*CUPID'S MATCH BOOK 2* FIRST DRAFT
Lila receives an ominous Valentine's Day card.
Cupid & Cal are keeping a dark secret.
Fate is being interfered with.
And a sadistic, and extremely powerful banished cupid is intent on stealing Lila's heart. Literal...
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Cupid rubs a hand over his mouth. His eyes darken almost imperceptibly in the dank light of the dungeon corridor. My words silence the questions of the others as they peer through the cell door at me.
Who's Psyche?
No-one speaks for a moment, and the sound of dripping water is all I can hear.
"Is that what he's been talking to you about?" says Cupid, his fists clenched at his sides. "What has Psyche got to do with anything?"
I look through the shadows at him. I think of the sadness and bitterness that radiated from Valentine as he told me about her. And I think of the fact that Valentine is trying to bring Venus back, even though she was the one who caused him to shoot her with the Ardor.
His personal nightmare is being trapped in Venus's temple.
It doesn't make sense.
"I don't know," I say – taking the small microchip Sim out of my ear. I lean forward slightly on the damp, wooden seat. "Maybe something."
"Where are the hearts?" Crystal asks sharply, pushing between Mino, who is leant against the door frame, and Cal whose shoulders tense as they brush against hers.
I'd asked Valentine the same question.
I already told you. Valentine's low growl cuts through my thoughts and resonates inside me.
But he didn't tell me. Did he?
Panic and regret slam into me as I realize that if I don't work out where they Cal will die.
I meet Crystal's eyes. I can see the fierce passion behind the bright blue of her irises. She's worried. So am I.
"I...I'm not sure. I haven't worked it out yet."
The color drains from her face. Cupid frowns. Charlie bites her lip, her face uncharacteristically serious.
"Unlucky, old friend," says Mino, looking over Crystal's head to catch Cal's icy glare.
"Not helping, Mino," snaps Crystal. She turns her attention back to me. "What do you mean you've not worked it out? Tell me everything."
"May I make a suggestion?" says Mino.
We all turn to look at him in question.
"Maybe we continue this discussion outside of the damp, creepy, basement dungeons?" He raises an eyebrow, emphasizing the soft scar that runs across it. "I've spent enough time down here, thank you very much."
He meets my eyes, a glittering amusement behind them.
I nod – my pulse still racing from my time in the sim with Valentine. I take a breath, struggling to compose myself.
