âWhat?â
I froze. My chest tightened.
âYouâre half-human, half-demon. Right now, you belong to neither side,â the Demon King said calmly. âThereâs no guarantee you wonât betray us someday.â
She was right.
My mouth opened before I could think. âIâI swear I wonât betray you!â
But even I knew my words were hollow. Who would trust a promise from someone like me?
âThen prove it.â
Her voice didnât waver. âIf youâre not one of them⦠then killing one of them shouldnât be a problem, right?â
No⦠That wasnât the problem.
The problem wasnât killing. It was what it would turn me into.
What if I was already too close to the monster I used to be?
âArâcen, you donât have to do this.â
Mom stepped forward, desperate. âIâll be fine.â
But would she?
Would I?
I looked down at the dagger in my hand. Its edge gleamed, too clean, too ready.
I stepped forward, toward the first prisoner. He looked like he hadnât eaten in days. Weak. Helpless.
One cut would do it.
One step⦠and I wouldnât be able to go back.
My grip tightened. The air grew heavier. Thenâmy vision spunâ
I A V A I
opened my eyes to another world.
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Skyscrapers reached into a poisoned sky. Neon lights flickered like dying stars. Everything was burningâconcrete, metal, the night itself.
The buildings collapsed one by one. The world I once knew fell around me.
And then I saw her.
In the reflection of a broken window, I saw a girl standing alone. Drenched in ash and blood, wearing a dark hoodie far too big for her. Her silver hair shimmered like moonlight against the gloom. One red eye. One silver.
She was me.
But not this me.
She was the one I used to be.
All around herâmeâpeople screamed, cursed, cried.
âMonster.â
âAbomination.â
âWhy wonât you just die?â
And then I saw themâfive blurred silhouettes. Not strangers. They meant something. I didnât know who they were anymore⦠but I felt their fear in my bones.
And in the midddle of it all stood a woman who I could see clearly unlike every one else.
Long black hair. Crimson eyes. A body like carved porcelain wrapped in a simple black dress.
She didnât move. She didnât need to.
Her presence suffocated everything.
I turned toward her, and she smiled.
A parasite. Thatâs what she was.
She was always inside me. Feeding off me.
âItâs all your fault,â I tried to scream.
But only bubbles escaped my throatâbecause I was sinking.
Hands rose from the blood around me, clawing at my legs, dragging me down. Every scream Iâd ever ignored, every face Iâd ever forgottenâpulling me back into the pit.
The woman walked toward me, her heels making soft ripples on the surface of the blood.
âSo dramatic,â she sighed. âYou act like this is your first time losing yourself.â
She knelt. Her face was so close I could smell the decay in her sweetness.
âIf youâre going to die anyway, stop wasting my time.â
I wanted to rip her throat out.
She chuckled at my glare.
âIf you change your mindâ¦â
She held her fingers up, leaving a tiny gap between them. âIâll only give you this much power.â
Then she placed her hand on my forehead.
âTime to wake up, Arâcen.â
I A V A I
I shot up with a gasp.
I was lying in soft blankets. Momâs hand stroked my hair gently, her lap my pillow.
âMomâ¦?â
My voice was weak.
She smiled. âItâs alright, dear. Everythingâs fine now.â
I wanted to believe her.
My heartbeat pounded against my chest like it was trying to escape me. But her arms held me still. Safe.
âWas it a bad dream?â she asked softly.
I nodded, wordless.
âDo you want to talk about it?â
â¦
She didnât press.
âItâs okay,â she whispered. âIâm here for you. Always.â
ââ¦Thank youâ¦â
She kissed my forehead.
âNow, why donât you look around our new room?â
The thought distracted me just enough. I climbed to my feet, feeling a little more stable.
The room was big, elegant, but not overdone. A bathroom, a vanity table with a mirror, simple furniture.
I turned to glance at the mirrorâ
âAAAH!â
I fell backward, clutching my chest.
âM-My hairâ¦!â