Chapter 113 Ch. 83
“Get in there!” the guard barked, shoving Imogen into the room. He had rushed to get her at Lorenzo's orders.
She stumbled but caught herself at the last second, smoothing her hair with an almost bored flick of her hand.
“Fix her!” Lorenzo screamed, hovering over Zara’s limp body. Her limbs twitched in small, jerking movements.
Another guard staggered in, dragging Ethan, whose eyes were rolled back and body convulsing in perfect rhythm with Zara’s.
“What is happening to them?” Lorenzo hissed, grabbing Imogen by the shoulder. “What did you do when I left you alone?”
“I thought you’d be watching every move,” Imogen said, lifting an eyebrow. Her gaze flicked toward the guards standing by the cabinets. “You should have known if I did something—and your little minions should have seen it too.”
“Only you know your trade,” Lorenzo growled, yanking her arm. “Do something before I kill you!”
Imogen pulled her arm free, her face twisting into a look of disgust. “Something triggered the initial bond, but now… their souls are trying to balance after so much power was used. Screaming won’t help—it will only make it worse.”
In the corner, Ivanna pressed trembling hands to her mouth, while Dylan’s pale face shifted between Zara and his brother.
“Is she going to be okay?” Ivanna whispered.
“I don’t care about the balance,” Lorenzo roared, his face flushing red.
“Take them to any room big enough,” Imogen instructed calmly, suppressing a smirk at Lorenzo’s tantrum. “Lay them side by side. They need to be near each other, or the convulsing won’t stop. And you know what happens to Ethan if it does.”
The guards obeyed, placing Ethan and Zara on the large bed. Gradually, the convulsions subsided. Ethan’s eyes fluttered open, exhaustion etched across his features. Zara remained unconscious, her skin nearly blending with the pale sheets.
“Break it,” Lorenzo growled, standing at the foot of the bed. “Break the bond now. I will not have my son’s life tied to her. If she dies, he dies—and I won’t allow that.”
“No,” Ethan rasped. He tried to sit up but collapsed back against the pillows. “You cannot do it.”
“You will remain weak as long as you are tied to her,” Lorenzo snapped. “You do not know what’s best for you. Imogen, do it now.”
“No,” Ethan gasped again, pain twisting his chest. He couldn’t risk her life, because he knew the moment the bond was somehow broken, Lorenzo wouldn’t care about Zara anymore. He was going to treat her in the worst way possible and eventually kill her off when she wasn’t useful.
“What’s… happening?” Zara whispered, her eyes snapping open. Pain shot through her head, but her gaze locked on Lorenzo.
“You do not get a say,” Lorenzo said coldly.
“She was only asking a question, brother,” Dylan interjected quietly from the doorway.
“I decide what I do,” Imogen said, arms crossed. “I do not take orders from you. I will break it if I choose—and I choose not to. You cannot stop me.”
“The Veiled,” Lorenzo hissed, stepping close enough that their chests nearly touched. “Do not forget you live only because I allow it. One message from me, and your coven will find you—and they will make you burn in ways that make this room look like a palace. I would risk everything to see you die if you defy me.”
Imogen didn’t flinch. She stared him down, lips a thin line. Lorenzo spun on his heel and stormed out, slamming the door so hard the walls shook.
Ivanna exhaled, shoulders sagging. “He’s insane,” she whispered to Dylan. “How do you ever survive having him as your brother?”
Dylan said nothing, because he knew he was worse. He had, in fact, done worse, but Ivanna couldn’t know that. And did it really matter if he had turned a new leaf? He sighed and then walked over to the bed and looked at Ethan. "How do you feel?"
"Like I was hit by a truck," Ethan said, reaching for Zara's hand.
She took it tentatively, feeling awkward as everyone was still staring at them.
Zara waited a few seconds, making sure Lorenzo's footsteps had faded down the hall. She looked at Imogen with pleading eyes and then at the door.
“Leave,” Imogen said. Ivanna and Dylan looked at each other and then walked out of the door. The guards remained in place.
“Out,” Ethan snapped, even though his voice sounded weak. They looked at each other for a second.
“What the fuck are you waiting for? I said out!”
They scurried away.
“Do you think your father would still keep you locked up?” Zara asked Ethan. “We have to find a way out.”
“Yeah,” replied Ethan. “He could let the rest go. But he knows I’ll help you find a way out even if he uses a hundred guards. So I’ll be taken back there eventually.”
"You have to talk to him," Zara whispered to Imogen. She just had a feeling maybe one of the guards might be eavesdropping at the door, or this room, like the previous one, had been bugged. "Tell him that the only way to keep us both alive is to let Ethan out of that basement. He is desperate enough to believe anything right now."
"Why should I help you?" Imogen asked, her tone flat. "It makes no difference to me if he is locked up."
"Because if Ethan is free and I train…" Zara said, her voice still sounding weak. "And if I get stronger, I can get us both out of here. You want your freedom too. And don't give me the talk you give Lorenzo. You can get out of chains, but you cannot leave this house, can you?"
Imogen looked at her for a long time. “You’re too smart for your own good.”
“Is that a yes?”
Imogen said nothing and left the room.
"I am sorry," Ethan said softly after a few minutes of silence. "I failed you. I let my father get involved in all of this."
"No, it is fine," Zara replied, squeezing his hand. “And we both would have died, you know, if he didn’t come.”
“Maybe,” Ethan shrugged.
“In his own twisted way, he cares for you,” she said.
Ethan shook his head. “No. It’s… a thing of pride? Power? Every clan is useless without a viable heir. I'm his only one. He can’t have any other. And I don’t want to take over anything.”
“Do you hate what you are that much?”
“I hate what I have to become. I don’t… there’s a ton of things you can't understand. Dark, illegal… just a ton. I can’t…” Ethan sighed.
“This bond could kill you… aren’t you scared? Don't you want a way out of it?”
“This is also a way out of all this,” he muttered quietly. “With the right training… I would get stronger because of it. Remember? And you would too and we can stand against him.”
“That’s true.”
“And with the bond he has to tread carefully with you… and with me.”
Zara exhaled. “I think he does love you though… even if it’s misguided.”
"He is a monster," Ethan continued, his thumb brushing over her knuckles. “Trust me, there’s no twisted or misguided love.”
“He came to save you… when you came for me.”
“Because that led him to you, Zara. And because I'm his heir, you don’t understand how sick of a man he is. I watched him murder my sister for the fun of it… slow, painful torture. And he killed my mom—the one time she stood up to him,” Ethan said, his voice barely a whisper. He stared at the ornate molding on the ceiling like he could see the memories playing out there.