Page 7 of Broken Shadows (Corrupt Shadows Duet #2)

CHAPTER SEVEN

Evie

In retrospect, I shouldn’t have cut off his dick. It was a quicker death than he deserved.

My shadows shudder against my bones as I stand over Edward’s body, staring at my father’s blanched face and wide, unblinking eyes. Tears fall thick and fast as years of pent-up anger swell through me.

I thought killing him would satiate the rage pulsing through me, but it only adds to it. This isn’t enough. He took advantage of me when I was just a fucking child!

I had intended to keep him alive and force him to see the ugliness he’d done. I wanted retribution! I need him to know he was a bad person. That was the best way to destroy him. He thought himself a righteous man , justifying all his actions. I was going to reveal his true nature.

I had a plan; one I had meticulously gone over in my mind since I’d been trapped in here. I had accounted for every detail, except for my bloodlust.

“Burn in Hell!” I spit through gritted teeth.

I vaguely register Samuel behind me, spluttering and coughing as my shadows dissipate from inside his throat. A mortal would have died by now, but he’s a demon and my choking him out was an equivalent of a pathetic slap on the wrist.

Despite wanting nothing more than to tear apart Edward’s corpse and scream until my voice runs dry, Samuel—the twisted fuck—demands my attention.

“You’re more powerful than I knew.”

I turn to face him. Samuel’s pupils dilate, lips trembling and glistening with splatters of dark blood. He wipes his lips on the sleeve of his maroon button-up shirt and smirks. Glancing at the door, he laughs.

I hadn’t noticed them until then, standing in the doorway.

“Evie…” Rosa’s voice penetrates the silence.

Gods no. She can’t be here. Not now.

I stare at Rosa and Aiden, with a scalpel in one hand and Edward’s severed dick in the other.

How long have they been there? How much did they see?

Rosa’s eyes widen as she scans the blood-drenched scene. “Evie. Is that his…?”

I drop the flaccid organ into the pool of blood at my feet. There is so much blood, running like rivers of crimson through the cracks in the stone ground. It’s too bad he bled out so quickly.

Seeing Rosa makes this ten times worse. Not because of what I did, but because of how I did it… and how much I enjoyed it. Now she sees what Lorcan saw in me from the moment he laid eyes on me—a killer.

Having my darkness reflected in the horrified expression of my closest friend makes me wince.

Gomez flaps his wings behind them, landing on Rosa’s shoulder. His beady eyes scan the room and I command him not to come any further through our bond.

Seeing him breaks my heart, but I can’t afford to show vulnerability now. Not with a sadistic monster watching me.

Speaking of…

Samuel’s psychotic laughter echoes through the room. The fucker really has come alive in all this murder.

“Leave,” I splutter to Rosa, knowing Samuel will only use her to get to me. “Now!”

Samuel tilts his head toward Aiden and Rosa and my entire body tenses. He laughs maniacally, then spits blood on the ground. “Don’t run, or I’ll direct my brothers to murder you all,” Samuel orders, glaring at Rosa, then adds, pointing at me, “And I’ll kill your favorite psychopath.”

My gaze drifts to Rosa, Aiden, and Gomez before landing on the compact mirror Aiden is directing toward me. A pair of pastel-green eyes, half a straight nose and those thick lips come into view.

My heart stutters.

“Evie.” Lorcan’s voice comes out desperate and tortured, and I almost feel bad. Then I remember he tricked me. Used me. It was the worst of all the things he had done. I relished the stalking and chasing. But not telling me he was in love with one of my ancestors, and planning to trap me in the Shadow Realm so I could take his place, was the worst sting of it all. He pretended to have feelings for me, and I feel so fucking duped.

I blink, my lashes briefly clinging to the blood smeared under my eye, and shake my head, scattering those thoughts. Now is not the time to let emotions get the better of me.

“What an interesting turn of events,” Samuel says with a hunger in his eyes that turns my stomach. “Why don’t you bring that mirror here. Yes, you, with the dumbass look on your face.”

“Aiden!” I yell and he flinches. “Smash the mirror. Now!” I wasn’t sure if I needed Lorcan gone so Samuel couldn’t reach him, or because I wasn’t ready to face him. Either way, he needed to be gone.

“Oh, uh,” Aiden says, stumbling, then whispers to the mirror, “Sorry bro.”

