Page 185 of Severed Heir

This wasn’t the return I had yearned for.

“Klaus, come back,” I whispered. “Please. Come back.”

He strained against the rope, muscles jerking, fingers writhing like they had minds of their own. “You stole my power,” he groaned, the words growing more guttural. “And I want it back. I want it back. I want it back.”

He was gone.

Whatever sat in that chair wasn’t Klaus anymore, it was a monster wearing his skin. A soul twisted into something feral.

And I had done it.

“I did this,” I whispered.

Charles’s voice came like a blade from behind. “A moment alone, Severyn.”

I stumbled into the cold. The air bit at my skin, sharp enough to anchor me in the moment. Charles followed, his expression grim, shadowed beneath the weight of what we’d just seen.

“Whatever you think you’re going to say,” I said, my voice shaking, “I already know. That’s not Klaus.”

He said nothing. He didn’t need to. His silence was confirmation enough.

“At the academy,” I whispered, forcing the words past the knot in my throat, “I saw it. A ripper beast found his body. It worehim. I thought...” My voice cracked. “I thought I killed him when he went after me.”

Charles’s gaze didn’t flinch. “Then you understand what must be done. This is why your power is forbidden. Not because it’s wicked, but because it can undo what was never meant to be.”

He paused. “I never tried to strip it from you at the king’s estate... not because I believed you were innocent. But because I feared what might happen if I did.”

“You never tried?”

“No. I couldn’t. Not after Klaus.” And for the first time, Charles broke. “Our family was never the same. I couldn’t lose you, too. But I did.”

I don’t know what compelled me to hug him—but I did. “It’s okay.”

“No. Don’t forgive me.”

My chin pressed against his shoulder. “I want to. I desperately want to.”

I had never seen Charles cry. Not in my twenty-two years. “No,” he said. “Don’t forgive me, Sev.”

I pulled back. “Is it possible for Naraic to bond with him again?”

“Dragon roots are complex,” he said, voice low. “But they’re permanent. Like a root threaded through your blood. If we kill Klaus, itcouldharm you. We won’t know unless Naraic confirms it.”

“Well, shit.”

“Naraic may not have had a choice,” Charles murmured. “He might not even know. When he found Klaus, it was familiar blood. That could’ve been enough.”

My hands started to tremble. “He could choose him again.”

“No.” His eyes locked on mine. “He wouldn’t. And you know it.”

“How can you be sure?”

“I’m not.” He dragged a hand through his unruly blond hair, the gesture tired, almost boyish. “But I believe he’s still yours.”

“When will you kill him?” I asked.

“I don’t know.” The words scraped out of him. “This is beyond me. It’ll probably come down to a vote.”

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