Chapter 3 Molding Reality
Molding Reality
Caria
I brush my teeth and tongue over and over, wishing I could scrape the skin away to renew it.
Reiner already marked me with his scent, the only scent I want on me, so at least I don’t smell like Fynn anymore, but the taste, that awful taste of him, is still there.
His saliva, his cum. It’s repulsive. It’s worse than the previous time, where our interaction was shorter and less invasive. I retch again.
Reiner stands in the doorway, his broad arms folded, watching me as I frantically try to rid my body of the last remnants of Fynn.
He hates this as much as I do; I can tell it makes him sick to see the marks of another man on me, especially one as unworthy as Fynn, a human.
One that is cursed. He strides over to me and grips my wrists.
“Stop it, my love, you’re hurting yourself,” he whispers.
His breath brushes my ear, and I melt into his touch as I press my body against his chest, tears welling up in the corners of my eyes. I feel humiliated, filthy, and scared.
“Talk to me, please,” he murmurs into my hair.
“I was so afraid, Reiner, those burns, I thought they were going to scorch me from the inside; if he had lost control a little bit more, I would have been dead. Not even my shadows could withstand it. The magic lashed out without a chance to counter it.”
“You’re done. No more seeing that little prick,” he says sternly, concern evident all over his face.
“But we almost got him, darling; we’re so close,” I counter.
A shudder runs down my spine from the nauseating assault on my senses this afternoon. The way his cock had forced itself into my throat when his cum shot down. It had taken everything in me not to throw up all over him, but instead to swallow it and happily look up as if I was savoring the taste.
“I’m not risking losing you. Do you hear me, Caria? You are my heart, and I have no intention of letting you get destroyed and taken away from me, especially not by some pest like that human boy,” he spits the words.
I sink into his arms. Reiner is not particularly fond of humans, especially not Fynn.
“I have to do this, my love, for us,” I whisper.
“It’s not worth it. I can’t stand seeing you in pain and not being able to help you,” he mumbles.
“I know. But please, let me finish what I started. Please…”
He kisses me tenderly, and I feel him relent.
“Let’s hope this is enough to set the bastard in motion,” Reiner sighs.
I nod in agreement. He sweeps me off my feet, presses his lips against mine, and I giggle.
“Let me clean you further,” he says suggestively.
I can’t help but laugh as it sounds anything but sexy, but it is precisely what I need from him.
Throughout the night, Reiner cleans me repeatedly, with hardly any breaks, and when the morning sun filters through the curtains, I feel satiated and erased of every memory of Fynn on and in my body.
Reiner still licks my skin possessively, his saliva marking me further.
Any other dark creature will catch his scent on me from a mile away, and the thought warms my heart.
Part of me wishes Fynn could detect Reiner on me as well, serving as a repellent to keep him away from me, despite my need for him.
It’s another way in which humans are inferior to us darklings.
“Everyone will know you’re mine,” he says with a growl.
I pull him in for another round of lovemaking, and he eagerly accepts.
I scrunch my nose as Fynn passes by, Jodelle on his arm, casting a longing look my way.
I’m sure he links my disapproving face to seeing Jodelle.
He gives me a cheeky wink, and I force a loving smile onto my face, trying to appear as smitten as he is.
Disgust crawls over my skin, and I’m unsure how much longer I can maintain this facade; even my shadows shiver in abhorrence.
Hako, my shadow beast, hisses softly in his direction as he passes by.
But what startles me the most is the trace of the dhampir on him; it’s faint, but distinct.
I can’t control the impulse; I have to know how that got embedded into his skin.
“Fynn!” I yell, before I get a chance to regret it.
Hearing my voice, he instantly whips his head at me, jerking Jodelle along as if he were waiting for me to call after him.
I motion to him if we can have a quick talk in private.
He eagerly complies, telling Jodelle to wait for him outside, which she reluctantly does.
If she weren’t such a horrid person, I’d feel bad for her, but the hatred she holds for my kind is palpable as it exudes from her skin.
Like a puppy, he eagerly follows after me.
The moment we are alone, he cages me in, wets his lips, and presses them on mine.
Fuck. I open my mouth and answer his demanding kiss, letting his tongue sweep over mine as he proceeds to suck on my lower lip.
I moan as if I’m enjoying our interaction. The kiss is sloppy and wet.
“I fucking want you,” he groans.
