Elias watched him for a long moment, the faint light catching in his damp hair, making it shine like tarnished silver. "And if I choose to let fate do its job?" he asked at last, his voice quiet but steady.
Victor's expression didn't change immediately, but the air around him seemed to darken, as though the idea itself carried gravity. He moved to the window, parting the curtains just enough for a blade of cold light to slice across the room. "Then fate will do what it always does," he said, almost gently. "And nothing good will come of it… for your family, at least."
Elias's fingers tightened in the sheets. "And you?"
Victor turned his head slightly, crimson eyes gleaming like coals in shadow. "Me?" His mouth curved, slow and dangerous. "I'll be fine. I'll shield you from it."
That simple assurance made something twist sharply in Elias's chest. "I don't want you in danger because of them."
