Chapter 164 Chapter 164
“How are you alive?” she stuttered. “Maxwell killed you. He did, I know it. You can’t be alive.”
Uriel gave a smile that disgusted her, and her stomach churned with dread. “Do you think that he could stop me? You can’t be that naïve, Valerie,” he replied. His tone slipped, became darker. “I’m here now. That’s the only thing that matters.”
“No,” she breathed.
“Would it make you happy if I told you that I came back just for you?”
“No, no, no,” she repeated. The light in the room receded. Shadows formed in its corners and grew. She couldn’t even keep up this simple magic spell in her panic. With her eyes set on the only exit the room offered, she started sprinting.
Her blood rushed in her ears. With tunnel vision, she stared at the door at the top of the stairs. She didn’t turn back to check where Uriel was. She just ran, and maybe that was a mistake.
She took the first steps without any issues and reached out her arm to the door handle that was mere meters away from her. A terrified scream tore from her throat when a hand grabbed her ankle. It closed around it like a vice and pulled hard. She lost her balance, tried to hold onto something to prevent herself from falling, but there was nothing.
The world around her tilted. Tipping backward, she screamed. She landed on the sharp edges of the stairs and plummeted to the ground of the basement. The impact knocked the air from her lungs.
Pain ate through her fragile body. Her vision exploded in white light, then turned black. With all her senses focused on the pain alone, she didn’t even notice Uriel coming closer to her.
Lying on her side, she whimpered and hugged her body. Maybe she had broken a bone; she couldn’t tell. However, she was sure that she had an injury on her back. The fabric of her dress felt wet on her skin as if she were bleeding, and agony originated from that very same spot.
She coughed and shifted around, knowing that she couldn’t afford to stay on the ground. Through blurry vision, she saw Uriel approach. Desperate to stay alive, she used the trump card she had up her sleeve. This was something she hadn’t been capable of when she had still been in a relationship with him, but now it would help her. Perhaps she could stall for long enough… Just until she was able to reunite with Maxwell.
With a simple flick of her wrist, a glimmering white light manifested around her, forming a small dome. It encased her body and served as a protective barrier. She had no clue how long it would hold, if at all, but the sole sight of it calmed her racing heart.
Valerie wondered whether Maxwell was able to feel her injuries or if he was completely cut off from her. He had been so busy speaking to that woman… maybe he didn’t care about her. Shouldn’t he have come looking for her by now? What was keeping him? That woman had been an illusion. She couldn’t have been real, and Valerie hoped that he had realized on his own.
“What’s with this magic you’re using? Did your boyfriend teach you?” Uriel mocked as he came to stand in front of the dome.
Valerie looked at him, and then it finally clicked. She pushed aside her fear and thought rationally. The person she was seeing couldn’t be real… Uriel was dead, and there was no way he could come back to life. It just wasn’t possible.
“You’re not Uriel,” she said.
He seemed surprised for the fraction of a second before his features took on a darker tone. “I look like him, I sound like him… why wouldn’t I be him?” he retorted.
“Because he’s dead,” she replied simply. “You are a blood mage, and I assume you are using illusions to trick Maxwell and me.”
Seeing Uriel smirk made her sick to her stomach, even while knowing that it wasn’t really him. He clapped mockingly. “Congratulations, you are one of the smarter humans I’ve had the pleasure of meeting,” he said sarcastically. “You saw through my trick faster than the demon.”
Valerie sensed his foreign magic permeate the air in the room. It brought a disturbing coldness, which looked like black smoke. Before her very eyes, Uriel disappeared into thin air as if he had never existed. She was alone, but not for long. Out of the blue, an unfamiliar man appeared right in front of her. Surprised, she flinched back. The stranger she now faced seemed to be in his forties, had dark brown hair, and sharp features. His gaze was void of any emotion—it freaked her out.
“My name is Ethan. Pleased to make your acquaintance,” he said without sounding serious about it.
Her breath hitched. “What do you want from us? I don’t recall ever meeting you or talking to you,” she sputtered nervously. As long as the light barrier separated them, she felt a little more confident, but her aching body protested every time she moved even the slightest bit.
He shrugged uncaringly, looking bored with the conversation already. “Isn’t it obvious? Have you never heard of blood magic before?” he sighed. “I gain power by killing, and it just so happens that humans with the ability to use magic are the most valuable sacrifices. Even more so if they are bonded. It’s
A shame they are so hard to find.”
“Your only objective is to murder us,” she breathed, shivering violently.
“Yes. That way I’m killing two birds with one stone,” he replied. “My magic becomes stronger, and I’m getting rid of another bond.” He sneered at her, his black eyes blazing with hatred. “A regular human like you shouldn’t be in a relationship with a demon. It’s disgusting.”
“What do you care about? Just leave us be,” she hissed. “It’s not like we’re hurting anyone.”
“You’re an eyesore. Humans using demon magic, being friends with them, and even being together with them… It’s against nature.”
“What kind of monster are you?” she snapped back at him.