The devil's silent bride

d, sweeping through the sleeping town with a howl that made the old trees outside Evelyn Hart's cottage sway and g

swallowed

ut as she struck the match, she felt it-a change in the air. The kind that prickled at the skin and sent a shive

e from outside-a sl

e ti

oc

oc

oc

ing the lantern, she approached cautiously. "Who's there?" she called,

she s

l. Unmoving. The lantern's light barely reached far enough to catch the glint of some

acked away. That's whe

mouth before she could scream, the other looped something cold and metallic around her neck. Her world became a blu

ness was the faint toll of

-

ed her eyes, the

, in a room too grand to be real-high ceilings, carved blackwood furniture, and a chandelier whose crystals cau

sper. Panic surged through her, and she clutched at her throat. No injury, no pa

footsteps echoed. Steady.

double doors creaked open, and a man stepped inside. He was tall, dressed in black,

ng her worth with his gaze alone. When he finally did speak, his v

s if tasting the name. "You are

ng to form words she couldn't make

nt of him-dark, unfamiliar, and intoxicating-surrounded her. "In fact, i

. Bride? What was

face inches from hers. "The wedding," he whispered, "