Lorcan’s voice come’s through the mirror, as clear as if he was standing with us. “Don’t you fucking da—”

Aiden drops the mirror on the ground, purple and green plastic exploding outward as the casing cracks, then smashes his heel into the glass. I hear it shatter, but Samuel doesn’t make a move to stop him.

“No matter,” Samuel says silkily, pacing around me in a circle, his hands behind his back. “There are plenty of mirrors in the world. What I need is for you to unlock the portal.”

I shake my head. “It’s destroyed.”

He brings his face too close to mine, teeth bared. “Then make a new one. You have the power to do it. Or I’ll kill your friends in front of you.” He glances at the doorway, shadows snaking from him like serpents, and before I can blink, they’ve reached Rosa and Aiden, slipping into their orifices.

They freeze, only their eyes moving, as if they’ve been rendered statues. Fortunately, Gomez has disappeared amongst the commotion. I only hope he’s hiding.

Raising my hands, magic pulses into a deadly hum under my fingertips. “Let them go.”

“Evangeline said you would be powerful, but she never said it would be this much.” His nostrils flare as he glances at the floor with disgust, as if he can see my dead aunt from here.

“You met my aunt?”

“I know her now,” he says with mock surprise and fiery eyes. “She’s waiting for you, you know.”

“She’s dead,” I reply. “Unless she isn’t?”

“Evangeline and I are doing this for your benefit too. Lorcan must be destroyed.”

“So, where is my great aunt?”

“Hell,” he says with an unnerving smile. “Where you will be soon if you don’t build that portal.”

“I’m more powerful than you.”

His expression shifts into that of a predator. “Not by much, and you can’t kill me.” He side-eyes Rosa and my stomach drops.

“Let. Them. Go,” I order with a guttural growl.

Shadows writhe with every pulse of my heart, sliding away from me in glittering, black swirls.

He laughs, eyes alight, and I realize he wants this. He loves it. We are one of the same, except he’s right. I have more to lose, therefore something worth fighting for.

Samuel spits demon blood on the floor, hands in his pockets as he saunters closer. “Rebuild the portal. Now.”

“No.”

He scoffs. “You’re fighting for someone who doesn’t even care about you.”

I know he’s talking about Lorcan. I want to believe he’s wrong, but at the same time, I know he’s probably right. “This isn’t about Lorcan.”

His brows furrow and he tilts his head, eyes penetrating as if he’s reaching into the depths of my soul, searching for the truth. It’s invasive and I suddenly feel as if I’m naked. “If that’s true,” he replies slowly, “then help me and I’ll let you and your friends go.”

I swallow thickly. “So you can kill me after?”

“You have my word. I will not harm you.”

I scoff, recalling everything Lorcan had said to me—every trick, when he made me believe he was falling for me. When he made me feel things for him. “In my experience, the word of a demon means nothing.”

“I am not my brother,” he spits, as if the unspoken comparison is so disgusting. “I keep my word.”

I glance sideways at Rosa and Aiden. Her eyes are wide, pupils flitting around, revealing the panic she can’t show with the rest of her body.

“Fine, I’ll do it, just let them go,” I relent, but he’s not so easily fooled.

“Build the portal first.”

“With what mirror, genius?” I ask and his eye twitches as if he’s not used to being unprepared. I’m glad I can get under his skin, if only a little.

“I’ll have one of my brothers bring one.” When he pulls out his cellphone from his pocket, I take the opportunity while he’s distracted to flick a shadow around his wrist, twisting until I hear bones crack.

The phone clashes onto the ground, and the ropes of onyx magic fade slightly. My eyes widen when I spot Rosa’s fingers wiggle as she tries to move. Aiden’s lips part slightly.

Samuel’s growl reverberates through the room. I lash another shadow at him, and he whips it away with his magic.

I raise my fingers in the air, pulsing shockwaves of onyx darkness at him. The shadows shift and take shape, shrouding him in darkness. The deadly hum of my death magic vibrates, and the ground splits with a deafening crack.

“Enough!” Samuel’s eyes darken to coal, and he shifts into his demonic form.

Unlike Lorcan, who while terrifying, looked beastly and monstrous in a regular demonic way, Samuel appeared Satanic .

His body swells, clothes tearing as he grows three times in size. His skin peels from his body, like a snake shedding its hide, and rows upon rows of razor-sharp teeth elongate from his gums.

