Chapter 11: The Break of Dawn
663 Words
Lilah stirred as the first light of dawn painted the skyline in soft hues of pink and gold. Her body was deliciously sore, wrapped in the lingering warmth of Damien’s embrace.
His arm was draped over her waist, his breath steady against the nape of her neck. She could still feel the ghost of his lips on her skin, the possessive way he had claimed her last night.
She should have felt guilty.
She should have felt afraid.
But all she felt was right.
Damien shifted behind her, his fingers grazing her hip, sending shivers through her body.
“You’re awake,” he murmured, his voice rough with sleep.
Lilah turned to face him, her heart stuttering at the way his crimson eyes softened when they met hers.
“Barely.” She smiled. “I didn’t think shadows needed sleep.”
Damien chuckled, brushing a strand of hair from her face. “We don’t.” His thumb traced her lower lip, his gaze darkening. “But I find myself needing a lot of things when I’m around you.”
A warmth spread through her chest, but before she could respond—
A deafening explosion shattered the moment.
The glass windows exploded inward, sending shards flying across the room. Lilah screamed, instincts kicking in as she threw herself down.
Damien moved in an instant. One second he was next to her, the next he was on his feet, his body blocking hers from the incoming blast. Shadows surged around him, forming a protective barrier just as a second explosion ripped through the penthouse.
The floor trembled. Smoke and fire engulfed the air.
“Lilah!” Damien’s voice was sharp, urgent. He grabbed her wrist, yanking her toward him just as something huge came crashing through the ceiling.
They barely avoided the debris as the walls cracked, crumbling under the force of the attack.
Lilah coughed, her lungs burning from the smoke. “What—what’s happening?”
Damien’s expression darkened. “They found us.”
A shadowed figure emerged through the wreckage, their long cloak billowing with unnatural energy.
The air grew thick, suffocating. The figure lifted a hand, and the darkness in the room obeyed.
Damien cursed under his breath. “The Order.”
Lilah’s blood ran cold.
She barely had time to react before the stranger lunged.
Damien met them head-on, their bodies colliding with a force that shook the room.
Lilah scrambled backward, watching as Damien and the hooded figure clashed in a brutal fight. Damien’s shadows lashed out, but the figure countered with a blast of light—blinding, searing.
Lilah gasped.
Light.
They weren’t just anyone from the Order. They were one of her kind.
A lightborn.
The realization sent a shockwave through her, but she had no time to process it.
Because suddenly—they were coming for her.
The lightborn turned toward her, their piercing gaze locking onto hers. They reached out—
And before Lilah could react, pain erupted in her chest.
A burning, searing pain that made her collapse to her knees.
Damien roared in fury. He lunged for the figure, but they vanished in a flash of light, their magic leaving a scorching imprint in the air.
Damien was by her side in an instant.
“Lilah!” His hands were on her, pressing against her chest, trying to find the source of the pain.
She gasped for air, clutching at her chest. “I—I can’t—”
And then she saw it.
A mark.
Glowing, pulsating—right over her heart.
It was the same symbol as Damien’s runes. But brighter.
And it was spreading.
Damien’s eyes widened in horror. “No.”
Lilah blinked up at him, her body trembling. “What’s—happening to me?”
Damien’s grip tightened on her. His expression was stricken.
“They just activated your powers.”
Lilah’s breath hitched.
And in that moment, she knew—nothing would ever be the same again.
- Writer
