Orion reached out, his large hand closing around hers, intending to pull her from the wreckage of the hallway, to carry her away from the blood and the madness. But he stopped. He saw the fire in her eyes a flame that refused to be extinguished by his shadow. He let go, his fingers lingering for a second too long, before he turned to walk away.
"You think you can use me as bait again?" Elina's voice cut through the silence, sharp and cold as a blade. "To catch Ares?"
Orion paused, but didn't turn.
"He is like the wind, Orion," she continued, her voice gaining strength, her chin tilting upward with the regal grace of the woman she was becoming. "You can chase him, but you can never catch him. We are Valmonts, and I am their Queen now. Do you really think the world revolves around you? Ares hasn't run away. He is coming. And when he arrives, you will meet the death you deserve, and I will finally have the justice I am owed. You will die like a dog in the dirt."
A low, dark chuckle vibrated from Orion's chest. He turned slowly, and to Elina's shock, his face wasn't filled with rage. It was filled with a terrifying, almost tender affection. He stepped back into her space, his shadow swallowing her whole, and reached out to cup her face. His palms were warm, his touch uncharacteristically gentle against her skin.
"How much I want your words to be true," he murmured, his blue eyes searching hers with a devastating sincerity. "You have no idea. If you truly believe that, then kill me right now. Take your justice. You won't get another chance." He leaned closer, his forehead almost touching hers. "Even I want justice to prevail. And above all... even I want death. You see, Elina, when you can have everything, life becomes dreadfully boring."
Elina didn't flinch. She met his gaze, her heart hammering against her ribs, but her voice remained steady. "Well, you can't have everything. You can't have me."
Orion let out another chuckle, a sound of pure, dark amusement. "Who said I want to have you?" he teased, his thumb brushing her lower lip. "Why are you so self obsessed, little princess? Why would I want to possess someone, or something, that I already have?"
Elina's breath hitched. The words hung in the air, heavy and confusing. She opened her mouth to demand an explanation, to fight him, but the words died in her throat. The sheer gravity of his gaze held her captive.
Orion leaned in, his lips brushing the shell of her ear, his voice dropping to a lethal, velvet whisper that sent shivers down her spine.
"And one more thing..." he breathed. "Tell your brother that this Serpent Quarter belongs to me. Lucifer was merely an employee. Even a single leaf in this garden moves only when I command it. I don't need to use you as bait to find him, Elina. I can flush him out and kill him whenever the whim strikes me. He is not the wind... he is just a man hiding in my shadow."