Chapter 10: The Mirror's Edge (Seraphina's POV)
The morning light was a cold, clinical blade cutting through the heavy velvet curtains of the master suite.
I woke up alone. The other side of the bed was cold, the black silk sheets rumpled, but the man who had claimed to own me was gone.
I sat up, the ruby choker still tight against my throat. I looked at the mirror across the room and didn't recognize the woman staring back. She looked like a Thorne, but her eyes... they were the eyes of someone who had just looked into the sun and realized the heat was addictive.
I wrapped myself in Silas's discarded silk robe—it smelled of him, of cedarwood and a darkness I was beginning to understand—and walked out onto the balcony.
The Vane Estate was quiet, a fortress of limestone and secrets. I saw Silas down by the cliffside, staring at the churning grey waters of the Hudson. He wasn't wearing a suit. He was in a simple black shirt, his broad shoulders tensed against the wind.
He looked... human.
I walked down to the gardens, my bare feet sinking into the dew-damp grass. I didn't try to hide my footsteps. I wanted him to know I was there.
"The debt is paid for the night, Silas," I said as I reached the edge of the cliff. "Or do you charge by the hour now?"
He didn't turn around. "You're awake early. I expected you to sleep until noon."
"I don't like sleeping in cages, even if the sheets are expensive," I replied, standing beside him. "Why did you leave? Was the 'Reaper' afraid of what he'd see in the morning light?"
Silas finally turned to me. His amber eyes were bloodshot, his jaw shadowed with stubble. He looked unraveled. "I left because I was afraid I wouldn't be able to let you out of that room if I stayed."
The sarcasm I had prepared died in my throat. This was the crack. This was the vulnerability that Goddy Francis's heroes always hid until it was too late.
"You're obsessed, Silas," I whispered, reaching out to touch his arm. He flinched at the contact, but he didn't pull away. "But obsession is just another word for being afraid to be alone."
"I've been alone my whole life, Seraphina," he rasped, his hand coming up to cover mine, his grip almost desperate. "I just didn't realize how much it hurt until I saw you standing on that auction stage."
He leaned in, his forehead resting against mine. The wind howled around us, but the only thing I could hear was the frantic beat of his heart.
"I'm going to make you love me," he promised, his voice a low, terrifying vow. "Even if I have to burn the world down to prove I'm the only one who can keep you warm."
"Then you better start striking matches, Silas," I breathed, my fingers tangling in his hair. "Because I don't burn easily."