He proceeds to kiss my neck and lick my skin, and I feel revulsion creep up. Carefully, I push him off me, unsure how long I can withstand the need to punch him in the face for coming onto me like that.
“Not here,” I say breathlessly, as if I am just as aroused as he is. “Jodelle is right outside waiting for you. You can’t do that to her…”
I pretend as if it takes everything in me not to rip his clothes off right here as his hands fondle my breasts impatiently. His mind is clearly not with Jodelle. I do my best to compose myself and act as if I am enjoying it while I pry his hands from my chest. Then he cups my face.
“I…”
I interrupt him before he can finish his sentence, not interested in what he has to say.
“What’s with the dhampir smell, Fynn?” I ask, my voice laced with a hint of disdain, like the creature’s scent is getting on my nerves as I arch an eyebrow.
“You can smell that? That’s incredible,” he says, both confused and impressed, his brow furrowing.
He tries to move in for another kiss, but I keep him at a distance. Fynn unknowingly confirmed my suspicions, and I have to know more.
“Yeah… and it’s not exactly a turn-on; if anything, it instills fear in me,” I respond.
Fuck, saved by the damn dhampir; who would have thought that? I gently push him off me as if his scent is the reason my whole mood is ruined.
“I… euh… shit, look, after you and I… well… I got struck with pain again just… a bit later; that’s why I left so suddenly.
I felt it coming. I’m sorry, I should have told you…
I collapsed on the road, and Faas, I mean, the dhampir, found me and made sure the sun wouldn’t kill me or some creature wouldn’t in my weakened state, and…
we ended up talking the whole night, about Aurum and the Witch Wars.
It was pretty interesting. I can tell you more about the Aurum if you’d like.
I learned a lot, actually,” he smiles sheepishly.
I contemplate his words for a while; interestingly enough, the dhampir didn’t inform Fynn that I already know about Aurum; all blood witches do.
It’s a significant part of our history and the evolution of our magic.
I don’t understand why he didn’t jump on the opportunity to expose me immediately.
I chew on my lower lip, realizing I’m stepping into dangerous territory here, but I’m so, so close.
“I’d love that, and Fynn, be careful around that dhampir; his sole purpose is to destroy other supernatural creatures. Including witches… like me…”
“He told me, yeah,” he says casually.
I raise an eyebrow at that; the statement is vague. I narrow my eyes at him when he doesn’t elaborate further. The last thing I need is for Fynn to befriend that damn abomination.
“You’ll be safe, I promise,” he says as he rests his head against mine.
“I would never let someone hurt you, Caria… I lo…” he pauses and then continues. “I just wouldn’t. Trust me on that.”
“Thank you, Fynn, for protecting me and keeping me safe.” I marvel at him.
As if a puny human like him could ever be an equal partner to a death witch like me. Without that damn Aurum, he’s nothing; I grind my teeth, holding back my urge to lash out sarcastically.
Instead, I kiss him softly, and he instantly melts into me. I gently push him away once more.
“Jodelle is waiting for you, silly,” I whisper sadly, my hands splayed across his chest, keeping him at a distance.
He draws a heavy breath, as if Jodelle is an annoyance right now, which I’m sure she is.
He gives me another demanding kiss, then leaves me behind.
When I’m certain he is out of sight, I run to the bathroom and start to retch.
I gargle water to clean out my mouth while my shadows rub against my skin to erase whatever is still lingering on me.
I can’t believe what I got myself into. It was supposed to be a simple task: get the boy to fall in love with me.
I was not prepared for this many pawns all moving on the same playing field.
The Umbra, who’s supposed to be just a legend, the dhampir who arrived out of thin air, his damn twin sister soul-bonding with the strongest being alive.
All of them complicate things—their involvement puts my life at stake, without them even knowing.
The whole place is empty when I return to the counter, almost as if all the customers have fled the inn. My eyes land on the pale man sitting in the middle, who is the reason for their immediate departure. His unnatural green eyes snap up, locking onto mine. I suppress a yelp.
“Ah, youngling, I was hoping I’d find you here,” he says with a broad smile, his impressive canines glinting.
“Young Fynn was nice enough to spill your name to me when he and I had a chat last night, and let's say the folks around here were more than eager to point me in your direction. You and I need to talk, death witch.”
I gasp, my eyes widening as he draws near.