Page 56 of Drenched

Diana Hart.

My mother’s name.

The world shattered.

A cold, hollow numbness spread through my chest. Rage ignited in its place, pure and searing. My grip tightened on the ring, the metal digging painfully into my palm.

The souls surged, their screams swelling into a desperate chorus.

Free us…

Don’t let him win…

He knew… He knew…

Rynar. He had known this whole time. His lies wrapped around me like chains, his whispers soft as poison. He had shown me tenderness, held me close, all while standing guard over this pit of torment.

My tears mixed with the water, salt on salt. The shadows clawed at me, dragging me back toward the pit.

But I fought.

I kicked, every movement a rebellion. The molten glow receded, the icy grip loosening. My muscles burned, my lungs screamed, but I pushed through.

I broke the surface of the barrier, collapsing into clean, cold water. The shadows retreated, hissing into the dark.

I floated there, gasping, my heart a wild, furious thing. The cavern’s soft glow felt sterile now, a mockery of peace. The screams echoed in my mind, etched into my bones.

I will free you.

Rage crystallized in my mind. I would tear this place apart. I would see Rynar’s lies crumble.

You knew, Rynar. You knew all along and now I will make you pay.

Chapter Twenty One

I sat in the cave, humming the lullaby under my breath, my fingers trembling as I unclasped my mother’s necklace. Carefully, I slid her ring onto the chain. The ring settled against the pendant, familiar and comforting. I refastened the necklace around my neck.

It felt like she was with me, her strength close enough to touch. And right now, I needed that strength more than ever.

The shift in the air was subtle at first, a crackling tension, a weight pressing down on the cave. I felt him before I saw him. His presence wrapped around me, a silent gravity pulling me closer to the abyss. My body tensed, every nerve on high alert, but I kept my head down, my song steady and clear. Even as dread twisted in my gut, even as my instincts screamed at me to look, to face the darkness that approached, I didn’t waver. I couldn’t.

“You’re still singing.” His voice slid through the space between us, low and magnetic, brushing against my defenses like an insistent tide. He knelt beside me, his silver glow spilling over the water. “Do you ever stop?”

I didn’t dare falter. “I like the sound,” I said lightly, my voice calm even as my chest tightened. “It keeps me focused.”

He leaned closer, the faint bioluminescence of his body shimmering against my skin. His claws hovered just above my shoulder, and the heat of his proximity sent a shiver down my spine. “It does more than that,” he murmured. “It draws me to you.”

His words coiled around me like chains, heavy with meaning. I forced a smile, my fingers continuing to trail through the water pretending I wasn’t affected. “I didn’t know you were so easily tempted.”

He chuckled in a way that made the sides of his crinkle. “Temptation implies weakness. What I feel for you is…” He paused, his gaze locking onto me, raw and consuming. “inevitable.”

The heat of his gaze burned into me, daring me to look at him. I turned slowly, my movements deliberate, and met his eyes. The darkness in them was endless, an abyss that promised to consume me whole. But I wouldn’t let him. Not tonight.

“You always watch me,” I said, my voice steady but low. “What are you waiting for?”

His lips parted, but no answer came. Instead, his hand rose, claws brushing lightly against my jaw. The touch was reverent, almost hesitant, and it made something in me twist. This was Rynar, the predator, the god who could rip me apart without a second thought. Yet here he was, poised as if I might shatter under his touch.

“You,” he said finally, the word heavy with a need that made my breath hitch. “I’m waiting for you.”

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