Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Six
Gray
Chrome’s menacing, cold voice wouldn’t escape the loop replaying in my mind.
The real Chrome had left the building, and in his place stood a demon with black irises.
Even his mannerisms were different. No more of the troubled motion of running his fingers through his hair.
Instead, he’d stood stoically with his hands casually at his back.
The moment the cell door slammed shut, I summoned my magic, only for it to gutter out in my veins.
My element was dormant once again. Tears of anger and betrayal burned my eyes.
He knew what it meant to me to have my magic suppressed.
He had been there the day I’d experienced my air element for the first time.
He’d guided me through it and stayed with me until the end.
Only he knew how much I valued my freedom.
Now he used that as a bargaining chip to get what he wanted, to turn me into something the old Chrome would’ve fought to the death to shield me from.
The irony that he became the exact thing he’d been resisting for so long, in order to protect me, hurt worse than when my father ran his sword through my spine.
It appeared to be his entire mission to turn me alongside him.
The one person I had been irrevocably tied to would be the one who could ruin me. My trust in him would turn out to be my downfall. Again.
For so long, I had been trying to liberate myself from the trappings of my father’s abuse. Should’ve known that it wouldn’t last forever. Cursed or not, the man who freed me from my father was the same person who’d put me back in his chains.
I slumped against the uneven and cold wall, my arms already tingling from the uncomfortable position on the floor.
At least the chains were long enough to offer minimal slack to my arms and legs.
Deflated, I sat there, feeling a heavy pit in my chest as I waited for the retribution this twisted version of Chrome had promised.
The idea that Chrome had actually watched Slate and me have sex made my stomach roil.
Whether he was Infernal or not, it was a horrifying thought for all of us involved.
A private, intimate moment of weakness that I’d needed so I could put these conflicted feelings for Slate to bed.
And Chrome’s eyes had pried upon it all.
Even if he were wholly restored, I knew it would break his heart, which made my own wither away like the hope dying inside me from the sight of him now.
Despite my exhaustion, I couldn’t sleep.
Minutes, hours, or maybe even days had passed.
I couldn’t be sure. I stared at Slate, waiting for him to stir as my anxiety soared to new heights.
I had yet to determine where exactly we were, only that we were in a dark cell with multiple sets of chains of varying lengths attached to the walls and floors, resembling something from the Middle Ages.
At the very least, I assumed we were in Arcadia.
It was cold, and the silence was so loud my ears rang, but not quite loud enough to quiet my mind, unfortunately.
Chrome had mentioned that Celanea and Forest didn’t know of my arrival yet.
I wondered if he'd told them by now, and if so, when would they come to me? One thought spiraled into another as I agonized over what Chrome had planned. He wasn’t the same as before, so I couldn’t predict his moves, especially given the fact that he seemed to have turned completely heartless since becoming Infernal.
I didn’t even know him anymore, so who knew what he was truly capable of at this point.
Movement scraped against the concrete floor on the other side of the room. I jumped at the sound, but my heart settled once I realized it was Slate returning to consciousness. He groaned, placing his uncuffed palms over his eyes as if to block out the nonexistent light in the cell.
“Slate,” I hissed, unsure how much we were being monitored. I didn’t doubt that Chrome would be triggered simply by the fact that we were speaking.
“Gray,” Slate responded, his voice hoarse and heavy with sleep. “Where are we?”
“I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure we’re in a prison in Arcadia somewhere,” I whispered, fearing that every word reverberated off the walls and carried to Chrome or Forest.
“Fuck.” Slate sat up. “This is bad.”
I rattled my chains. “Yeah, I figured that one out already.”
“Why are you chained up, and I’m not?” Slate asked, skepticism heavy in his tone. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
“Yet again, I have no fucking clue. But I’m assuming it’s pointless for you to try and get me out,” I explained, the heaviness in my heart at his twisted demeanor once again depriving me of any hope. “Chrome wouldn’t make it easy for me to escape if he didn’t want me to.”
“Right. Leaving me unrestrained is definitely a trap of some sort.”
