Page 12 of A Vow of Wrath and Ruin

I winced, closing my eyes.

Releasing one of my arms, he gripped my chin.

A different version of me would’ve clocked him, but I was so broken, it wasn’t worth the swift retribution that would ensue.

“Look at me.”

Hesitantly, I opened my eyes.

“Don’t forget I can get to you even when your eyes are closed. You are my pet now.”

“Why?” I eked out. “Why can’t you be good to me? I have been nothing but loyal to you.”

A chuckle rippled through his shoulders. “The fact that you thought you’d ever be worthy of me is laughable.”

I clenched my jaw, burying the hurt deep down. He wanted to see me cry. Each tear was a trophy to him.

“You are nothing, Aelia. I never loved you and I never will. I only married you because your kingdom is fertile… unlike you.”

An invisible knife seared through my heart. It couldn’t be true. He loved me once. I know he did. If only there was a way to make myself more lovable. I would be the perfect queen for him. Then he’d love me. I know he would.

“You’re not even trying to love me.”

Another condescending chuckle. “It’s not like you make it easy.”

My eyes drifted to the floor.

“Gideon burned it into me.”

Tharan wiped away the tears I hadn’t noticed rolling down my cheeks.

“You are everything I could have imagined in a partner. Every lover I took before was just a placeholder for you. I can’t explain it… but when I’m with you… I just feel whole.”

My chest tightened and then relaxed. Those were the words I’d always wanted to hear, yet there was still a part of me that didn’t believe them.Let yourself be loved, Aelia.

“I feel the same way, and it scares me.”

“We are not normal people, Aelia. We are the children of gods. Before I met you, my life was empty. I drifted from party to party, taking my fill of whatever lover presented themselves before me. But when I met you… I came alive.”

I couldn’t hide the smile tugging at the corners of my mouth. “I haven’t had a single nightmare since we returned.”

He stroked my hair gently, calming my racing heart.

“And I haven’t either.”

“Perhaps we are healing each other.”

“I like to think so.” He kissed my forehead, flooding my chest with warmth.

For a moment, I allowed myself to hope this is what our future would be. Heartache and violence replaced with soft caresses and mornings spent wrapped around each other in a bed I didn’t have to rent. No fear, no weight pressing down on my chest, no more running, no darkened corridors filled with anguish. No, ours would be a simpler, kinder, life. One filled with sweet kisses in rooms warmed by stained-glass sunlight and scented with clove cigarettes and coffee.

A breath of relief slipped between my lips. For the first time in five years, I could imagine a future beyond the next mercenary contract. And maybe, someday, beyond Gideon.

3AELIA

I stood in the courtyard,letting the frigid winter wind whip my hair into knots. Gripping Amolie’s hand, we waited for the sleigh to arrive to take my friends back to the Stormlands. Despite the cold, I chose not to wear gloves, preferring to feel the warmth of my friend’s hand one last time.

“Be strong, Aelia. This is only the beginning of our quest. Your mother will be happy to see you.”

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