Page 72 of The Naga Lord's Pretty Little Mouse

His words carry an edge of steel, but there is no mockery in them now. Only cold, measured truth.

"She is not your mate, Xirath. She will never be."

The words strike something deep, something raw, something I have refused to face.

"Then why can’t I let her go?"

The question escapes before I can stop it.

Silence.

Veyzar’s amusement fades, his jaw tightening. “That is exactly why you must.”

A sharp exhale. A shift of weight. He straightens, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the weight of this conversation.

"She is not one of us," he says, slower this time. "And this path you are walking leads nowhere but destruction" he gestures vaguely, his golden eyes burning into mine.

The words should make sense.

They should be rational.

But nothing about her has ever been rational.

"You think I do not see it?" he presses. "The way you hesitate. The way you let her speak to you as no human should. You will ruin yourself over this, brother. You will ruin us all."

A sharp crack echoes through the room before I register that I’ve moved.

Veyzar stumbles back, a thin line of crimson forming along his cheek where my claws grazed him.

Golden eyes flash with something feral.

He lunges, tail snapping behind him, claws slashing toward my throat.

I parry the blow, grabbing his wrist before it can strike true.

His growl vibrates through the space between us. "You’re already lost, aren’t you?"

A snarl rips from my throat as I shove him back, muscles coiled, teeth bared.

He does not attack again.

He watches me, and something in his gaze shifts—not pity, not fear, but understanding.

Veyzar has always been ruthless. But he has always understood me best.

His stance relaxes first. Then, his voice follows.

"Do it before it’s too late," he says, quieter this time. "Before there’s nothing left of you but the ruin she leaves behind."

Without another word, he turns and leaves.

The door slams shut behind him.

The silence after it is unbearable.

My hands tremble.

Not with rage. Not with exhaustion.

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