Page 70 of The Sin-Binder’s Fate (The Seven Sins Academy #1)

Luna sucks in a sharp breath.

I don’t blink. "No."

Severin laughs. It’s low, slow, indulgent.

Then, he shakes his head. "You always were a fool," he muses, eyes dark with something borderline amused, borderline pitying. "You and your goddamn pride."

His gaze flicks to Luna. Dismissive. Unimpressed.

"She’s not worth it."

I flex my fingers, feeling the ache in my knuckles, the sting of the arrow I took for Luna still burning down my spine. I don’t let it show. I won’t give him the satisfaction.

"Where are they?" My voice is a blade honed to lethal precision, stripped of anything but cold calculation.

Severin clicks his tongue. "Now, now," he muses, tilting his head. "That’s not how negotiations work."

"I don’t negotiate."

He laughs, quiet, indulgent. "Of course you don’t." His gaze flickers to Luna again, like she’s an afterthought. "But you’ll make an exception, won’t you? "

He steps closer. The firelight casts sharp, flickering shadows over his face. He looks like a phantom pulled from the wreckage of a nightmare, something carved from darkness and indulgence.

"You must be worried," he murmurs, dragging out the words. "Silas, gods, that one’s always been a mess. And Riven? Wrath incarnate, unable to be chained, yet here we are." His eyes narrow, and his lips curve into something almost mocking. "Chained."

A calculated lie.

I let the silence stretch between us, watching the way his shoulders settle, too relaxed. He’s toying with me. With all of us. But Severin is one thing above all else: Arrogance. And arrogance always leads to mistakes.

"You’re stalling," I say smoothly.

His smirk falters, just for a second.

I press the advantage. "If they were dead, you’d have said it outright. You love dramatics, you would’ve had their bodies dragged out for the display." I step forward, closing the space between us. Daring him to look away. "But you haven’t."

He says nothing, but his fingers twitch. Subtle. Telling.

"I wonder why," I continue, voice soft but merciless. "Did you overplay your hand? Did you get them out, but now you can’t get them back?"

His eyes narrow. "Careful, Lucien."

I smile, slow and razor-sharp. "Or what?"

His expression flickers, just slightly. And that’s when I know. He doesn’t have complete control.

I roll my shoulders, adjusting my stance. "You wouldn’t risk keeping them anywhere too unstable. If they die, they’ll resurrect here. And you wouldn’t want that, would you?" I tilt my head, watching the tension creep into his frame. "So where did you send them?"

He recovers quickly. Too quickly.

Severin sighs dramatically. "Lucien, Lucien, Lucien. Always thinking you’re the smartest in the room." He smiles, but there’s a warning beneath it. "They’re where they belong."

Vague. Useless.

I take another step forward, keeping my voice casual. "Funny, I don’t recall them belonging anywhere but here. But if you’re so sure, " I shrug. "Tell me."

Severin exhales, rolling his shoulders like he’s already bored. "They’ll be returned to you when you’re ready to be reasonable. Until then, I’d focus on keeping what you still have." His gaze flicks to Luna again. "She looks delicate. Would be a shame if she ended up like the last one."

Maeve. The name is a phantom, a ghost that still lingers in the ruins of this place. My fingers twitch. My power surges, coiling like a viper ready to strike. But I don’t lunge. Not until I have what I need.

So instead, I smile.

And say, "You’re lying."

He’s irritated. I can see it in the way his fingers flex at his sides, in the brief flicker of something dangerous beneath that veneer of amusement .

I shift my stance, rolling my shoulders, feeling the weight of exhaustion pressing at the edges of my limbs but refusing to acknowledge it. Blood slicks the ground between us, bodies broken, the air thick with the stench of burning flesh and scorched magic. And yet, she still stands.

Luna, his failure.

I tilt my head, letting the words drip like poisoned honey. “How pissed are you, really?”

Severin raises a brow.

I give him a slow, mocking smile. “You tried so hard, didn’t you? All those wraiths. The fire. The spiders.” I step forward, forcing him to hold my gaze. “But she lives.” A pause. “Stronger than ever.”

His smirk falters. Just for a second.

Then it’s back, but now it’s strained at the edges, curling like something fractured. “She’s resilient,” he allows, tilting his head as though considering it for the first time. “Unexpected.”

“She should be dead,” I continue, dragging it out, watching his jaw tighten. “You tried to kill her, but you couldn’t. And now?” I let my power rise beneath my skin, a low pulse of unbreakable certainty. “Now she’s bonded to two of us.” I tilt my head. “Maybe you’re not as strong as you think.”

Then, to my surprise, he exhales sharply and lets out a low, wicked laugh.

“Oh, Lucien.” His voice is almost fond. Almost. “Who said I want her dead?”

Luna stiffens. I don’t. But I don’t miss the flicker of movement from the corner of my eye, her fingers curling into fists.

Severin’s eyes gleam as he takes her in, slow and deliberate, like he’s re-evaluating something.

I step in front of her fully, cutting off his view. “Don’t play games with me.”

He grins. “I never do.”

Bullshit.

His gaze flicks to Luna once more before settling back on me. “She’s bonded to two of you now. That makes her...useful.” Severin steps closer. “You know what I think?” he muses, voice dropping lower, silkier. “I think you’re underestimating her. Underestimating me.”

I say nothing.

He leans in just slightly. “You think those bonds make her stronger?” He tilts his head. “You ever wonder if they make her easier to control?”

I let my magic surge, cracking the ground beneath us.

Severin laughs again, stepping back, lifting his hands in a mocking gesture of surrender. “Relax, brother. I’m not here to take her.” He exhales dramatically. “Not today.”

I clench my jaw.

Because that implies there will be a day. And I’ll tear the realms apart before I let that happen.

Severin meets my gaze, a dark amusement curling at the edges of his mouth. Then he steps back, fading into the shadows like he was never here at all. But his final words linger, thick as the blood on the battlefield.

“I’ll be seeing you soon. ”