Chapter 27
Archer
Ilooked up the moment my feet hit the ground, and I saw the Quinn mansion rising in front of me like a specter.
Out of the corner of my eye I saw Amelia do the same thing, her determined expression faltering.
We both knew getting out of here was going to be difficult, if not impossible. My parents had a lot of security.
The familiar weight of surveillance spells settled over us like a suffocating blanket. I could feel them crawling across my skin, invasive magical tendrils designed to track our every movement and report back to my father. Even breathing felt monitored.
“Move,” one of the enforcers growled, prodding me toward the imposing front doors.
As we climbed the marble steps, I caught Amelia’s eye again.
Her jaw was set in that stubborn line I knew so well, and despite everything, I saw a flicker of pride.
She wasn’t broken by this. Neither was I, not really.
Angry, heartbroken, terrified for Valen’s safety.
All of that was true. But not broken. Not yet.
The massive front doors swung open before we reached them, revealing my mother standing in the foyer.
Rose Quinn was the picture of aristocratic composure as always, her blonde hair swept into a perfect chignon, her silk dress impeccable despite the early hour.
But I could see the fury burning in her eyes.
“Archer,” she said, her voice deceptively calm. “Amelia. How lovely to have you both home.”
I wanted to spit back some sarcastic response, but the memory of my father’s compulsion spell made me hesitate. One wrong word and he’d silence me again, leaving me helpless while they decided my fate.
“Mother,” I managed, keeping my voice neutral.
She stepped forward, her heels clicking against the marble floor with each measured step. “I trust your father has explained the severity of your situation?”
“He’s explained his version of it,” I replied carefully.
Her smile was sharp as a blade. “There is only one version, Archer. The truth. Which is that you’ve both been seduced by a creature that feeds on your life force and manipulated into believing you have feelings for it.”
The casual way she dismissed everything I felt for Valen as manipulation made my hands clench into fists. “That’s not what happened.”
“Isn’t it?” She tilted her head, studying me like I was a particularly interesting specimen. “Tell me, Archer, when did these supposed feelings begin? Before or after the feeding started?”
The question was a trap, and we both knew it. No matter how I answered, she’d use it as evidence that my emotions weren’t real. But I couldn’t bring myself to lie about what Valen and I had shared.
“The feedings came first,” I admitted quietly. “The feelings took longer to develop.”
“Ah.” Her smile widened. “Well, it’s good of you to admit that a feeding relationship preceded the feelings of attachment. How... convenient for the vampire.”
I felt heat creep up my neck as I realized how much ammunition this was giving her. Anything I said to defend what Valen and I had would be used against him, against us both. Nobody would ever believe that we actually cared for one another.
“Enough,” my father’s voice cut through the conversation as he stepped into the foyer behind us.
“Rose, take Amelia to her room. Constantine Pemberton and his family will be her next week to begin the arrangements for the marriage. And we still need to find a suitable match for Archer before all this gets out.”
My heart stopped dead in my chest. Marriage? They were already arranging Amelia’s marriage? And looking for someone for me too, like I was livestock to be sold off to the highest bidder?
“No,” I said, the word slipping out before I could stop myself. “Absolutely not. I won’t marry some stranger just because you’ve decided my feelings aren’t real.”
My father’s eyes flashed dangerously. “You will marry whoever we choose, Archer. Your little dalliance with that bloodsucker has proven you can’t be trusted to make appropriate decisions about your future.”
“I’m twenty-one years old!” The words exploded out of me, months of frustration and rage finally finding their voice. “I’m not a child you can just sell off to make political connections!”
“You’re acting like a child,” my mother said coolly. “A foolish, infatuated child who’s been manipulated by a predator. The marriage will help you remember who you are and your place in this family and in magical society.”
I looked desperately at Amelia, hoping for some sign of solidarity, but she was staring at the floor with her jaw clenched tight. She was probably trying not to say something that would make this worse for both of us.
“What about what I want?” I demanded, turning back to my parents. “What about my happiness?”
My father laughed, the sound cold and mocking. “Your happiness? Archer, your feelings on the subject cannot be trusted now that you’ve been manipulated by that creature. Now you’ll do what’s necessary to repair the damage before it’s too late.”
