“I’m not some easy prey you can capture,” I snap at him, irritated. “Leave this city, and don’t come back. I don’t… want you.” The last words are barely audible.
My whole being feels as if it’s on fire each time I speak words that defy the curse.
“You know what, Harlot, I think I like this city. Its citizens are growing on me,” he winks at me.
“Besides that,wehave plans for this place. I’ll use my time here to win over your heart. You can’t deny the mutual attractionbetween us, though, I can tell you feel it, too,” Elijah states matter-of-factly.
A flutter registers as I hear the words, taken over by bile forming, and I bend over, vomiting all over the girl's dead body. He frowns at me.
“Look, I don’t know what’s going on between you and the Prince of Darkness over there. Just know you will end it soon because you’re coming with me. Enjoy it while it lasts.”
I look at Elijah in disbelief, then turn on my heel without saying another word as I stride back to Emrys. A weird pull is making it harder to find my way back to him, the pull trying to stir me away—that damned curse. I fling myself into Emrys’s arms, his arms soothing me, and I feel the bond inside me purr with reassurance. I can’t help but turn my head; Elijah's stare, one with displeasure, burns into mine. No one will ever comprehend the hell that wages within my mind, the pain I feel to step away from Elijah, even though I have already chosen by bonding myself to Emrys. It’s the whispers that invade my mind, asking me if I am certain of that decision. I want to erase Elijah’s ire, comfort him, and tell him he’s right. That I belong by his side, but deep down, I know it’s a lie. There’s only one place for me, and it’s next to Emrys. I pray the rage he exudes by seeing me in Emrys’s arms consumes him to a point where his feigned love will turn into resentment for me.
“I need to leave Emrys, please, I need to get away from him,” I plead.
Emrys scoops me up and takes me away, as my legs are unable to move by themselves. I start to sob as the tug becomes more present. I don’t want it; I need to reject it. Emrys increases the distance with each step; then, he takes me into the comfort of the shadows. I am no longer able to keep the tears as they wet my cheeks, and I press my head onto his broad chest.
The words I speak are restrained with pain as I choke out, “Wait for me, Emrys. Please promise me you will wait for me. Ineedyou to, Emrys. Tell me you will always find me, no matter how far I wander off.”
He gently wipes away a tear, then kisses my cheek, tasting the saltwater.
“When will you understand I will not go anywhere, my little tempest? It breaks me to see you go through this, to feel our bond fracturing slightly. Know I am not leaving you. I could never leave you, as our souls are too entangled. No matter how far you will stray from me, my soul will always find yours, recognize you anywhere, and I will wait a thousand lifetimes for you if that is what you need, my love. I will never unlove you, Harlot; no matter what hardships we will go through, you are the one thing I cannot lose.”
He kisses my forehead, and I pull his face in for a kiss. An insatiable hunger takes hold of me, an all-consuming need for his being melting with mine, the desire to ravage him, all of him, the urge to heal our bond. I need to taste him, feel him. Impatiently, I start to pull on his clothes; I need him inside of me, to feel our bodies connect. Eagerly, he returns my hunger as he rips my clothes from my body. I pull down his pants, hiserect cock waiting for me, and I crawl on top of him naked. His shadows hold me, making it impossible for me to move away. Emrys thrusts his cock into my cunt without reservation, taking me savagely. I spread my legs even wider, the desire to have more of him to take him deeper coursing through me. As our bodies collide, I feel the tiny fractures that formed in our bond knitting themselves together with each hard push inside of me, a satisfied moan leaving my body. Our lovemaking turns into a feral collision, and we both lose control. I claw my nails into his back as he roughly thrusts inside me, drawing blood. I lick my fingers, tasting the red fluid. Emrys rewards me with a heated growl, and then he bites me, feeding off me, his teeth playfully breaking my skin, the pain mixing with pleasure. His shadows are everywhere: on my skin, inside of me. I bite his lip, tearing it slightly, as I suckle on it, his essence on my tongue, making me lose myself in a delirium. As we fuck savagely, Elijah becomes a faint memory in the back of my head, a person of non-importance or interest.
Nothing matters besides us, the cocoon we weave around us—a cocoon laced with shadow, magic, and death. Our own little safe haven, a place no one else can enter and find us, where just he and I exist.
“I wonder if Mother found a way to break it. The curse, I mean. She’s been gone for days, to the old Gods know where, being secretive,” I sigh against his chest.
“The fact that your mother wants to get rid of Jodelle suggests she hasn’t. Contrary to what she said to you, Harlot, I could sense she meant that she wanted Jodelle dead. Jodelle’s death is the only certainty that a hold will be imposed on the curse, giving your mother more time to unravel it all. I would assume the fastest way to stop the curse would be to eliminate allthe pawns that the curse uses for its play. Starting with the false soulmates.”
I sit up in bed.
“Do you want to have children?” I ask Emrys, a sudden thought that took hold of me, one of the pawns of the curse that he speaks of.
“No, especially not if they might be cursed. Do you, my love? Besides, given my nature, I do not expect to be fertile, to be honest.” He chuckles, but I hear a slight worry in his voice at his statement.
“No… despite the curse, I never had the wish to bear children myself. I kept telling myself it would change, that the want would come once I met the right person. I convinced myself when I finally settled down, that the desire to have a family of my own would find its way to me, but even now, I still don’t feel that need to bear children. You are enough; we are enough. You, and you alone, make me happy.”
“Good. Hold on to that sentiment, as the curse will want to eradicate such thoughts, Harlot. Its survival relies on your willingness to breed. When you are with… him… your mind will be clouded with such thoughts. Children, babies, becoming pregnant… breeding. The goal of the relationship is to produce offspring.”
I laugh at him.
“Breeding,” I repeat with a chuckle. “What an awful word; the word alone is enough to shrink my ovaries. Saying it like that makes it sound even less appealing. To be with someone with the sole purpose of reproducing. The idea of growing something in my womb doesn’t sound appealing. Let alone grow two babies destined to kill one another.”
The situation would be comical if I were not the center of attention. I lay back down and snuggle against Emrys, my monster, my sanity in the absurdity of it all.
“I’ll pass on that future. I only want you. You are all I need,” I tell him with certainty.
DIARY ENTRIES:
3 years old. I know. Time is ticking. Leave me alone.
Why? Why can’t you just leave me alone? I have absolutely nothing to say to you or tell you. Let me live in peace for as long as I can.
Unbounded Fate
FYNN
