Page 43 of Cut of the Dark Elf's Blade

“I’m doing what I want with you.” I smile at her, ensuring that my smile stretches bright and wide across my face.

“Stop that!” She wriggles away from me, and I tighten my grip around her throat before letting her go.

“I heard your fight with Rhiucra,” I tell her teasingly. “I’m glad to see that you’ve finally realized that he’s not the sweet, harmless male you thought he was.”

She shrugs and gets up from the bed. Neveah’s face is red, and her hair is tousled and unkempt.

“I also heard how he warned you away from me,” I continue. My voice is still light as I tease her. “But you made it very clear that you prefer me over him.”

“So what if I do?” she mumbles and leans against the wall. Neveah closes her eyes for a second and sighs, before opening them to look at me.

I am confused. Usually, Neveah would take my teasing in stride. But tonight she seems to brush it off. She isn’t reacting the way she usually does.

Did I do something wrong?I wonder to myself as I look at her, frowning.

Tonight, I wanted to make it clear that no one, including my brother, could live up to who I am.

Tonight, I wanted to make it clear that Neveah very clearly wants me more than anyone else.

But instead of playing into my advances, she seems to be pushing me away.

And usually, I would continue pushing until I got a rise out of her. I would continue pushing until she snapped.

But right now, I don’t think that that is a good idea.

I want to continue pushing her, but I don’t want to push her too far.

Why do you fucking care?I think impatiently to myself.Why do you fucking care how far you push her? She’s just a plaything to you!

I ball my hands into fists, and the nearly-healed wounds on my palms split open again.

Neveah is completely ignoring me and continues to go about her business. She is tidying up her bedroom and feeding Echo, who still looks up at me from time to time.

The iypinnit swishes her tail whenever she looks at me, and this earns me narrow glances from Neveah who bustles around me, folding up clothes for the next morning.

“Were you in my things?” she asks me. It feels like I have been standing silent for hours when it has only been about five or six minutes.

She is looking over at her pile of books that toppled over when I pulled the book of fairytales out.

I shrug.

“I was curious.” My voice is surprisingly soft. I clear my throat again. “I didn’t know you could read dark elvish.”

Neveah lets out a mirthless laugh.

“I can read some of it,” she admits after a while. “Your…brother gave me the books.”

“You should give them back.” Anger rises in me, and I speak impulsively.Ican buy her books. She doesn’t need my brother to give her books. “I’m sure he’ll want them back, now that you’re no longer on speaking terms.”

“Probably.” Neveah comes to a standstill and looks up at me.

“What do you want?” she asks me again. I didn't really answer her the first time she asked me.

And the truth is, I really don’t know.

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NEVEAH