Page 12 of A Story of Mates and Temptation

She blushes and shakes her head. “He has an entwined mate, so it doesn’t matter how I feel, right?” She heads out before I can tell her that it does matter how we feel, even if the deities have sent us on another path. I lean back into the warmth of the blankets. My fingers tremble as I unfold the note, knowingmy heart will shatter no matter what’s written inside. It takes me several moments, a few long breaths, and whispered prayers before I can read the words on the page.

Story Dehana, the bravest woman I was honoured to meet,

“If you’re reading this, Story, I know it’s because I made sure this note would find its way to you and no one else. There are a thousand moments I could start with, but for now, I want you to know a single thing. My body might be gone from you, but my soul is not. I will watch over you, be your friend, even in death. When I came back as a vampyre, I was horrified by my existence. After years of hating the vampyres and wanting their downfall, I was now a broken vampyre myself. The only thought that ever crossed my mind was that this life wasn’t what I wanted.

I wanted death.

I made sure I’d find someone who could give me that release from this world, and I chose the male who loved you so deeply, so intensely, that there wasn’t a line he wouldn’t cross to make sure you were happy and safe. King Ziven…he didn’t have to make that deal, and yet, he did. He made it for you, not for me. He knew I was a liability, and he knew you wouldn’t be able to stand seeing me in pain.

Do not blame him and ruin your chance at a happy life because of me. Do not let that man go, or I will haunt you.

All I ever wanted, from the moment I met you, was to make your life better. You deserved that, and I wasdetermined to give you that life. But when the love of my life made his sacrifice, my purpose shifted.

After that, my only mission was to secure your future.

Now, I’m giving you my blessing—as your family. Marry King Ziven and be a queen. Adopt cute babies and you’d better give one of them my name, at least as a middle name if you can. I want you to have a future—a brilliant, hopeful future.

Please, don’t let me come between you two. Some people are just meant for each other. You and the king are made of the same fire, the same defiance, and the same hope. Together, you’ll make the world better than it’s been in a long time.

Love each other. Live for me. Give me something to smile down on, wherever I am.

I love you.

Kyrell, your brother in every way that mattered.

The tears come in a flood, spilling down my face as I clutch the note to my chest. It feels like my heart is being ripped apart, as this is all I have now. “Bye, Kyrell,” I whisper softly, tilting my head as if my voice could carry to wherever he is now. “I hope you hear me, in your last moments, or wherever you are.” Exhaustion weighs me down, and I cry myself into sleep—or perhaps I pass out again. I’m not sure which. In the haze of dreams, I see Ziven. He’s floating in shadows, his form flickering and fading like a dying ember. He looks as though he’s slippingaway. I reach for him, desperate, but I can’t touch him. My hands grasp at nothing.

Suddenly, his eyes snap open, those beautiful silver eyes that burn like dragon fire.

“I’m coming for you.”

He’s there—alive, somewhere. My lips curve into a smile, my heart clinging to the possibility.

I don’t want to be saved by the sun. I want the moon.

Chapter Seven

Avaluna

Page Seven. Deities above, I will write it all down. I must. Stories are our most important legacies.

I’m a little jealous. No, I realise I’m completely jealous of how the fae here, the ones who haven’t left a day since they were born, have lived such protected lives. They don’t know anything of war or sacrifice. They farm the seaweed, they craft anything they like and smile around fires. They might not know about the outside world, except for the stories of the lost fae, as they call them here, but maybe that’s why they are so untouched by war. They don’t have bite marks. It’s haunting to see more fae without bite marks, untouched by the vampyres, like it was back in the mansion.

There are little children here. I barely see them, but the ones I do are happy, joyful, free. A little boy runs past me and my heart warms. He could be the spitting image of my nephew. I watch him for a second before deciding to follow him. I know it’s strange, but just seeing him brings back my endless thoughtsabout my family. Are they okay? That is the most pressing question that plays over and over in my mind. I told them to leave the city, and they must have done, but maybe I just hope they did because the reality is too much to think about. Hope is all I have of my family now. The king didn’t know about them. I’m sure of that… But what if he did? I second-guess myself a hundred times a day, imagining horrors I wish I could push out of my mind. So many years of my life were his, and he ruined them.

It didn’t surprise me when Story said he’s still looking for me and that he wants me back. The fact that the delusional asshole thinks we could go back to the life he controlled, when I finally tasted freedom, is insane. But he was always insane. If he thinks I’ll be his blood slave again, smile, bow, undress when he wishes…no. I understand now that I’d rather be dead. I’ve found something real. I’ve tasted freedom. When someone has been caged their whole life, that first ounce of freedom is something they find themselves desperately fighting for. I’ve seen Story fight and I will be inspired by her as an example for the rest of my years in this world.

The dark-haired, pointed-eared boy runs up to a makeshift slide where three other children are taking turns going down. I sit on a bench near a house—the rotting wood is cool and damp against my back. I glance up, a sense for a different dark-haired male that runs right down my spine. Then I see him—Calix. He’s talking to Etena in an alleyway, right behind the children. Seeing them together makes my heart drop. It feels like it falls from my chest straight down to my stomach and then vanishes completely.

I know I’m jealous, and I shouldn’t be. He isn’t mine. By the deities, I’ve never had anyone that is mine. Calix looked afterme, cared for me, but he doesn’t have feelings for me, because he loves her and I hate her for it. For having him. She’s stupid because she doesn’t seem to see him—or even care. They’re arguing, shouting at each other, but it’s not loud enough for me to hear. I watch, nothing but jealousy burning through me as he reaches out and touches her shoulder. She goes still. Both of them are staring at each other.

I’ve had enough of watching my heart, as tender as the remains are, shatter like glass.

I climb off the bench and run, feeling my cheeks wet with tears. I run until my legs burn, until everything blurs away, until I’m too close to the cliff’s edge. I stop, my feet digging into the ground as rocks tumble right off the edge, my dark hair swaying in the breeze. My heart is racing as I stare into the depth of darkness below. My hair flashes with red as I tuck it behind my ears and step back, away from the edge enough that I can sit down. I press my hand over my heart, feeling it race under my palm.

“A smart fae wouldn’t sit so close to the edge when dragons are about. One knock of their wing, and you’d be dead.” I tense as I hear Calix approaching, his heavy boots crunching the ground beneath him. He is slightly breathless and I realise he must have run after me. “Saw you running this way, Luna. You alright?”

“I’m fine. Just go.” I don’t dare wipe the tears from my cheeks, as I can feel his eyes fixed on my face. He doesn’t, of course. He sits right there on the edge with me.

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