It took some effort, but Demetrius managed to tear his eyes from hers before they managed to drown him in their terror. He planted a soft, lingering atop her head, fighting back the moisture that threatened to obscure his vision.
“I’m…so sorry,” he whispered.
Jamie pulled away from him so she could return her gaze to his. Her eyes searched his, hoping for answers his lips hadn’t provided. “…For what?”
Without response, Demetrius swept her off her feet and cradled her close. His grip was firm, unnecessarily so for a girl who had no hope of escaping now that he held her. Silently, he took her from the room and up the corridor from which he’d come.
“No, we can’t go that way—that’s where he is—Demetrius! Wait! Listen—it’s dangerous!” The girl tried to wiggle her out of his arms, finding she had very little room to budge. “Demetrius! Stop! I told you w
The lights in the observation deck went off, leaving them to bask in the light from the theatre below. A small team of alchemists walked in, led by a mage Demetrius had seen only once before when he’d accompanied Xavier to the Central Bureau. They each wore a grave expression, treating the matter as something sacred.Jamie struggled up until the moment a central line was put into her arm, and a pale lavender solution injected; she barely blinked after.A second liquid was injected through the line, a sickly grey that resembled cement. The four turned to look up into the observation deck, awaiting a signal that was given a moment later by Yarrow. Each nodded confirmation then the mage walked to the raised platform. The alchemists stood by the door.The mage raised a hand toward Jamie. Swirls of brilliant light escaped his palm, pouring into the girl. This went on for a time before the man lowered his hand and looked to the tower.“Try again,&rd
“I don’t care!”It was the angriest any of them had ever seen their mother. Analiese Finley raged, having mixed success at restraining a savagery that kept forcing itself to the fore. It was a struggle for her to return her eyes to their murky blue each time they flashed red. Her attention was for their father—her indignation, her animosity, her venom.The woman crossed the room to sit between him and his sister, forcefully pulling them to her so that their heads rested on either shoulder.“I don’t care about the prince; I don’t care about the realm—I especially don’t care about your damned pride!” she spat. “Our daughter was nearly dissolved in what amounts to experimental acid tonight and your son is crying. Does that mean nothing to you? Do you not see what a mistake your misguided ambitions are?”“Analiese…” their father took a step cl
Demetrius wasted away in his room. Days melted into nights then days again with the boy flat on his back staring up at the ceiling. It had been a while since he attended school and a while since he let himself out into the world. Even the most recent hunt was avoided. The boy couldn’t bear to eat; he could barely manage the occasional trip downstairs to assure his mother he was still breathing. His failures—despite the insistence of his mother—weighed on him like an anchor pulling him down into the deep ocean where he could be drowned by an overwhelming sense of guilt and inadequacy. Everyone made it seem like such a small matter, something he should’ve been able to shrug off and keep moving. The fact that he couldn’t was yet another crippling blow and for each day he remained in bed, the feelings intensified. It’d been over a week since he last laid eyes on Jamie. His sudden and unorthodox resignation meant he was no longer entitled to information. He couldn’t deman
When he woke next, it was to sunlight bathing him in its warmth. Demetrius’ eyes fluttered open, even the lids feeling fatigued from the lack of energy. There was a particular source of warmth by his neck, soft fur pressing against him. The boy couldn’t say when Cassidy had arrived or why she’d done nothing more than curl up by him and go to sleep herself, but he was glad for the peace. There were already enough people who would lose their minds walking into the scene of Jamie lying shirtless next to him with a hand flung across his chest while she slumbered. The serenity of the early afternoon enticed him to remain in his state of lethargy. What he would give to capture the moment and set it into a perpetual loop. The world around him had begun to move quickly; moments like these helped to ground him and return the sense of well-being he’d lost somewhere in his misguided pursuit for power and recognition. Next to him, Jamie stirred. Her breathing grew
Sarah sprinted, triggering Cassidy into defence. His sister shot to his side in what was ultimately a miscalculated move. Neither had read the situation correctly. The boy had never been her target. With his sister out of the way, it left a clear line to Jamie. In one swift motion, Sarah yanked her from the bed and tugged her close. “No unauthorised transformations, is that right?” “Sarah, w—what are you doing?” Jamie asked, struggling to free herself from her friend’s inexorable grasp. “He doesn’t get to keep you, too.” The girl’s response was barely a whisper. The fur along her arms and face receded and her eyes returned to their warm brown in show of her returning control but where those features diminished, her will to carry out her plan had not. Sarah looked to him. “If she becomes like me, you…you have to kill her or let her run away, right?” “It’s not that simple,” Demetrius said, struggling to get his words out. The little energy he h
The prince’s guard received word of Jamie’s escape—no doubt directly from Lui in his attempt to ingratiate himself with the man. Suddenly, the interrogation room within the guard tower wasn’t enough. The entire family was summoned to the smaller conference room within Central Bureau to answer for the continued insubordination that had, in his opinion, been left unchecked for too long.His father’s face was full of chagrin, the man struggling to meet anyone’s gaze for all the shame that consumed him. His mother held no shame but resignation. As she sat there, her shoulders slumped low in defeat. The woman no longer knew how to protect her children and was reeling from that realisation.At the head of the table sat a panel of prosecutors. They were the usual suspects, Hawthorne and Yarrow in all their haughty glory, Carlton, even the prince managed to find himself sitting among them.Demetrius’ family was grouped at the ot
The hand at his shoulder attempted to ground him. It yanked him back, shoving him to the floor and away from the girl that lay motionless on the table. “Apologies, Alexiel, but as we’ve mentioned, the girl is of some importance.” Carlton stepped over the boy he’d just thrown to the ground and moved to stand before Jamie. The man pressed two fingers just beneath her jaw, satisfied after a moment’s wait. “Good. Have the medics brought in, we may yet save her.” Demetrius remained on the floor, dumbstruck. His mind was beginning to catch up to the frenzy his body had fallen into, several thoughts bombarding him at once. While it was guilt and disgust that fought bitterly to be at the fore, it was confusion that held the position. He’d felt it, the moment her heart had given its final beat. The
“Mommy—Mommy look, she’s waking up! Look!” Demetrius perked up at the little girl’s words, easing his head through the closet door to get a better look for himself. The girl’s mother lifted her head from her hands at once, frantically wiping at the tears that obscured her vision. Jamie pulled herself into a sitting position, looking around the room as if still in a daze. Her eyes were as empty as they’d been the day she snuck into his room. “Jamie…” her mother said, fresh tears rising no sooner than she’d gotten rid of the others. The girl paid little attention to her mother, turning instead to the younger girl sitting by her