The blade sank into the heart with a sound that was neither wood nor flesh. It was both—a wet, splitting crack, like bone shearing under pressure. Black tar exploded outward, splattering across the chamber walls, sizzling as it touched the stone.
The screams came instantly. Hundreds of them, a tidal wave of agony that pierced Sophie's ears, clawed into her mind, and dragged her toward the floor. She staggered, clutching Marcus's arm, her breath torn from her lungs.
The names across the heart glowed violently, each letter burning like firebrands. They screamed in unison, hundreds of voices overlapping until it was impossible to tell where one ended and another began.
Marcus braced himself, pressing the knife deeper. "We have to hold on!"
Sophie gasped, her vision swimming. "It—it feels like they're dying—"
"No!" Marcus's voice cracked, fierce and desperate. "It's him—it's his voice twisting it. Don't believe him. Sophie, look at me!"
She forced her eyes to meet his, and the fury blazing in his expression was enough to steady her. He wasn't letting go—not of the knife, not of her.
The heart convulsed, shuddering like a living beast. Veins tore free from the walls, lashing out like whips. One wrapped around Marcus's arm, yanking him backward. He shouted in pain, struggling to keep hold of the knife.
Sophie lunged, grabbing his wrist with both hands. "I've got you!"
The vein tightened, dragging them both closer to the pulsing mass. Sophie felt its heat against her skin, the beat of it syncing with her own heart until she couldn't tell which rhythm belonged to her anymore.
Come closer, Ethan hissed, his voice pouring from the heart itself. Come inside, Sophie. This is where you belong. You've already carved yourself into me. Don't fight—just surrender.
For a moment, she almost did. Her body ached, her mind split open from the voices. To give in would mean release. No more screaming, no more endless battle. Just silence.
But Marcus's grip on her wrist tightened, grounding her. His voice broke through the chaos, raw and guttural. "You're stronger than him. You've always been stronger. Don't let him take you!"
The words struck deep. She thought of the attic, of her name carved in blood. She had cut herself free once. She could do it again.
With a cry, Sophie wrenched the knife deeper into the heart. The vein snapped off Marcus's arm, shriveling into black ash.
The chamber shook violently, the ceiling cracking. Chunks of stone rained down, the air thick with dust and screams.
The heart pulsed faster, harder, shadows exploding outward to form Ethan's shape—taller than the ceiling, his eyes two pits of darkness, his mouth a gaping maw of teeth and ash.
"You cannot kill me!" he roared, his voice shattering the chamber walls. "I am every wound, every betrayal, every whisper in the dark. To destroy me is to destroy yourselves!"
Sophie staggered back, shielding her face as the shadow loomed over them. For a moment, terror paralyzed her. How could they kill something that was everything ugly inside them?
But Marcus stepped forward, placing himself between her and the shadow. His voice thundered in the crumbling chamber. "You're wrong. You're nothing without us. You're nothing without her. And I won't let you take her."
Ethan lunged, shadowy claws slashing. Marcus shoved Sophie aside, the blow striking him instead. He was thrown against the wall with a sickening crack, collapsing in a heap.
"Marcus!" Sophie screamed, her body tearing toward him before she could think. She dropped to her knees beside him, her hands trembling over his chest. His breath came shallow, blood streaking his temple.
He forced his eyes open, pain etched across his face. His lips shaped one word. "Finish… it."
Sophie's heart broke, but fire lit inside her chest. She turned, knife still in her bloodied grip, and faced Ethan's towering shadow.
The heart throbbed behind him, weak but pulsing. The names still glowed, their whispers fractured.
Ethan's voice echoed through the chamber. You'll die with me, Sophie. Do you want him to watch you break? Do you want your blood to be his last memory?
She rose to her feet, every muscle screaming, but her grip steady. "If dying means ending you, then so be it. But I won't break. Not now. Not ever."
With a scream that tore her throat raw, Sophie charged.
She plunged the knife into the heart's center.
The explosion was immediate.
A shockwave blasted through the chamber, hurling her backward. The heart burst open, spilling tar and fire, the names burning brighter and brighter until the entire room was blinding. Sophie shielded her face, her body seared by the heat, her ears splitting with the chorus of screams that turned—suddenly—into silence.
The shadow of Ethan writhed, convulsing, his voice fractured into a hundred broken cries. No! You are mine! You will always—
The words cut off as his form shattered into shards of smoke, dissolving into nothing.
The chamber collapsed around them.
Sophie dragged herself across the stone, every limb heavy, toward Marcus's body. Dust and fire rained from the ceiling, but she didn't care. She crawled to him, pulling him into her arms.
"Marcus," she sobbed, shaking him. "Please—don't leave me. Not now. We won."
His eyes fluttered open weakly, a faint smile curving his bloodied lips. "Told you… together."
Her tears fell onto his chest as the ceiling cracked open above them. Light poured in—a strange, golden light that filled the chamber. The names seared into the walls rose, each glowing letter peeling free like smoke, drifting upward toward the light.
Sophie gasped, clutching Marcus tighter. "They're free. We set them free."
For the first time, the house didn't groan. It sighed. A long, heavy exhale, as though releasing centuries of pain.
The walls gave way, and the chamber collapsed into light.