Lorraine's POV
Adrian's eyes flickered. For a moment, I thought I saw the boy I once knew, the one who had laughed with me in the moonlight, the one who had saved me when the rest of the students nearly ripped my throat out. His gaze wasn't steady, it trembled, wavering between defiance and submission. His hands clenched into fists, jaw tightening as though he were silently fighting a battle deep inside himself.
But then, like a flame snuffed out by a gust of wind, his hesitation vanished. His face hardened, his shoulders squared, and his voice, when it came, was firm and cold.
"If killing Lorraine is what you want," Adrian said, his tone flat "then I'll do it. Her life is nothing compared to mine for me to be bargaining with you. And I cannot dare disobey you."