Fuck this.

Rosa and Aiden fall backward as Samuel concentrates his magic on shifting. His lower body disappears as a long, pointed black tail replaces it. He drags claws across stone, the smell of sulfur thick in the air.

I race to the door, grab Rosa and Aiden by their hands before they can speak, then slip into the In-Between.

My heart pounds so hard, I worry it’ll break free from my ribcage and kill me before I can get them out.

Aiden yelps when he’s dragged into the shadows with me and Rosa. She clings to my arm, gasping for air as we shadow walk. We land in a shadowy corner of a room, and I slide us into another shadow, using my magic to navigate the rooms.

Samuel’s roar shakes the foundations of the old building. A squeak sounds ahead as Gomez flies into view, landing on my shoulder.

Tears flood my vision. “Gomey.” He nestles into my hair, and I press my fingers against his soft, warm little body. “Cling to me, baby. Don’t let go.”

His claws sink into my hair, and I run with the others.

“I’m going to vomit,” Aiden exclaims as I shadow walk them around a corner.

Rosa’s grip tightens on my arms. “Oh my god.”

The cold air hits as we land outside, under the shade of a willow tree. My head buzzes as I try to stand straight, but my power wanes. Moving all three of them is draining me, but I have to keep going, even if my legs almost buckle.

“The manor,” Rosa splutters. “We need to go there.”

“Lorcan’s?” I ask as we spiral into another shadow across the street, moving through the In-Between.

“Yes,” she says breathily. “You’re going to have to trust me.”

My heart palpitates when we shadow walk through a stretch of darkness hidden under a tall statue and arrive onto the grounds of Lorcan’s manor. I briefly close my eyes, blocking out the snow-drenched, gothic building.

Gomez squeaks in my ear, using my hair as curtains to the frosty world. “It’s okay baby,” I whisper and stroke his fur. It’s so comforting to hold him close that I can’t stand the thought of being away from him again. His tiny claws scratch my neck, but I don’t mind. I know he’s longing for closeness, grasping at my skin to feel it. We’d been parted before when I was in the Shadow Realm, but this time was different. He could feel the torture through our familiar bond, even when I tried to block it out. I’m hurting, and his clinging to me is his way of trying to take it away. “I’m okay,” I promise, but he doesn’t relax. “We’re okay.”

It’s strange being back here in my world. I spent so much time in the Shadow Realm version of this place, where the saturation was turned down, ash floated, suspended in the air, and strings of loneliness echoed in every hall.

I wonder if Lorcan came back here after Aiden smashed the mirror.

Speaking of Aiden, he hunches over, his hands on his knees, and retches. “Let’s stick to normal transport in the future.”

I get it. My calves are killing me, and my stomach is a flurry of nausea. Going in and out of the In-Between, moving between shadows, is not for the faint-hearted. Gomez seems okay, though he remained tucked into my hair for most of the journey.

My breath catches when I look up. Pointed arches stretch into the sky, each one covered with powdered white. I can’t even see the warped expressions of the stone gargoyles under the frosted ice.

Beyond the grounds, an ocean of snow-dusted fir trees stretches out behind the gray-bricked building, and I’m transported to the time when Lorcan had chased me through those trees, showing the true extent of his demonic side.

I stroke Gomez on my shoulder, wrapping the jacket Rosa hands me around my body. The hospital gown isn’t covering a lot at this point.

Aiden wipes his mouth on the sleeve of his purple t-shirt, Darkwood College: Home of the Bats emblazoned on the front in black, then looks at the iron bars jutting downward over the entrance. “Maybe we beat them here.”

“How do you know?” I ask, my eyes widening. Was this the plan all along, for Rosa and Aiden to meet the brothers here? Aiden was holding a mirror, so he was obviously communicating with Lorcan. The thought of seeing him again makes me sicker than any shadow walking could.

“Dunno,” Aiden says with a shrug. “We said we’d meet them here after we got you.”

I glance sideways at Rosa. “Why?”

“So you can build the portal. We need their help, Evie. Let’s get inside and I’ll fill you in, but first… here.” Rosa reaches into her bag and pulls out a lighter and pack of cigarettes, handing me one. She’s taking all of this far better than Aiden. Perhaps it’s because she’s a witch too. Even if she doesn’t know it. Rosa, fuck, all of us need to take advantage of every strength we possess and hone it.

