Crescent (Book 1)

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Ceth doesn't know I was in his head. Just as soon as it happened, it was over. But the moment haunts me just like the dreams do. They've become unbearable. They no longer come in the later hours of night. They chase me. Three more days. Just three more days.

The moon is half full tonight, and the runes on the ceiling light as it passes from one phase to the other. I watch the moon glide by, ever so slowly as if morning might never come. My body itches with anticipation. Just three more days.

"Dance with me, love," Ceth coos softly in my ear.

He's spectacularly dressed in a blue-black tunic tonight. Darker thread is embroidered in intricate whorls on his sleeves. The color matches the designs stitched into the sheer sleeves of the obsidian dress I wear. It's cinched at the waist with a tight corset that swells into a gathered skirt of lace at the bottom. The blade that runs down the length of the open back is by far my favorite addition. Ceth's too, since he's constantly fiddling with the edge of the dress above my ass.

"Stop it," I hiss, swatting his hand away.

His fingers brush the bare skin anyways. "Dance with me." It's an order this time. There's enough bite to his words that I listen. He leads the way to the dance floor, and one of his hands settles on my waist. I refuse to meet his eye. His hands are cold but his steps are even, calculated, as if dancing is about more arithmetic than movement.

"Did you feel it?" he asks, pulling me against him. I know what he means without having to ask: The power. The magic. The strength.

My throat feels like sandpaper. "Yes."

With a flourish, he spins me outwards, and then I crash back into him. The breath knocks out of my chest, but he keeps dancing like we're having the most natural conversation in the world. "It only gets stronger," he muses, leaning down to kiss my cheek slowly. His breath tangles with the curls on my forehead, a tease and a threat all-in-one. "You'll learn to love it."

Once, I might have doubted that. I still do- but the thought that maybe I could... I could learn to love it. That terrifies me. My chest rises sharply, and I focus on the couples around us instead. The dancing, the same three steps I learned in the library, repeated.

"On the night of the full moon, it will be the most powerful. Maybe then you'll understand." Ceth's steps slow, and I feel the sudden urge to say something.

"You asked me what I'll do when this is all over. I have an answer."

His brows knit together in question- like he doesn't remember the conversation at all. Like he doesn't remember all the work I've put in these past few months. The hate that's been building, churning, in my gut all this time solidifies. "And what's that, darling?"

He isn't looking at me. He's hardly paying attention at all, and it makes my anger grow hotter. I tilt his chin toward mine suddenly. Standing on my toes, I brush my lips against his as I speak, knowing it's drawing him in. "When I have my family back..." I press a gentle kiss to the corner of his mouth. "There is nothing that will stop me from getting as far away from this place as possible."

He chuckles, the sound quiet but no less menacing. "I may have underestimated you yet."