Page 71 of Secrets & Curses of Cerithia

“This is all your fault! How could you be so fucking heartless? You have destroyed me. You have made me beg the gods to take away my suffering, even if it is in the form of death.”

His eyes flashed black.

“I am trying to fix this, but you do not want to stay.”

“It doesn’t matter. I’m giving you the chance to end all this talk of war and suffering by killing me right now. So do it.”

“No,” he growled. “What the fuck have they done to you to make you think death is the only escape?”

“You mean what did you do?” I hissed. “You broke me more than they ever could.”That was the truth.

His eyes faded from black to gold in an instant. It was the truth. I loved Cassius and his words in the clearing had broken me. Iwasangry at him for that even if I still loved him.

“My love…”

“I’ll see you at my wedding,” I said, just to see his reaction to me marrying someone else.

I turned and started walking away. I was leaving my horse. She deserved to be here, and she looked happy.

A moment later, I was tackled to the ground as Cassius jumped on me, flipping me over so that I was on my back. This time, he was straddling me. His friendly golden eyes, however, were gone and replaced with unforgiving blackness.

“If you think I will ever let you belong to another man, then you severely underestimate my affection for you.” His voice was laced with possessiveness. “You are mine; I do not care if you hate me. You can hate me for what I did, but I willneverapologize for it. But you can hate me here, you can hate me in our home. One day, you will forgive me. Do you know why? Because you fucking love me, Thea. Even now, you cannot stayaway from me. Even knowing that I took my dagger and pushed it into your heart, you still want me. Admit it.”

He laid his hand over my heart and felt it beating wildly in my chest. Gods, he had lost his fucking mind and I loved to see it.

“You're as psychotic as they said you were,” I spat back at him.

“Only you bring that out in me.” He glared down at me. “I love you. Is that what you want to hear? I love you so much that everything feels wrong when you are not nearby. I crave you as if you are the air I need to breathe, and I am slowly suffocating without you. I have been yours since the first moment I saw you in my dreams, and I will die belonging to you. Please stop shutting me out. Let me see you in your dreams. Let me make this right.” Then I saw the glistening in his eyes. He was holding in tears. The emotion was too much.

“I have called to you in my dreams, and I begged you for an explanation, but you never came!” I yelled, so mad I could stab him. “You left me. You are the one who shut me out.”

Suddenly, he was tense on top of me. When I turned to look at him, his eyes were staring at my wrist. His grip loosened as he traced his thumb over the crack in the blood bond.

“It’s broken,” he whispered. His eyes stared at me like he couldn’t believe it. “How long has this been cracked?”

“It broke when you told me of your betrayal.”

He shook his head like he was confused, and his grip tightened on me like I would slip away from him.

“It’s been broken this entire time.” His eyes shone bright gold as he looked down at me. A bright smile spread over his face, confusing the fuck out of me. My stomach clenched at how beautiful he was. “All this time, I thought...” he swallowed down the emotion that was forming inside of him.

"Please, don't. I have to go back to Cerithia," I sobbed. I needed to save the families of the elite fae. If he kept talking, I would stay, and they would be slaughtered. That would make mea monster if I allowed them to be killed. "I have to go, but I do not want to."

Cassius' eyes stared into mine and he must have seen something pleading back at him because he let me go. I ran until my lungs burned and sweat beaded on my back. Then I ran some more. I paused as I kept heading toward Cerithia. I didn’t want to go back. I wanted to stay here.

I froze when I felt it. I lifted my hand and watched black shadows swirl around my wrist, caressing me, holding me. I turned and saw Cassius in the far distance, watching me. He pulled the shadows back, bringing me with them.

I tried to fight them, but I was weak and unable to do anything. I was in front of him in only a moment. His whole body was rigid, and his face was menacing. Almost angrily, he stepped forward and pressed his lips against mine, claiming me. Before I could react, he stepped back and let me go.

I started running for the border, but his words stopped me.

“I’ll see you at your wedding, little viper.” He didn’t sound angry. He sounded…happy. I kept running. My body and heart begged for me to turn around and take Cassius up on his offer. It would destroy me knowing I didn't protect Sybil's family, so I kept running.

Chapter 22

Ireached Cerithia’s castle a few days later. I steadied myself before I stepped through the gate, knowing that someone would be waiting for me. This couldn’t be put off forever. Cassius’ words tortured me. His face had haunted me the entire trip back to this gods-forsaken place.

My clothes were torn and soaked with sweat, and I felt like I could pass out from exhaustion. My bed sounded like heaven if I could get there undetected.

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