The first inhale of nicotine rushes straight to my head. I close my eyes, my lips curving as I relish the feeling. I have missed smoking.

Rosa returns the lighter to her purse. “Swiped them from Asher,” she explains. “Thought you might want one when we rescued you. Although, it turns out you didn’t need rescuing.”

“Neither did you.”

Aiden places a hand over his heart, looking far too pleased with himself. “Nor did I.”

Rosa looks at him with incredulity but doesn’t rebuke him.

I swallow. “Rosa?”

“Hm?” she hums.

“Before we go in there… I need to tell you something. Look, there is no easy way to say this,” I inhale, then sprint through the rest of the words, “but… you’re a witch.”

I brace for her reaction, but it doesn’t come. However, Aiden’s hands fly to his cheeks so fast he slaps himself. “Rosa is a witch too!? That’s…” He gapes, then closes his mouth. “Fantubular! Wait… Hey, how come everyone has cool powers and shit but me?”

Rosa and I glance at him, ignoring his word choice, or Aidenism as I like to call them, then I shrug and turn my attention back to Rosa.

“Are you okay?”

A gorgeous smile warms her softening expression. “Definitely.” She laughs and arches her brows while planting one hand on her hip and speaks with the other. “You already told me. Multiple times actually and, before you tell me, I already know it’s a different kind of magic to what your coven practice.”

“The fuck? When?”

She shrugs. “Remember when you told me you were a witch? You also mentioned my witchy-ness, many times, when you were drinking while on benzos. And before you ask, I never said anything because I’ve been waiting to start practicing my magic until you harnessed your own,” Rosa pauses and bumps she shoulder into me, “like I fucking knew you would. But then everything went to Hell in edible panties, and… you know the rest.” She pulls me into an embrace. “Also, if I haven’t said it yet, I’m so damn proud of you for getting clean, Evie.”

“Thank you.” Moisture wells along my lower lashes and I allow one solitary tear to fall while my best friend holds me. When I blink the rest away, we resume walking to the manor.

“Always, girl,” Rosa proclaims, then her gaze heats the side of my face. “He deserved it, Evie.”

I blink twice. “Who?”

“Edward.”

I swallow hard against the lump forming in my throat. She always knows what’s playing on my mind. Always.

“I know, and I don’t regret it,” I admit.

Aiden’s eyes expand. “You and Lorcan really are meant for each other,” he says and walks alongside us to the door. “ Mr. and Mrs. Psychopath ,” he adds under his breath. Aiden forces a teasing smile, but I can’t be sure if it’s because he’s afraid of me or if he’s actually joking. Except, he can’t erase the horror in his bright blue eyes.

Rosa comes to my defense before I can form the words. “You should be glad she killed him. Edward was an abusive piece of shit who tortured Evie for years when she was just a child . He kidnapped us and would have killed us if given the chance. He used his religion as an excuse to live out his sadistic fantasies.”

Aiden’s light brows knit together, his lips curving into a frown. “I’m sorry, but…” He pauses, wincing at the memory. “Did you really have to cut off his cock though?”

I suck in a final drag of my cigarette, and it goes to my head. The sizzle burns my fingertips, and I throw it into the snow. “Yes. He’d also touch me as a kid, then punish me for his arousal.” My teeth clench so tight I’m surprised they don’t shatter. “He did it again at The Order headquarters. He was sick and twisted and I get that what I did looked severe. Perhaps in a perfect world I should have handed him over to the authorities, but people like him get away with everything. Not to mention he was murdering innocent people when I was trapped there, just to try and get me to unlock my magic.”

Aiden nods, then slides his hand over the back of his neck. “Yikes. What a dick.”

Rosa links her arm with mine when we reach the doors and Gomez snuggles me tighter. The warmth of his body against my neck is like a miniature blanket against the cold.

I stare at the serpentine, metal knocker on the arched wooden doors, reminding me of when I’d first come here with Lorcan. It was easier then. Although my life had been turned upside down, I somehow felt safe next to him, because even though he was a demon, he was my demon. What’s the saying? Better the devil you know .

I guess I have no choice but to go inside, but even from here I can feel his presence. He’s in there, waiting behind the mirrors for us to enter, and I’ve never felt more nervous.