But darkened in places where something soaked in and never quite left. Deep, jagged grooves are worn into the edges—fingerprints of the desperate.
“This island believes in ownership,” he says quietly, his eyes going dark and hollow. “Not the kind you sign for. The kind you take. The kind you brand.”
I turn to him sharply, my breath hitching. “Why are you showing me this?”
His gaze drops to my mouth, and for a second, I see the monster behind the suit.
“To remind you,” he says, his voice a low, terrifying rasp, “that marriage isn’t just a contract. It’s a declaration. It’s a hand around the throat.”
His hand slides from my wrist to my waist, fingers spreading, anchoring me there. He pulls me flush against the stone of the altar. It’s ice-cold against my lower back. My body reacts before my mind does—tension flaring, breath hitching in a jagged sob.
I think of Kai’s hands.
Rougher. Meaner. Certain. Hands that would destroy me, but would never try to polish me.
The thought sends a shudder through me that I can’t hide. A spark of heat in this dead place.
Noah notices.
Of course he does. The bastard feels everything.
His eyes narrow just a fraction, a flash of pure, murderous jealousy crossing his face. “You’re distracted. You’re thinking of him.”
“I’m tired,” I say quickly, my voice cracking.
He studies me for a long moment, then he does it.
He pulls the knife he bought at the market from his pocket. The blade catches a sliver of jaundiced light. My heart stops. “Noah, what are you?—”
He doesn’t look at me. He grabs my hand, his grip crushing, and before I can scream, he drags the tip of the blade across his own palm. The skin parts with a sickening, wet hiss. Red, hot blood wells up instantly, dripping onto the stone altar.
Then, he presses his bleeding palm against the front of my white silk dress, right over my heart.
“Mine,” he whispers, the word a blood-soaked vow. “By the old laws, Scarlett. You are mine until the earth takes us both. If I can’t have you, no one draws another breath.”
The stain spreads, warm and terrifyingly wet against my skin. I’m paralysed, staring at the red handprint on my chest, the mark of a madman.
“We’ll head back soon,” he says, his voice returning to that chillingly calm, polite tone as he wipes the blade on his trousers. “I just wanted you to understand something.”
“What?” I whisper, my voice barely a thread.
He leans in, his mouth close enough that I feel the heat of his breath, tasting of copper and cold intent.
“This island doesn’t let go of what it claims. And neither do I. If Kai comes for you, I’ll make you watch while I gut him on this very stone.”
The words land heavy and final, like dirt on a coffin.
As we walk back toward the car, the jungle seems louder. Closer. Screaming with the sound of a thousand hidden teeth. I swear I feel eyes on my back, feel the weight of something unseen moving parallel to us, just out of sight. A shadow that belongs to a man who doesn’t believe in altars.
By the time we drive away, my pulse is out of control, a frantic drum in my ears.
I press my forehead to the cool window, watching the trees blur past, and I don’t know which thought terrifies me more—That Noah is showing me exactly how far into the darkness he’s willing to go to keep me.
Or that somewhere in this island’s dark, breathing heart, Kai is watching that blood-stain on my dress… and he’s laughing.
Kai
Ialmost laughed.
