It explained the undeniable draw I felt for her. Had my dragon realized a truth that I had kept hidden from myself?
Yes,my instincts told me.
But now that I knew the truth, I could never be with her. I was a wild, untamed creature, destined to die when I couldn’t hold my beastly nature back anymore.
Seranni deserved more than that. She deserved someone who could give her the world, not someone who would burn it to the ground.
As I trudged through the snow, I could feel the familiar ache of my dragon, begging to be released, my instincts screaming at me to go back to my mate.
My muscles tensed and I clenched my jaw, forcing the transformation back down.
Not now,I silently pleaded.Not when she's so close.
I had to keep Seranni safe. Even if it meant sacrificing my own happiness.
Reaching the edge of the forest, I paused, gazing up at the inky sky. The stars twinkled like diamonds, a stark contrast to the blanket of white that covered the ground. It was a breathtaking sight, one that normally filled me with a sense of wonder.
But tonight, all I felt was an overwhelming sense of loneliness.
With a heavy sigh, I turned and looked back at the tower. I could just make out the soft glow of the firelight through the window, and I knew Seranni was still inside, waiting for me.
Forgive me, my love,I thought, closing my eyes.I only wish I could be the man you deserve.
Steeling my resolve, I turned away from the light and moved deeper into the trees, no matter how much it tore me apart. For her sake, I would endure the agony of watching her from afar, never daring to reach out and claim what my heart so desperately craved.
Because in the end, a beast like me could never truly belong in her world. And I would do whatever it took to protect her from the darkness that lurked within me.
Chapter 8: Seranni
The wind howled against the tower’s walls, a relentless shriek that seemed determined to drive every ounce of warmth from my bones. The winter chill was getting stronger.
I pulled my shawl tighter around my shoulders and shifted in my seat, casting an uneasy glance at the windows. Frost etched delicate, crystalline patterns across the glass, stark against the gloom of the winter night.
Kael hadn’t returned yet.
I’d waited as long as I could, watching the fire crackle and pop in the hearth while shadows danced across the stone walls. Eventually, my nerves had driven me upstairs, retreating to my room with a book in hand, though reading had proven impossible. My thoughts were too restless, flitting between Kael and the strange undercurrents of our days together.
The longer he avoided me, the more my curiosity grew.
What was he hiding? Why did he avoid me as though being near me was unbearable? Was it something I’d done? What had happened to the friendship we had only just formed? Why couldn’t he tell me what was wrong so I couldfixit?
When I entered my room, the fire in the hearth was already lit, the flames casting a cozy glow over the space. My heart clenched at the sight. Kael must have come in while I wasn’t looking, ensuring I wouldn’t return to a cold, dark bedroom.
For all his distance, his kindness never waned. The thoughtful gesture made my heart squeeze.
Now, I sat with a book on my knee, reading in the light of the fire and trying to ignore the wind that whistled through the eaves and rattled the windows in their panes.
Wrapped in my thickest skirts and woolen blouse, I sat on the plush chair by the fire, my book open on my lap. The warm shawl around my shoulders was comforting, but not enough to banish the chill that had settled deep within me. I extended my hands to the flames, rubbing them briskly in hopes of driving some heat back into my fingers.
The tower’s stone walls were sturdy but unforgiving, and the winter cold seeped through every crack and crevice.
I’d always hated the winter here in Vilusia, how the cold got into my bones and chilled my fingers, no matter how much I wrapped up warm.
I imagined myself far from Vilusia, in a warmer place—a place like Strayhaven, in the Kingdom of Drakazov. I’d read about it in a pamphlet years ago, smuggled in from the Four Kingdoms. The village was a haven for the unwanted and the lost. If I could find my father, we could go there together, free of the village’s prying eyes and judgmental whispers.
A place where I could use my magic openly. Where I could heal others and earn an honest living without fear of being conscripted into the King’s army.
I could earn a living for myself and Father with my magic—sell my potions and my medicines to the other villagers for coin. And then Father wouldn’t have to travel for work. He could stay home. With me.
