Page 42 of Chains of Nightshade

The magic around her hands flickers and dies. She stares at me, her expression a mix of anger and confusion. "The great and powerful Aurel, begging a former slave."

"No." I shake my head. "Begging my mate. The woman I love. The woman I betrayed."

I reach out toward her,my voice raw and broken. "If you want to kill me, I won't stop you. I deserve it." Blood trickles down my chin as I speak. "But please... I would happily die in the abyss if you forgive me. Just once. You're the only hand I'm willing to die at."

My body trembles from the wounds she's inflicted, but I keep my gaze steady on hers. The pain is nothing compared to the agony of watching tears stream down her face.

"You think it's that easy?" Her voice cracks. "That I'll just kill you and be done with it?"

"No." I cough, tasting copper. "Nothing about this is easy. But I won't run anymore. Won't hide." My scales scrape against the ground as I shift closer. "Do what you need to."

Magic crackles around her hands again, but her fingers shake. "Stop looking at me like that."

"Like what?"

"Like I'm still..." She chokes on the words. "Like you actually care."

"I do care." The mating bond pulses between us, a constant reminder of what I threw away. "More than I ever thought possible."

Her magic flares brighter, but I don't flinch. If death comes by her hand, I'll welcome it. The curse of the mate bond means I'll never escape her anyway - nor do I want to.

"Please," I whisper, extending my hand toward her. "End it if you must. But know that I love you. That I'll always love you."

My heart pounds against my ribs as I look at her - my mate, my everything. The woman who now holds my life in her hands.

I take a shuddering breath. Centuries of pride dissolve in an instant. All those years plotting revenge, dreaming of freedom - and now I'm willingly offering myself into a different kind of bondage. But this prison... this one I choose.

"I know I don't deserve it. I know I've hurt you beyond measure. But I..." I swallow hard, tasting copper. "I love you, Vera. I'll serve you. I'll be yours forever, if you'll have me."

Her eyes widen, magic flickering uncertainly around her hands.

She says nothing, a war of emotions roaring to the surface behind her eyes. Before she can speak, I continue.

"I'll bind myself to you. Willingly." I press a hand to my chest where the mating bond pulses. "Not just by fate's curse, but bychoice. I'll be your slave, your servant, whatever you need. Just... let me stay by your side."

The last of my pride crumbles as I look up at her. "I spent centuries searching for freedom, only to realize it means nothing without you."

For a heartbeat, I see it - a flicker of softening in her eyes, a slight lowering of her magical defenses. My heart leaps, daring to hope. But then her expression twists, morphing into something that cuts deeper than any blade.

Pure revulsion contorts her features. The loathing in her eyes hits me like a physical blow, making me recoil. Each emotion that crosses her face - hatred, disgust, betrayal - strikes me with the force of her magic.

"You dare speak of bonds?" Her voice trembles with rage. "When you were too blind to see what was right in front of you?"

The truth of her words pierces my chest. That pull I felt through the dreamscape, the electric connection every time we touched - it was the mating bond all along, trying to snap into place. And I, in my arrogance, ignored it.

"I should have known," I whisper, my voice raw. "Every dream, every moment we shared... the magic was trying to tell me."

"Shut up!" Her magic snaps. "You don't get to act like you care now."

I press a hand to my chest where the bond pulses, mocking me with what could have been. What should have been. If I hadn't been such a fool, so focused on revenge that I missed what fate was trying to tell me.

"I hate myself," I admit, the words clang through me. "For not recognizing it sooner. For fighting against what my soul knew all along."

Her lip curls in disgust. "Your soul? You don't have one."

Each word lands like another blow, and I welcome the pain. I deserve every bit of her hatred, every ounce of her loathing. I failed her. Failed us both.

I lower my head into submission before her waiting for the final blow. Let my mate be the one to end me.

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