Page 180 of Claimed In Darkness

"We made it,"I whisper.

His arms tighten.

"We did."

"And we don’t ever have to go back."

His lips graze my temple.

"No. We don’t."

Because we left it all behind.

The Council.

The war.

The curse that tried to consume us.

It’s all gone.

And in its place?—

There is only this.

Only us.

Only the fire that still burns.

And it always will.

Because we survived.

Because we are free.

Because we belong to each other.

Forever.

ZEPHIRAN

It has been three months since we left.

Three months since the war ended.

Three months since we disappeared.

Three months since I was supposed to die—but didn’t.

Now, we live in a place where no one knows our names.

Where there are no chains. No thrones. No curses.

Where we are free.

The house is small.

Wooden walls. A thatched roof. Open windows that let in the scent of salt from the sea just beyond the cliffs.

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