“What I do is no longer your concern.” I pull open the door for him again.

I force my face to remain blank even as his collapses into a sadness I cannot fathom. He did this. What right does he have to feel pain over it? None.

I turn my attention to my wet boots. Did I leave a trail of bloody footprints? Something tells me the magic swallowed it up.

When I finally look up again, he’s gone.

CHAPTER 31

The ballroom has transformed again, forsaking its black walls and floors for pure white. Any spilled blood will glare against it—like Ethan’s well-chosen suit from the last round. I shake the thought away. The stage is gone, replaced by stadium seating with maybe fifty square feet of flooring left open in the center. On one side sit Lucius and Annalise, each on a throne of white marble carved with intricate swirls that give it the appearance of frozen clouds.

I stop walking and turn toward them, taking a step in their direction. A beautiful golden choker with five red stones is cinched around Annalise’s pale neck. The same necklace I held only yesterday. It doesn’t belong to her.

My eyes shift to my father. His lips curl. Does he know I was in his room? Maybe Annalise always wears the necklace for special occasions. I turn away, trying to keep my face neutral.

A woman with purple hair and matching swirls of tattoos along her forearms beckons me forward into the ring. Ethan’s already in the center, his orange suit flashing against the white. A few people cheer for him already, remembering the show he gave them last time at my expense. My eyes track those who clap for him. I will remember them later when I win. When I control enough power to make them regret it. I push down the thought uneasily. The pressure is turning me rabid. The pressure or the power. I need to be careful or I will slide into it and let it remake me into something unrecognizable—someone like them. I don’t want to be the person who cut a girl in half and hoped for the best. I will not be her, even though I feel her creeping just beneath the surface of my skin. Parker needs to be able to recognize me when I get back or I will have lost anyway.

I wear leather pants and a red top, the same outfit I wore the first time I performed with Xander. I hope it brings back memories for him as he watches.

For me, they are just clothes now. I slide my memories of him into a vault. I search out his face in the crowd and scowl when I find him, already tense, the corners of his mouth tight. Worried, even though he must be relieved I didn’t run.

Nadine finally arrives and squeezes in between Ethan and me.