as slippery as an oily rat. Lilitha swallowed as he closed the door behind him. Her pulse pounded in her throat as he turned to lock it. He tucked the key into his pocket.

He dragged his eyes over her with a frown. “You have not cleaned up.”

Lilitha sidled away. The floorboards creaked as Mandalay went over to the lantern. Crouching beside it, he lit it with a match he pulled from a box in his pocket. Then he stood, went over to the window, and snapped the curtains shut.

Then he turned. The lantern light flashed against his glittering eyes. “You’re looking better.” He pulled off his cloak.

With a choke, Lilitha sidled farther away, toward the door.

“You stink of blood.” He stepped toward her.

“Keep away!” Lilitha gripped at the door handle. “Or I’ll—or I’ll scream.”

“Go ahead. I dare you. A murderess. An escaped criminal.” He chuckled darkly. “Who do you think they’re going to believe? Remember who I am, Lilitha. As a respected Champion, you’re under ~my~ control now.”

“You can’t—you can’t have me. Not again.” Her teeth chattered and she shut her mouth, biting down hard until her jaw ached.

Instinctively, Lilitha’s eyes dropped to the sword at his hip. Mandalay fastened his hand around the hilt. “Want to kill me? I can’t blame you.”

He paused, pondering something for a moment. Then he began unbuckling his belt. The room turned hazy. Dizzy, Lilitha grabbed more tightly onto the door handle with a moan.

He threw the sword onto the bed. “There. Consider it a kind of peace offering.”

Lilitha stared at the sword in disbelief.

“No tricks,” he said, and he raised his hands. “I want you cleaned up. I’ll give you fifteen minutes. If you’re not ready by then, I’ll clean you up myself, got it?”

He walked toward the door. Lilitha scrambled away. He pulled the key from his pocket. “Remember what I said. Escape—and your friend dies.” His eyes flicked to his sword. “Try and kill me—and your friend dies.” He dragged his eyes over her with a grimace. “Clean yourself up. I don’t want that man’s stink all over my room.” And he unlocked the door and left.

***

The moment the door shut, Lilitha raced toward the sword. She picked it up, unsheathed it, and stood in the middle of the room, holding it up in front of her, pointing it toward the door. It shook so hard that she dropped it twice. When she picked it up again, she cut her hand. The sword hit the floor with a thud. Lilitha stared at her blood as it dripped from her fingertips.

~Useless. Useless. Stop shaking! Be tough. Be mean!~ But she couldn’t pick up the sword again.

Instead, she did just as he’d asked, stripping herself and washing herself as best and as fast as she could. Within moments, the rag he’d left her was soaked in dark, clotted blood. The water was red. There was a towel with the clothes he’d left her, and she dried herself off as quickly as possible, eyes pinned to the door.

She yanked on her clothes. They felt good. They felt soft. There was water all over the floor and she tried wiping it up as best she could. It wasn’t a good job. The floorboards kept streaking with the blood from her hand. And when she tried to clean that up, the water was bloody.

She picked up her cloak and tried to staunch the bleeding with it. Her heart kicked in her chest at the sound of footsteps. At the sound of the key scratching at the lock, she backed away.

The door opened. Mandalay’s blue eyes were all over her. Immediately, his focus zeroed in on the sword she’d left forgotten on the floor, the bloodied streaks, then Lilitha clutching at her cloak. She could almost see his brain ticking over.

The door clicked shut behind him.

“I tried to—I tried to clean it up.” It was hard to speak, so nervous her tongue kept sticking to the top of her mouth.

“You’re bleeding.”

Lilitha pushed her back up against the wall as he strode over. He pulled away the cloak and took a look at her hand. “It’s not deep. You need to be more careful.” He bunched up the cloak again and pressed it hard into her palm. “Hold it there for as long as possible.”

He let her go and stepped back. “I suppose you have questions—but I have a lot more. How are you still alive? What the hell happened in that forest after I left you? Why can’t I—” he looked away with a grimace “—why can’t I stop thinking about you?” He jabbed a finger at his temple. “Why the ~fuck~ do you pervade my thoughts at every single moment? Since the moment I climbed that cliff, chasing you, seeing you that way amid those Godforsaken trees…” He ground his teeth. “I ~hate~ it. I hate it.”

He paced the floorboards, raking his fingers through his ponytail. “More than the mystery of how you survived those monsters. More than even the mystery and horror of why you ate that man tonight. I want to know ~that~. Tell me. Tell me, ~witch~. Have you cast a spell on me?” He took a step toward her. “If I kill you, will the pain stop? Or will the curse linger, assailing me for an eternity?”

He took another step and Lilitha pushed herself up against the wall. Shaking, she dropped the cloak. His glittering gaze turned to her hand again. He winced, then turned his eyes to her face, to her lips. Wincing again, he looked away.

“Even after you almost took my eye, how can I not hate you?” He touched the scar just under his eyebrow.

He picked up her cloak and pressed it into her cut again, closing his hand around hers. He was so close she could feel the heat of his breath. Her knees were buckling. Suddenly, they gave way. Mandalay grabbed her arms and eased her to the floor.

He crouched in front of her. “Would you believe me if I said I don’t want to hurt you?”

Lilitha jerked away as he touched her face.

He dropped his hand. “I guess not.”

He stood, looking down at her for a long time. Then he turned and left, the door booming shut behind him.