Seven Ways To The Abyss

UNDEAD OATHS

Damian’s heart raced as he stood outside Sofia’s house, his chest heaving from the run. He wasn’t entirely sure why he’d come. He wasn’t supposed to care—wasn’t supposed to hesitate. But the thought of leaving her at the mercy of the Lower Two… it gnawed at him. A jagged edge of dread took root in his mind.

Protect her. The words slipped through his thoughts, unbidden, and they shocked him. Protect her? What was he thinking? He’d been sent to kill her.

Yet here he was.

The sight of the Lower Two standing just outside her home sent a shiver down his spine. The man wasn’t doing anything overtly threatening, but there was something chilling about the way he watched the house, his posture calm, as if he had all the time in the world.

Damian stepped forward, his resolve shaky. The man turned slowly, his expression shifting from mild amusement to outright disgust as his eyes landed on Damian.

“What are you doing here?” The Lower Two’s voice was low and cold, each word slicing through Damian like ice.

“I was… curious,” Damian managed, his voice uneven. “I wanted to see what you were doing here.”

The Lower Two smirked, his expression both mocking and unimpressed. “You’ve seen enough, lad. Be going.”

Damian should have left. Every instinct screamed at him to obey. But his feet refused to move. He couldn’t leave her alone with this man—not when every fibre of his being told him not to trust him.

“I’m not leaving,” Damian said, the words surprising even himself.

The man’s smirk faded, replaced by a look of faint annoyance. “You want to fight me? To protect her?”

The word fight made Damian’s blood run cold. He wouldn’t stand a chance against someone like the Lower Two.

“No, sir,” Damian said, his voice unexpectedly firm.

“Then get lost,” the man ordered, his voice rising in irritation.

Damian stayed rooted.

The Lower Two’s face darkened, his patience wearing thin. “Rest assured, I will not harm her. Now leave.”

His words startled Damian. Not harm her? Why? Wasn’t she marked for death by the clan?

Damian’s suspicion deepened, but his determination only solidified. “Can I… come with you?” he asked, his voice hesitant.

The man raised an eyebrow, his gaze probing. Then, to Damian’s shock, he nodded. “Don’t disturb me. And keep up.”

The man vanished, his speed unreal, appearing in an instant on Sofia’s balcony. Damian’s jaw dropped as he struggled to comprehend what he’d just witnessed. He climbed up after him, awkwardly pulling himself through the window and feeling the sting of inadequacy.

Sofia was frozen in shock when she turned to find two men—one impossibly strong, the other awkwardly climbing through her window—in her locked room. The man’s presence was suffocating, as if the air itself bent to his will.

“Good evening,” the Lower Two greeted, his voice smooth, almost soothing.

Sofia instinctively reached for a hanger, holding it like a weapon. If Damian was here too, it could only mean they were on the same side. Her pulse thundered as she backed up, her eyes darting between the two.

The Lower Two took a step forward, his expression unreadable. “You look just like her,” he murmured.

Sofia blinked. “Like who?”