Page 26 of Empire of Wrath and Ruin
But then she turned her head, meeting my eyes with a gaze that burned with fierce determination. "No," she said, and there was no uncertainty in her voice now. "I don't want to forget them. I don't want you to take that pain away, because it's all I have left of them."
The rejection hit me like a slap, and I felt my control begin to fracture. The shadows roared their displeasure, showing me images of what I could do—how easy it would be to pin her to the bed, to take what the bond said was mine by right.
"Even if it means living in agony?" I demanded, my grip tightening on her wrist. "Even if it means never being truly happy with me?"
"Especially then." Her voice was steady, but I could see tears gathering in her eyes. "Because that pain is proof that what we had was real. And if I let you take it away, if I let you replace them in my heart, then I become exactly what you're trying to make me—a possession instead of a person."
She chooses them over you,the shadows hissed.Even now, even with their marks fading and their bonds weakening, she chooses them. Show her the price of such loyalty.
I could feel myself losing the battle against my own nature. The urge to dominate, to claim, to prove my ownership was becoming overwhelming. My other hand moved to her throat, not to hurt but to assert control, to remind her of the power I wielded.
"I could force you," I said, and the words tasted like poison on my tongue. "I could take what I want and let the shadows make you enjoy it. The bond would ensure your body responded, even if your mind resisted."
I felt her go completely still beneath me. Not the stillness of submission, but the coiled tension of a predator calculating her next move. Through our bond, I could feel her emotions—anger, yes, but underneath it something darker and more complex that made my blood sing.
"There he is," she whispered, and there was no fear in her voice. Only a terrible understanding. "The monster you're so afraid of becoming."
The words should have stung, should have made me release her and step back in shame. Instead, they sent heat coursing through my veins like molten metal. The shadows writhed in approval, their whispers growing louder.
“I am both,” I growled. My free hand came up to cup her breast, pinching the nipple under her tunic until it hardened under my touch.
"I am the man who would follow you to the ends of the earth if you tried to run," I whispered against her lips. "I am the one who would tear apart anyone who tried to take you from me, who would watch the world burn before I let another claim what is mine. And I am the monster who will not be denied what is his.”
The heat in her eyes was unmistakable now, no matter how she tried to hide it behind anger and defiance. I could feel it through our bond—the way her body responded to my dominance even as her mind fought against it. The shadows purred their satisfaction, sensing victory within reach.
"You want this," I said, my voice rough as I fought to keep control. "You want me to stop asking permission, to take what's mine. You want to follow me into the darkness and have me break you over and over again."
"And what does that make me?" she asked, her voice steady despite the tremor I could feel running through her. "Your victim? Your prize? Your slave? I’ve been a slave before, Taveth. Been ordered to my knees as men took my mouth, my cunt, my ass. Been used over and over again for their pleasure because I belonged to them. You think you’re more than that because of your powers? You treat me as they did. nothing more than an object for your cock."
Her words hit me like a physical blow, and for a moment, the shadows recoiled in shock. The comparison she drew—between me and the men who had brutalized her, who had treated her as nothing more than a vessel for their pleasure—cut deeper than any blade ever could.
I released her wrists as if her skin had burned me, stepping back so quickly I nearly stumbled. The shadows writhed inconfusion, their whispers turning uncertain as they felt my resolve waver.
"I am not them," I said, but even to my own ears the words sounded hollow.
"Aren't you?" She rubbed her wrists where my grip had left marks, her eyes never leaving mine. "You claim me without asking. You bind me to your bed. You threaten to take away my memories, my pain, my very self to make me more compliant. Tell me, Taveth—how exactly are you different?"
The accusation hung between us like a sword, and I felt something crack inside my chest. Through our bond, I could feel her pain—not just the physical discomfort where I had gripped her too tightly, but the deeper wound of being reduced to an object once again.
The question cut through the haze of possessive hunger clouding my thoughts. I could see myself reflected in her eyes—see the darkness that had crept across my features, the way the shadows writhed around me like living things. This wasn't desire I was feeling, not entirely. It was the Veyr-sha, feeding on my jealousy and fear, growing stronger with each moment of weakness.
"No," I said, my voice barely above a whisper. Shame washed over me like ice water. "You are... you are everything…”
The words died in my throat as I saw myself through her eyes—a man using his power to pin her against the wall, threatening to take what he wanted regardless of her consent. Just like the masters who had owned her, used her, broken her before I ever touched her life.
The shadows recoiled from the shame flooding through me, their whispers turning uncertain. This was not the victory they had promised, not the sweet submission they craved. This was the look of a woman who had seen too much cruelty to be impressed by mine.
"Aeveth, I— I wouldn’t have.”
“You wouldn’t? Really?” She eyed me suspiciously, stepping away as she rubbed her wrists where I had gripped her too tightly.
I swallowed. “No,” I said, steadier this time. “No, I wouldn’t. The shadows, they whisper to me constantly now. Tell me you belong to me, that I have the right to take what I want. And the worst part is how much I want to listen to them. But I am still a man, I am still Taveth, and I do not want that.”
"What do you want?" she asked, her voice barely audible.
I met her eyes, seeing my own torture reflected there despite her anger. "I want you to choose me," I admitted. "Not because magic compels you, not because you're trapped here, but because you want to be mine as much as I need to be yours."
"I do want you," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "That's what makes this so hard. I want you, but I won't be owned by you. I won't let you lock me away in this beautiful prison and pretend it's love."
