Page 27 of Eternal Obsession

“Still,” I reasoned.

Again he glared.

“I can’t,” I said.

“You are my son.” He glanced at the others.

His words ran deep. Biting my lip, I made a light incision with a shaking hand, mesmerized with the speed that it healed.

“Deeper,” Father instructed.

I cringed.

“I know the first time is the worst.” He pointed to her wrist.

Clenching my jaw, I dug the tip into her flesh.

More screams.

I felt monstrous. It was as if I was a stranger to myself—this wasn’t me. This cruelty, this unnecessary harm.

Blood poured into the ornate cup. Father emptied the overflowing chalice into a large rococo bowl set on the altar behind us.

She struggled. Her wound healed with preternatural speed. This was an abomination.

“Take me with you,” the girl begged. She read my mind again.

“Silence,” my father said.

Please, she begged, sending her thoughts through mine this time, ensuring others would not hear. Your father keeps you prisoner within these castle walls. Your brother Alex, too. Let me go, release me, and I will help you escape.

I shuddered. “She is in my head. I hear her!”

“So is the way of the Devil,” my father said.

As the ceremony progressed, I observed the woman weakening. She fell in and out of consciousness only to regain some strength and plead. I lingered by the door until Lord Hawke grabbed me and directed me to watch from a better vantage point.

I quietly cursed him.

Her chains were removed and they rebound her hands and feet with coarse rope. Forcefully, they pulled her upright and placed a blindfold. Once it was securely fastened, they dragged her out of the room.

Thank God it was over.

Having had enough of the barbaric, I reluctantly followed them toward the corridor that led to the dungeons, wondering where we headed.

My father led us to the furthest of a long line of cells, and upon entering pulled one of the stones that jutted out innocently from the wall, camouflaged by its surrounding stones. With such a movement, the wall shook and a stone doorway swung open.

We continued along a passageway that led beneath the castle. This was where these men had disappeared all those years ago when I had followed them round the corner only to lose them. We trekked on for what seemed an eternity. Eventually, a glimmer of light hinted that our exit neared.

Perhaps I could slip away.

My father was a fit man, and now I realized why. The men roughly hauled their staggering prisoner out into the night and through the locked doorway, completely hidden by trees, where I recognized the shadowy woods of mainland Marazion. Cautiously, with our prisoner in tow, we descended the steep slope toward the three horse-drawn carriages stationed below.

My father reassured me that when we arrived at our destination, I would have a greater understanding of our purpose.

It did little to comfort me.

Everything that I believed I was dissolved into my past, and I emerged altered forever.