Floor three.
This is where I hear the cries of man, his body slamming against the walls and ground as he yells out in pain.
My dress slips from my trembling hands as I walk slowly towards the door in the farthest back. An arched door is there, sealed with a solid, steel frame. The chosen symbol, bold against the door, engraved sharply into it.
My heart beats intensely against my chest as my fingers curl into sweaty fists.
I swallow, eyes wide as I take my last step, letting myself stop right in front of it.
Glass crashing in the room makes me jump in place, while grunts and deep breathing echo down the hallway. I allow my hands to grip the chilly door, opening it slightly to see Koen gripping the windowsill on his knees, shirtless, allowing my eyes to catch the sight of the marking of his curse. But also, the dragon claws slashed across his back.
“Koen…” I whisper, tiptoeing in and gently closing the door behind me.
He whips his head so fast, throwing his hand out towards me. “You cannot be in here!”
The dress catches in the cracks of the flooring. I yank it to move on, ripping the dress apart along the train, but I don’t care. I squat down next to him, my body trembling as I hold out my shaky hands. “What is wrong?”
His eyes flicker from emerald to darkness, and my heart sinks. My heart freezes. He is turning.Shifting.
“No. Not now.” My head shakes, eyes burning as I watch him in pain.
He grips the windowsill tighter, veins bulging definitively against his arm as his head hangs low. His curls, covering his face as he lets out a trembling scream, coming from the pit of his stomach.
I close my eyes, allowing the tear to fall down my cheek.
“You need to leave!” he cries out. “The blood moon must be coming, I won’t be able to stop it! Unless she is needing me to shift, she might be controlling this.”
“I will not leave you.”
He lifts his head, eyes darkening. “Stop being foolish!” he growls, jaw ticking as he notices I am not moving. “Leave!”
“No.” I don’t stutter.
He hits the windowsill with both of his fists, his curls bouncing by the force. “Damn it, Serene! You will die if you stay!”
“I will not leave you. I will never leave you again.” My eyes blur as I listen to the sounds of his bones breaking under his skin.
“Even if you hate me!”
I suck in a trembling breath. “Even if I hate you.”
He weeps, tears streaming down his cheeks before falling off his chin. Then his eyes meet mine, not the darkness, not the crimson red of the dragon he shifts into, but the emerald green. The eyes of the Koen I love.
“Spark…” he breathes out, closing his eyes so gently before re-opening them. “I cannot be the one to kill you. I could never live with that. I need you to understand I could never hurt you. I have never wanted to hurt you. All I have done is bring pain into your life.”
“Then don’t.” I fall to my knees, crawling towards him, tears soaking my cheeks as they drip down to the floor. “Fight it, please fight.”
“You don’t understand.” He clenches his jaw, his shoulder snapping out of place as he lets out a raging cry. “She will never stop making me shift until you die. My life is in her hands. As well as yours.”
“I don’t fear her, Koen.”
“I do.” He swallows, and a tear drips from his chin.
His back hunches, his fingers stretching as I catch sight of his bones rippling under skin.
“If the Royals find out I am a shifter, they will kill me. They only allow Florian to live…” His fingers dig around the rocks, veins rippling in his arms and back as he lets out a rumbling, painful growl. He takes a deep breath. “Florian is only allowed to live because he will be King. I am nothing. A bastard and because of that, this will grant them my death at last.”
“I need to get you out of here.” I scan the room frantically. “Can you walk?”
