Page 76 of Bound to the Dreadlord

He turns his back to me, reaching for his tunic, sliding the fabric over his shoulders. I should feel relief. I don’t.

“Get up.”

His voice is unreadable. Controlled.

I hesitate. He doesn’t like hesitation.

He turns just enough to look at me over his shoulder, and that silver gaze flickers with something dangerous.

“I said get up.”

I clench my jaw, ignoring the soreness in my limbs as I push myself upright. My legs feel weak when they hit the floor, but I refuse to stumble. Refuse to show him anything less than defiance.

I reach for my dress, the fabric pooled at the foot of the bed, but Veylan beats me to it. He picks it up, fingers tightening around the material before throwing it at me.

It’s not gentle. It’s not cruel.

I don’t understand it.

He should be out there. Commanding. Killing. Yet he’s here.

Why?

I say nothing as I dress, feeling his eyes follow my movements, dragging over my skin like a brand. The moment I’m done, he turns on his heel, strides to the door. “Follow me.”

I should hesitate.

But I don’t.

Something coils tight in my stomach as I move behind him, each step matching his as we exit the chamber. The corridor outside is empty but heavy. It is not in the stone walls or the torches flickering against the dark marble?—

It is in them.

The dark elves. Watching.

The moment we step into the open hall, they see me.

It’s different this time.

Not just the usual mixture of contempt and amusement.

Now, there is curiosity. Calculation.

I hate it.

My spine stiffens, but I keep my head high, refusing to cower. If they want to stare, let them. Let them wonder.

Veylan does not slow.

He moves through the fortress with the same cold grace, commanding every space he enters without effort. But I can feelit, the tension that follows him like a shadow. Like he doesn’t trust them to look at me too long.

A slow realization blooms in my mind.

They do not look at me because I am a human.

They look at me because I am something else.

The thought rattles me, and in that moment, something shifts.

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