"F. U. C. K. Y. O. U. C. R. A. Z. Y. B. I. T. C. H."
Zara whispered each letter with deliberate relish, her voice a melody of venom and mockery, her lips curling into a devilish smile. The words hung in the void like a curse, echoing faintly, dripping with the weight of remembered humiliation.
Razeal's jaw tightened, but he did not look away. The silence that followed stretched, thick and oppressive. Her eyes bore into him, testing or maybe waiting for the crack in his composure.
The silence might have crushed a weaker man. But Razeal refused to let it linger. He spoke quickly, his voice sharp, before she could twist the silence into another meaning.
"Tell me," he said, steady but urgent. "What would it take… for you to forget that?" His silver gaze narrowed. "And maybe teach me how to attach cut-off parts of Obsidian Agony back together."
For a heartbeat, there was nothing. Then, slowly, Zara tilted her head, one hand rising to her chin.
