chapter 6: whispers of the devil
1736 Words
Emma’s breath hitched as Adrian’s blood dripped onto the table, staining the white cloth with crimson. But what sent a chill down her spine wasn’t the blood. It was the way the wound on his palm closed before her eyes.
She blinked. No. That wasn’t possible.
Evelyn’s smirk never wavered. “You’re getting sloppy, dear nephew.”
Victor chuckled, sipping his wine. “Looks like our little maid noticed something.”
Emma’s heart pounded. “What… what was that?” she whispered, staring at Adrian’s healed hand.
Adrian’s jaw tightened, his shoulders rigid. For the first time since she met him, he looked uncertain. But it lasted only a second before his usual cold mask slipped back into place.
“You’re seeing things, Emma,” he said, voice low, almost hypnotic.
But she wasn’t. She knew what she saw.
Victor leaned forward, his gaze sharp and unreadable. “Has he told you yet, little dove? About who—what—he really is?”
Evelyn chuckled, swirling her wine. “Oh, but she’s smart, isn’t she? She must have noticed by now. The way the air shifts when he’s angry. How his eyes turn darker. The fact that no one dares to challenge him—because they know what he is.”
Emma’s stomach twisted. No. This was a game. A trick. Right?
She turned to Adrian. “Tell me they’re lying.”
Silence.
His knuckles were white against the edge of the table. His golden eyes flickered—just for a second—to something inhuman.
Not brown. Not hazel.
Black. Like an abyss. Like something ancient.
Her breathing turned shallow. “What are you?”
Adrian rose from his seat slowly, his presence suddenly suffocating. The flames in the chandelier flickered, the shadows stretching unnaturally.
Victor’s grin widened. He was enjoying this.
Evelyn, too, watched with amusement, as if waiting for the moment Emma would break.
Adrian’s voice was softer now, darker. “I told you not to ask questions, Emma.”
Her chest tightened. Her instincts screamed to run.
But something inside her—some reckless, foolish part—refused to.
She shook her head. “I deserve to know.”
A muscle in Adrian’s jaw ticked. He exhaled slowly. Then, in a voice so quiet it made her shiver, he said:
“I was never human to begin with.”
The room spun. The whispers of the house—the chilling presence, the way people feared him—everything made sense now.
Evelyn laughed, slow and delighted. “Welcome to the truth, my dear.”
Emma’s pulse pounded in her ears. She was trapped in a house with a devil in disguise.
And the worst part?
She had already started falling for him.
The Devil Unveiled.
The room grew darker, the chandelier’s flames flickering violently as if a storm had rolled in. The very air changed—thicker, heavier, charged with something unnatural.
Emma’s breath came in short gasps. This wasn’t just power. This was something beyond human comprehension.
Adrian took a slow step toward her. His golden eyes, once cold and unreadable, bled into an inky blackness. No pupils. No whites. Just endless darkness.
His jaw clenched. He was fighting it. Fighting himself.
But something inside him snapped.
The walls trembled. The chandelier’s flames turned blue. The air vibrated with an unholy presence.
Then, his disguise shattered.
Black veins spread across Adrian’s pale skin, twisting up his throat like creeping shadows. His fingers lengthened slightly, his nails sharpening into something not quite human. His muscles tensed, as if barely restraining something monstrous beneath his skin.
But what made Emma’s knees go weak was the faint outline of something behind him—wings.
Not feathered. Not angelic.
Dark, shadowy appendages curled around him like living nightmares, flickering between reality and illusion.
A demon.
The realization hit her like a freight train.
A choked sound escaped her lips. “No…”
Adrian exhaled sharply, shutting his eyes, forcing the transformation back. Within seconds, the darkness receded, his skin smoothing, his hands returning to normal.
But the damage was done.
Emma stumbled back, her chest rising and falling rapidly. “What are you?”
Adrian’s expression was unreadable. “You already know.”
Her legs trembled, but she refused to fall. “This… this is a nightmare.”
Victor’s low chuckle sent chills down her spine. “Oh no, darling. This is just the beginning.”
Evelyn clapped her hands together, utterly pleased. “I must say, she didn’t faint. That’s… impressive.”
Emma gritted her teeth, her pulse hammering. She had to get out of here. She had to think.
Her mother.
Her brother.
Her job.
Panic tightened around her throat. They didn’t know what she had walked into.
Adrian took a step forward, but Emma jerked away. “Don’t touch me.”
His jaw tensed. “Emma—”
“No,” she hissed. “You lied. You kept me here knowing… knowing what you are.”
Something flickered in his eyes—was it guilt?