“Especially since he knows that you and I had just fucked right before he appeared.”
“What? How?” The same shock and horror in his voice mirrored what I felt when I realized the same.
“I really wish you’d stop asking me questions that I don’t have the fucking answers to,” I grumbled.
“Okay.” Slate exhaled. “I’ve got a plan then. It doesn’t involve trying to free you, though. Just trust me, okay?”
I nodded. Moments later, the door opened, streaming in dim light from the corridor. A familiar shadow stepped inside, and the temperature in the cell seemed to drop several degrees lower with his presence.
“So glad you could join us, brother,” Chrome greeted sarcastically.
Malice hung from the threads of his exposed shadows as they floated around his body like predators ready to strike prey.
The door boomed shut behind him, leaving me at his whims once again.
“I shouldn’t be surprised you didn’t snatch the bait I laid for you.
But then again, you tend to throw everything out the window when it comes to my Twin Soul. ”
“And I suppose you forgot what my oath entailed, didn’t you?” Slate retorted.
“You’re not needed anymore. She’s in my hands now. You’ve proven twice what happens when she’s entrusted to yours,” Chrome snapped. Flames flicked to the surface within his eyes, daring Slate to test him again.
The tension between the two had my muscles aching from strain.
Slate snorted. “Don’t pretend like you didn’t send me that text on the day of your fake funeral.”
Chrome’s nostrils flared, his breathing growing heavier with each passing second.
“You did what you were meant to do. That mission is done! Fucking done! You fucking her last night was not part of the godsdamn plan!” He started to pace, his shadows unfurling further and higher from his body with each step.
They began to twist and lash wildly, like physical manifestations of his mood.
“You didn’t even wait until the fucking ash settled over the King’s Palace before you swooped back in.
Desperation has never been a good look on you, brother. ”
I pivoted my attention to Slate, who clenched his jaw and closed his eyes as if to stave off the sting from Chrome’s insults.
“I did what you asked of me. Always have since day one. But ordering me not to love Gray is something I can’t comply with.
” Slate chuckled, a smirk wrinkling the corners of his eyes.
“Jealousy never suited you, just so you know.”
My eyes widened. I was stunned into silence at the absurd pissing contest playing out between these two grown men that I thought I knew. What the fuck was happening right now?
Chrome stormed toward Slate, engulfing his throat in his hand. “I will make you wish that you had actually died that day. I swear to the gods, you’re my biggest fucking regret…”
Slate held his stare, unafraid and empty.
“I’m sorry to hear that, brother.” A pale silver light burst from his body like a light switch had been turned on.
When Chrome tried to jerk his hand back, Slate slapped his palm against his wrist and squeezed it to hold his hand against his throat. “Come back to us, Chrome.”
I couldn’t see much past the blinding light in the dirty cell. Squinting, I tried to catch a glimpse of what was happening, but it was no use. My eyes stung from the stabbing pain, and the iciness in my bones began to thaw.
“Stop!” Chrome croaked. Cracking an eyelid open, I managed to see his shadows fighting the light emanating from Slate’s body. “No!”
I clambered to my feet, not sure what to do. Slate had clearly used his secret Angelic abilities on Chrome, but I had no idea what his abilities were truly capable of. Was he hurting him, or helping him?
“Slate!” I cried out. The chains jerked me to a stop when I moved to reach them. I growled to myself in frustration, feeling completely useless.
“Stay back, Gray! Trust me!”
I felt trapped inside my body. The thought of something happening to either of them made an acidic bubbling sensation rise in my chest. My shackles rattled with every move.
Finally, Slate’s light began to dim, and Chrome’s knees buckled.
Slate, not looking much stronger himself, shoved his arms underneath Chrome’s armpits, catching him before he collapsed to the hard floor.
After laying him down, he hurried over to me, taking the chain connected to my left wrist in his hand.
His face was covered in sweat and growing paler.
He scrunched his brows, trying to focus his attention on the new task at hand.
“Hold still, Princess. Thankfully, my power wasn’t diminished before he stuck us here. ”