Page 96 of Dark Captivation

“From the moment you arrived, I’d wanted to shield you from darkness in all its forms. But you deserve to at least know why it is that I do and think the way I do. You see the world with young and innocent eyes. And I need you to know why I do not.” His tall form shook, his hands tightening around me.

Whatever he was about to say had been weighing on him like a three-ton boulder. I wasn’t entirely sure I was ready for whatever it was, but I needed to hear it. I needed to finally understand why this kind and loving demon was so determined on death and war.

I swayed to the left and Malek stabilized me.

“You should sit down, we both had a lot to drink.” he checked my temperature with the back of his palm.

I removed his hand. “No, I’m fine. Continue.”

He jerked his head up and down. Drawing in a lengthy, saturating breath. He took my hand, intertwining my fingers with his. His eyes squeezed shut as a look of anguish blew across his face.

“For millennia, the underworld was more than the home of demons.” He brushed my hand against his chest, staring off vacantly. “It was a place of punishment for the damned souls of humans, shifters and mages. Killers, thieves and every other being who lived a destructive life without atoning for it, would enter my domain kicking and screaming. My demons would torture them physically, mentally, and emotionally until their souls were so broken, they simply ceased to exist. One day I’d had enough, and I told my demons no more. I insisted that wayward souls were no longer to be harmed. I had hoped to find a way to rehabilitate them so they might know peace instead.”

“And the souls eventually found peace and lived happily ever after?” I said hopefully but the grim look on his face drained my hopes.

“No, Darest One. If only that were true. I’d underestimated my demons’ blood lust. They refused to stop doing what they’d done for eons. They saw torture as their life’s purpose. A purpose that had to be fulfilled. Most of them defied my orders, rising up against me in rebellion. They chained me with ensorcelled metals, holding me captive for more than a hundred years. They fulfilled their twisted needs for torture on me. Every act of torment they used to inflict on the soul, they gleefully wreaked on me instead. This was my punishment for wanting them to be better.”

A tear streamed down my cheek. Coldness iced my blood as I imagined poor Malek being tortured for a century. Devastation and rage competed for dominance in me as I imagined my wolf’s fangs ripping apart every demon who’d hurt him. No wonder he kept himself away from his demons for so long, after what they’d done to him. After all he’d been through.

“How did you escape?”

“A small number of my demons still remained loyal. They bided their time until they could find a way to free me.” His lips stretched to a line as his claws sank into his palm. “On the day I was freed, I killed as many of the traitorous lot as I could. But the one who led them slipped through my fingers and to this day his memory still haunts me.”

I froze in place as everything that had happened up to this point all finally made sense. “Varcus, he led the demon rebellion. He was the one who tried to destroy you.”

“Yes, and he’s still trying.” He said and the dagger tucked under my bra strap took on an even more sinister meaning.

Varcus had been using me from the start. He didn’t give a crap about the other demons or saving the world. From the very start, he was only after one thing. Malek’s crown. And worst of all, he’d tried to enlist me to help him steal it.

His expression brightened as he twisted a finger through my hair. “I never thought I’d have Varcus to thank for anything but there is one thing.”

“What could you possibly have to thank him for?”

“You,” he sang.

“Me?” I tapped a hand to my chest’s center.

“Weak from centuries of torture and starvation, I barely had the strength to escape.” Moving away from me, he went over to a large case made of black wood. “I went to Earth, reverting to a childlike form so I could heal. I had hoped to find kindness and security in this world, but I had only found exploitation. Traveling this planet alone, I witnessed the worst the Earth had to offer. With no friends or resources, I nearly gave up. That was until…,” he paused. “I found you. You and your family took me in, gave me shelter when I needed it, food when I was hungry and most importantly, love. Sunny, in every way possible, you saved me. You showed me kindness, and that is why I must remold this world in the shape of that kindness. Only then can I be sure you will never know the true dark nature of Earth.”

He opened the cabinet, reached in and removed a small black box.

My stomach did a backflip and I stopped breathing. “Malek, is that a- a,”

“An engagement ring?” He finished my sentence, his grin doubling in size. He opened the box. Inside was a red tinted gold ring with the heaviest and most brilliant and clear diamond I’d ever seen.

Slowly walking back over to me he went down on one knee and placed the ring on my finger.

The words lodged in my throat as I marveled at its beauty.

“If you let me, I promise to make you happy and keep you safe.” His words hit like music. “Sunny, will you be my forever?”

My answer hung on my lips but before I could say it I had to set one thing straight. There was no way he and I could build a happy home on a mountain of ash.

“Malek, listen.” I bent down on both knees, lowering to his level. “What you went through was indescribable and now I finally understand why you resent the world and dream of limitless control over it. But this world is not an evil place. You don’t need to wipe the slate clean and start over. If you want the world to be kind, the key is more kindness. You must be the mercy you want to see in the world.”

He seemed to think about it, putting my words together like the pieces of a puzzle.

The dagger under my arm warmed. At first, I thought it meant nothing, but as seconds passed it warmed until it became scalding hot.

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