Victor leaned back, stretching lazily. “Oh, please. As if you’d have believed him if he told you on the first day. ‘Welcome to Blackwood Manor, I’m a demon, dinner is at eight.’”
Evelyn laughed.
Emma couldn’t breathe. She turned on her heel and bolted.
She needed to get away.
She had a home. A life. A family waiting for her.
And now, she didn’t know if she’d ever see them again.
--
Outside Blackwood Manor.
Emma burst through the grand doors of the manor, her lungs burning as she ran into the cold night air. The sky was black, the moon hidden behind thick clouds.
Her heart pounded as she reached the long, winding road that led back to town.
She had to go home.
She had to see her mother and brother.
But as she reached the gates, the cold voice behind her made her blood run ice.
“Do you really think you can leave?”
She turned, chest heaving.
Adrian stood at the threshold of the manor, his expression shadowed. He looked… almost sad. But his presence was overwhelming.
Emma swallowed hard. “I have a life outside of this place.”
Silence stretched between them. Then, Adrian said something that made her stomach twist.
“Not anymore.”
The Hunt Begins.
The night air was sharp against Emma’s skin, but she didn’t stop running. Her legs ached, her breaths came fast and uneven, but she forced herself forward. Blackwood Manor faded behind her, swallowed by the dark forest lining the long road.
She just needed to make it to town. To her mother. To her brother. To the life she had before all of this.
But something was wrong.
The further she ran, the colder the air became. Too cold. The kind of cold that didn’t belong in the middle of summer. The kind that felt unnatural.
Her steps slowed. The road ahead seemed endless, stretching unnaturally under the dim moonlight. Shadows flickered between the trees, moving where no wind should be.
She wasn’t alone.
A sharp whisper slithered through the air.
"Little lamb… running from the wolves?"
Emma’s heart slammed against her ribs. She spun around, searching the darkness. Nothing.
Then—
A low growl vibrated from the trees.
She froze.
And then, she saw them.
Eyes.
Not just one pair—dozens. Glowing red, slitted like a serpent’s, surrounding her in the thick shadows of the forest.
A figure stepped forward, its silhouette barely human. Lanky limbs, too long fingers, a twisted grin that stretched too far.
"You smell like him," it purred, voice like a rusted blade scraping against stone.
Emma staggered back, but another figure blocked her path.
Then another.
Then another.
They moved unnaturally, crawling along the trees, their bodies shifting between shadow and flesh.
The leader stepped closer, tilting its head. “Did you really think you could leave, little pet?”
Emma’s chest rose and fell wildly. Think. Think. Think.
Her nails dug into her palms. She had nothing. No weapons. No plan.
She was trapped.
One of the creatures lunged.
Emma screamed
And then, the night exploded.
A gust of wind slammed into the creatures, sending them flying backward. The air pulsed with raw, unfiltered power, a presence so overwhelming it made the demons shrink back with a hiss.
Emma turned
And her breath caught.
Adrian stood at the edge of the road. But it wasn’t the Adrian she had known.
His black eyes burned like fire, the darkness swirling around him like a living entity. His presence was suffocating, a force of nature, raw and unchained.
The creatures growled, their forms flickering. But they didn’t move closer.
Because they knew what he was.
Adrian lifted his hand, and the air shook. A shadow tendril lashed forward, snatching the leader by the throat. It choked, its body convulsing as Adrian squeezed.
"You forget your place," Adrian murmured, his voice laced with an unnatural echo.
The demon clawed at the tendril, gurgling, writhing, shrieking.
Emma stared in horror. This wasn’t just power. This wasn’t just control.
This was something darker. Something monstrous.
The other demons vanished into the night, leaving their leader behind. But Adrian didn’t let go. He watched it struggle, watched it choke.
Emma’s stomach twisted.
"Adrian."
His eyes snapped to hers.
For a second, she saw something flicker in his expression—something unreadable.
Then, with a flick of his wrist, he let the creature drop. It scrambled away, disappearing into the darkness.
Silence settled.
Emma’s legs felt weak, but she forced herself to stand straight. She should be terrified. She should run.
But something about the way Adrian stared at her—like she was the only thing grounding him—kept her frozen.
His voice was quieter now. “You shouldn’t have run.”
Emma swallowed hard. “I had to.”
Adrian exhaled, pinching the bridge of his nose before closing the space between them in a single step.
"You don’t understand what you’ve gotten yourself into, Emma."
She stared at him, her pulse wild.
"Then make me understand."
Adrian’s jaw clenched. But he didn’t speak. He just… looked at her. As if she was something fragile—something that could break at any moment.
Then, without another word, he scooped her into his arms.
"Let’s go home."
Before she could protest, darkness swallowed them both.
- Writer
