The tears rolled down her cheeks and she wiped it away angrily with guilt. "You should kill me. I have been the one wreaking havoc after all."He stopped, his eyes studying her with his little flame, before he crouched next to her, taking her wrist and studying the fresh burn left behind.She didn't move away from him, because at his touch the voices became silent and the weight on her mind felt a little lighter."I killed people. I hurt them." His focus was on the bloodstains and he looked up at her with a smile. "They must have deserved it." A glint of admiration flashed in his eyes and a smirk sharpened the corners of his lips when he confirmed the blood wasn't hers.It felt inappropriate for him to look at her that way after what she had done. With pride and absolutely no reproach."Was it fun?" With his serpent-like eyes, he looked at her like he was seeing her for the first time. Fun?Belladonna frowned, snapping her hand from his now, because now the relief it brought was g

It was too easy to get her to the cave spring, despite her vocal and physical resistance. Belladonna could feel the quick and effortless sway of Eli's step as they went further and lower in the cave. Before she knew it, she was chest-deep in cold blue water. The images of the night she almost drowned flashed before her eyes and for a second, panic blazed in her mind like wildfire, but he was there, holding her to himself and keeping her upper body above the water, and against him - her back pressed to his chest, his firm hand anchored around her waist and his voice whispering comforting words. "Look at me. I am right here with you. You are not alone." His gruff voice commanded and she obeyed instinctively. Her head rested on his chest, the wetness of his shirt damping her very short hair, while her electric blue orbs found peace in his brown ones. For that moment, her mind felt peace and all she could hear was the gentle trickling of the water as they moved, and a low gush of it

The intruder finally threw off her hood, and her eyes went wide with the naked woman who stood some distance in front of her. "Who are you?" Belladonna's question echoed lowly through the cave. Before the woman could respond though, a sword was levelled against her neck, it was so sharp she could see her reflection and the eyes of her likely killer, even with the din blue light of the cave. She froze in fear of the blade dipping any further. "Answer her," Eli commanded. He was shirtless, his pants were dry and his hair didn't look as wet as it did earlier. Eli quickly glanced at Belladonna to ensure that she wasn't harmed, his heart skipped a beat at seeing her naked state, the effect it left in his veins would require another bath tonight."I came here with my sons," her voice trembled. The woman was probably in her late fifties, she was a small chubby woman but Eli still treated her like a threat.It was better this way than to underestimate her. "I saw them and I have taken car

Belladonna didn't want to panic, she didn't know what abilities the ghosts brides that lived in her head had. Could they read minds? Her thoughts? What about all the conversations she had been having? Had they heard them all? Could they hear them right now?Most of the time, to get a response from them, she usually had to ask them in her head, then, they would respond.So, maybe they could not. "Kami used to hate her room so much," Tamina's voice interrupted Belladonna's train of thought, her attention was divided. She tried to see if Kami would respond to anything her mother was saying but from her side, there was only silence. "She said it felt too much like her brothers'. It is so hard to train a girl child when you only have one, even harder when you already have seven sons before her. You just forget you know, and have to relearn." Still silence. Maybe they really couldn't hear them. Maybe the door situation was just a pure coincidence and not a trap. Convinced that she

Alaris had sat at the edge of the bed, planting his arms behind him to support his weight, it almost looked like there wasn't a single thought behind his eyes as he looked at her bored, as if he was tired of her always doing this. "She isn't a bride, her soul wasn't prepared like the others. She can't have such privilege or she would have used it." "But---""The witch is not stupid, Nightshade. She would have used it." "Well--""Come on," he rose, cupping her head in the palms of his warm hands, "No one resurrects from a dragon's flames. The witch is gone, you have nothing to fear. If she could have that opportunity, she would have used it.""My fear is not unreasonable," Belladonna stated, looking up at him. He hummed, with a little shrug and a smile played on his lips. "Well, since one of your ghosty friends has tried to possess your minds, I think the rest will try to do the same. We must find a way to block it. Make your mind strong, mortal." He ended, flicking his finger aga