Page 158 of Daughter of the Serpent

She saw the hatred bubbling beneath the surface, the fury coiled tight inside him like a beast barely contained.

"And you think you’re the one to deliver it?" she challenged.

His gaze burned into her, his lips pressing into a thin line.

"If the gods will it."

Her breath quickened. "And did they?"

She searched his face, willing him to crack - to give her something, anything. A sign, a word, a sliver of truth.

Her heart ached for him to say it. To admit it. To tell her, to her face, that he had done it for her.

But instead, he stepped back.

"I believe the gods placed you on my path, Sylvie." His voice was quieter now, but no less firm. "And I will do what it takes to keep you safe."

"That’s not good enough." Her voice was clipped, eyes flashing. "Not after what happened last night. Not after how you touched me, kissed me…"

His jaw locked, tension bracketing his mouth.

"I’m wrong for you."

For a moment, his gaze burned - stripping her bare, pulling her into something vast and unspoken.

She wavered. “How can you say that, especially now?”

For a heartbeat, she thought he might break.

That his resolve might crumble.

But then, the walls slammed back into place.

His voice came rough, hoarse, scraping like gravel. "It’s the truth, Sylvie. I am not the man you think I am."

The words sliced through her, cold and merciless.

The breath left her lungs, sharp and immediate.

"I should have never done what I did last night."

The final blow.

Clean. Precise. A dagger straight through her ribs.

Her voice trembled, but she forced it out. "And the bond?"

Axel said nothing.

She pushed on. "Did it mean nothing to you?"

Still, silence.

Her pulse pounded. "Do you regret that too?"

He stepped back.

As if distance could sever whatever bound them together.

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