Chapter 24 · Blood Harmony

"Stop lying to me, Silas. I can smell the rot through your damn perfume," Mira snapped, her fingers tightening around the hilt of the scalpel.

She didn't just have him cornered; she had him pinned against the cold stone of the inner sanctum, the blade hovering a fraction of an inch from the pulse point in his neck. Silas didn't flinch. He didn't even blink. He just looked down at her with that infuriating, heavy-lidded gaze, his chest barely moving under the expensive silk of his tunic.

"You're shaking, Doctor," he murmured. His voice was a low vibration she felt in her own teeth. "Is it fear, or are you just eager to see what's under the skin?"

"I'm eager to see the truth," Mira hissed. She pressed the steel closer. A tiny bead of crimson bloomed where the blade kissed his skin. "You're hiding it. The Black Vein. You've got it, don't you? You're the one who's singing, and you're just waiting for the chorus to start."

Silas let out a short, dry laugh that sounded like grinding gravel. He shifted, his shoulder brushing the wall, and for a second, the power dynamic flipped.