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But I don’t care. I feel—nothing. Thanks to Eoin’s magic touch.
“Don’t use your fecking magic on her again or—”
“Or what?” Eoin taunts. “She belongs to me now. You have no say here.”
A dark, mean laugh comes from Rainer. “She will never belong to you, Terra Prince.”
Rainer glances at me, regret marrs his features. “You belong to yourself. And your heart belongs to me.”
With a clearer mind, thanks to Eoin's empath magic, I ignore his profession. I stare past him, at the body laid out before us.
Gods, Char and Felix are both dead because of me. It’s my fault he came here to find me. Once this magic wears off, the guilt will crush me.
My eyes roam over Felix’s crooked limbs. In his intact hand, something white peeks out. It calls to me, and I step forward, prying open his now-cool, stiffening fingers as I pull the crumpled paper out.
Alessia,
I know I will not survive the forest. Most men don’t. This is a risk I accept. But I hope this letter meets your eyes. I hope it will make up for my transgressions. I should have stuck up for you sooner.
I meant it when I said there are worse things out there—things you don’t know. It seems you have met them for yourself and have somehow been spared. I do not have time and space to elaborate, and if by chance I make it to you alive, I will explain everything. But you need to know—
The last few lines of the letter are drenched with sweat and blood, smeared and entirely illegible.
My heart pounds, blood thumps in my ears.
Oh, Felix. What did you get yourself into?
The irony that he survived the woods, only to die so brutally, is an extra blow to my stomach.
My eyes race over the letter, rereading it, trying to make sense of what he’s trying to tell me.
What exactly do I need to know?
Rainer steps closer, wanting to read the note. I swallow the lump in my throat, stuffing the note in my pocket before he can read it.
It doesn’t concern him.
Eoin waves a hand around the air. “You need to clean up your mess, Rainer. My sister might like you, but I don’t, and I will come for your court.”
“You will never have my court.”
“Oh, but I will. And I’m starting with your human.” He pets my cheek and I recoil.
Fury burgeons in Rainer’s face. His nostrils flare.
“Come,” Eoin tells me.
I refuse, rooted in place. He offers me one of his boyish grins that I now see right through.
“I’m cashing in on a debt owed.” He beckons me forth. “You can’t resist.”
A warming sensation encompasses me. The tingle of magic crawls through my veins. My feet move on their own accord, as I follow Eoin.
“No,” I whisper, shaking my head. But I can’t stop walking. “Stop this.”
Just like the magic of the barriers keeping me against my will, the magic of this new debt propels me toward Eoin.
And I can’t fight it.
