The dungeon was colder than it should have been, as if the stones themselves held their breath for what was about to happen.
Lucien stood rooted to the ground, his hand clenched tightly around Rin's wrist as if keeping him one step away from the abyss.
"I missed you so much, Rin. I'm so glad to have you back in my arms."
Rin smirked at the awful words that had split from his mouth.
"Back in your arms?" Rin tilted his head, his crimson eyes glinting behind the sheer veil. "You flatter yourself, Duke. I didn't come here to crawl back to you."
And with that, Rin lifted his hand. Slowly, deliberately, he pulled the veil away from his face.
The dungeon air shifted. The guards who had been half-bored and half-tense suddenly gasped. Faces flushed crimson. Some of them actually stepped back as though the sight of him was too much, like staring at the sun.