The casual dismissal of everything I cared about caught me off guard.
These people who were supposed to love me, supposed to want what was best for me, saw me as nothing more than a chess piece in their political games.
Up until this point I thought my father was cold, not that he didn’t care about me at all.
The realization was a bit hard to swallow.
“And if I refuse?” I asked, though I already knew the answer.
“Then you’ll find yourself cut off from the family entirely,” my mother replied smoothly. “No money, no connections, no magical support. You’ll be on your own in a world that doesn’t look kindly on witches without family backing.”
The threat was clear. Submit to their will or lose everything I’d ever known. It should have terrified me, but instead I felt something that surprised me completely.
Relief.
The idea of being free from their expectations, their manipulation, their constant control, suddenly didn’t sound like a punishment at all. It sounded like liberation.
“Fine,” I said, my voice steadier than I felt. “Cut me off. I’d rather be poor and free than rich and miserable.”
My father’s face went dangerously pale. “You don’t mean that.”
“I absolutely mean it.” I straightened my shoulders, feeling stronger with each word. “I love Valen, and I’m not going to let you destroy that just because it doesn’t fit your narrow view of what my life should look like.”
“Love?” My mother’s laugh was sharp and bitter. “You can’t possibly love a monster like that. It’s… unnatural.”
“So that’s what this is really about,” I retorted. “You wouldn’t care if I had run off with another witch without your approval. You’re mad that I’m in love with a vampire.”
“Of course we’re upset about that!” my father roared, throwing his arms in the air.
“Why wouldn’t we be? Your mother and I have spent our entire lives building this empire that you two would inherit.
One that would last for generations. And you want to throw it all away on a penniless monster that has to drink your blood to survive?
How could you even remotely begin to defend a decision like that?
! And you!” My father turned, pointing a finger at Amelia.
“You’re just as bad as him! We’re trying to defend you both, to make sure you have a good life, and all either of you can do is argue and stomp on all the work we’ve done like ungrateful little brats! ”
“Are you fucking kidding me?!” Amelia shouted, the dam finally breaking.
“Since I was ten years old, you’ve done nothing but prepare me to be sold off!
You’re going to stand here and tell me you know what’s best after treating me like that?
When you’ve never even let me have a say in what dress I wear, much less how I feel or what I want in this life? Fuck you both you fucking hypocrites.”
My mother’s hand went to her mouth, stifling a gasp. My father, however, stood there, his fists shaking at his sides.
“She’s right,” I added, taking a spot at Amelia’s side. “You’ve always done that to her. And for me it’s always been perfect grades, perfect magic, and perfect manners. Nobody has ever once asked me what I wanted, what I cared about, or how I wanted to live my life.”
“So…” Father said, his voice shaking. “You’re both going to run off with some monster to defy us one last time? To prove that you’re both individuals?”
“No,” I said, feeling braver with every passing second. “We’re going to run off with the people we love because we love them. Not because we got your approval.” I linked arms with Amelia. “We’re sure as hell not going to stay here and become Purity Front sympathizers like you two.”
“Is… Is that what you think of us?” Mother asked, finding her voice once more. “That we’re those kinds of people?”
I felt a bitter laugh escape my throat at her shocked expression. “What else would you call someone who believes vampires and other supernatural beings don’t belong in magical society? Someone who uses phrases like ‘creatures’ and ‘monsters’ and ‘unnatural’ when talking about the people I love?”
My father’s face had gone from pale to red, his magical aura crackling dangerously around him. “We are not—”
“You are,” Amelia cut him off, her voice deadly quiet. “And you know what the really sick part is? You probably don’t even realize it. You’ve been so surrounded by your own prejudices for so long that you think it’s normal.”
“We’re trying to protect you!” Mother insisted, taking a step toward us. “Both of you! The world is dangerous for our kind when we associate with creatures that—”
“Stop calling them creatures,” I snarled, surprising myself with the venom in my voice. “Valen has a name. So does Lila. They’re people, not things.”
The silence that followed was deafening. I watched my parents’ faces as they tried to process what I’d said.
“Lila?” my father said slowly, looking at Amelia. “Is that what her name is?”