“He didn’t corrupt me,” Lily said, but the conviction in her voice was waning. “He protected me.”

“That was his job. He left you for me to corrupt.”

“He didn’t leave me for anything!” Lily spat, remembering the last time she had seen Lux. “You killed him! He would never have left me! I don’t care what you say he was, Lux loved me!”

“He’s dead now, isn’t he!” Valefor roared, and Lily shied away from his rage. His eyes blazed, and the fire around the room grew brighter and stronger, as if his hatred ignited it. “He doesn’t matter anymore! It’s just you and me, Lily!”

“What do you want with me?” Lily asked, trying to hide the quaver in her voice. “Why did you bring me here?”

Valefor softened instantly. The flames around the room died down, and the anger in his eyes was replaced by some kind of twisted pleasure. He smiled widely and leaned back on the table behind him.

“This isn’t how I wanted to tell you,” he admitted. “But to be honest, this meeting isn’t going exactly as I’d planned. I expected us to talk a little, flirt some, so you could warm up to the idea. But there’s no sense in beating around the bush. I want to marry you.”

“Marry you?” Lily asked. “I would rather die than marry you!”

“Ordinarily, I would offer to arrange that for you, but not this time.” He waved his hand, completely unfazed by her reaction. “You will marry me. Maybe not today, and I understand that. You just lost someone you cared about.”

“Because you killed him!” Lily shot back.

“No, I didn’t kill him. I merely sent Ira to retrieve you, by any means necessary,” Valefor explained as calmly as he could. “I needed to get you here with me. I had to know you were safe. I only did that to protect you.”

“To protect me?” Lily shook her head. “From what?”

“From Lux!” He gestured to her. “He had you under a spell, and he was going to corrupt you. I couldn’t allow that.”

“I’m supposed to believe you were only looking out for me?” She laughed darkly. “You’re the devil!”

“No, I’m not, but thank you,” Valefor smiled. “I am only his servant, but I do appreciate the comparison.”

“You disgust me.”

“There’s no need for that.” He frowned. “I know this is a bad time. I’ll let you get settled in, and we can talk more later, when you’ve had time to clear your head.”

“There will never be a better time! I will never marry you!”

“Lily, my darling, I understand your anger here,” Valefor said. “Really, I do. But you haven’t heard what I have to offer you.”

“There’s nothing you can offer me that I would want.”

“Not even immortality?” Valefor asked, raising an eyebrow. “That usually gets people. Not to mention powers beyond your imagination, an army of servants at your disposal, and of course, everything I have to give, which is nearly unlimited. And once you’re my bride, we will rule the world. We can do as whatever we wish.”

He walked toward her as he spoke, his words getting more emphatic.

“Really, think of that, Lily. You could have anything you wanted. You could be anything you wanted. I would give you everything your heart desires.”

She stared up at him, her chin high, and she told him, “The only thing my heart desires is Lux.”

Valefor sighed resignedly, but he didn’t seem upset. She’d thought his rage might flare up again, but he only nodded.

“That’s what you say now, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned living on this Earth for the past millennia, it’s that young hearts are fickle,” Valefor said. “You’ll forget him. And then you’ll see what I really have to offer.”

“I will never love you.” She shook her head adamantly. “I will never obey you, and I will certainly never marry you.”

“You’ll change your mind.”

“I won’t,” she insisted, but he’d already turned his back to her and was walking away. “I will do to you what you have done to me. You took away the one thing I cared about most in this world, and so I will do the same. And if what you want is me, then you will never have me.”

“Yes, I’ve heard you, but I’m tired of this conversation now.” He smiled thinly at her. “I think it’s time you see your quarters.”

Valefor went over to the door, and Lily charged at him. She didn’t really have a plan of attack. She just felt that she had to do something. Throwing the rope from her ankles around his neck, she jumped on his back, trying to choke him. His skin burned her, but she continued to pull tightly on the rope.

He didn’t even struggle, though. He grabbed the rope, tearing it in half with hardly an effort, and he elbowed her in the stomach, knocking her to the ground. Pain shot through her, and she barely stopped herself from vomiting. She cradled her belly and gasped for breath.

“Lily, I’m sorry for that, but you made me do it.” Valefor looked down at her. “You do understand that, don’t you?”

She coughed because she couldn’t speak, and Valefor sighed. He opened the door and summoned the guards to take her to her room. Two large ogres came in to get her. They towered over Valefor, their dark skin mottled brown and covered in warts. They tried to pull Lily to her feet, but she couldn’t stand, so they dragged her out of the room.

Ira had been standing outside the door, and he watched her pass out from pain as the ogres took her away. Once she had disappeared around the corner, Ira stepped into Valefor’s chamber.

“So it didn’t go as well as you planned?” Ira asked.

“Not exactly.” Valefor picked up the rope she’d tried to strangle him with, pulling it between his hands. “But I didn’t think she’d accept right away. She needs to see reason, and a few days in the dungeon without food or water ought to do that.”

“You’re going to torture her into loving you?” Ira asked.

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Valefor scoffed and tossed the rope into the fire, making it blaze for a moment. “She’ll never love me. But she doesn’t need to. She just has to serve me, to accept me as her one true leader.”