Chapter 7 · The Hollow Cure - Chapter 7: Cut Her Open

"Strip. Now."

Kael didn't look up from his tray of instruments. The scalpel he was polishing caught the dim, flickering light of the basement, throwing a sharp glint across the room.

Lyra stiffened, her back against the cold stone wall. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Kael said, finally meeting her eyes. His gaze was clinical, stripped of anything resembling warmth. "The crystallization has reached your clavicle. If I don't see the spread, I can't map the incision. I'm not cutting blindly into a noble's skin just to find out I hit a major artery."

Lyra let out a sharp, jagged laugh. "And here I thought you were a gentleman, Doctor. Or does the 'forbidden' part of your arts include basic manners?"

Kael stepped toward her. He didn't stop until he was inches away, invading her space with a sudden, oppressive weight. He smelled of old parchment and something metallic—like dried blood and ozone. He reached out, his fingers barely grazing the collar of her dress, pulling the fabric just enough to reveal the shimmering, translucent crust creeping up her neck.

"Manners don't stop your lungs from turning into quartz," he whispered.