The darkness within me was growing, pulsating with a hunger I could no longer suppress. Each passing moment felt like a battle against myself—a struggle to remain in control as my instincts screamed at me to tear, to destroy, to feed. Ash stood at the edge of the room, his crimson eyes glimmering like molten rubies, watching me silently. He knew what was happening to me, and worse, he reveled in it.
“I told you this would happen,” Ash murmured, his voice a deep, taunting lull. He leaned casually against the stone wall of the cavern, his long fingers toying with the edge of the jagged blade he always carried. “You played with fire, Lux. And now you’re burning.”
I clenched my fists, nails biting into my palms until I felt the sharp sting of blood. The scent of it filled the air—a dark, int
