Page 61 of Lycan King's Captives
My hands are warm as I pull her into an embrace and lay her down on my chest, urging her to feel the bond, feel that I am here with her.
I hold her close to my chest, willing away the coldness that radiates from her body. Her skin is ice-cold, like I’m holding a corpse.
The cold cuts through my flesh and bones from Sienna, but I push past it, warming her body the best I can. The ice and stone of the bathhouse sucks the warmth from my body like a freezer, I push past that too, ignoring the biting chill her cold body causes.
Sienna’s eyes flutter open as I hold her close, her voice barely a whisper. “Xandros,” she murmurs, disbelief and relief evident in her tone. She didn’t expect me to come back for her. I hold her tighter, my heart breaking at her words. “You did come home. Javier said you would…” she trails off, burying her face in my neck, her teeth chattering next to my ear.
“I would burn the world down around me to come back to you, if needed,” I tell her, my voice filled with raw emotion.
“My world has been burning since you met me. I don’t want to burn anymore. I want to extinguish the flames,” she whispers, and tears prick my eyes.
“Don’t say that, Sienna. Stay with me.” The words escape me like hot embers from an inferno, burning through everything in their path and leaving nothing behind except scorched earth. Her words burn me, she’d rather die, than fight to remain here with me.
Sienna’s smile flickers into existence, and she reaches up to touch my cheek. Her touch is like a sudden shock, jolting me with energy in the midst of chaos.
“For what?” she breathes out when her hand slips from my face, hits the water and splashes me. “Sienna?” I murmur.
As I hold her, her body grows increasingly limp, slipping further into unconsciousness. Terror grips me, and I shake her desperately, trying to rouse her, to keep her awake.
“Sienna, don’t leave me,” I beg, my voice laced with desperation. “Take my strength…mark me.” Her response is weak, her body unresponsive to my pleas.
I can feel the darkness closing in around us, and I know we’re running out of time. Sweat drips down my face as I clutch Sienna tighter, willing all of my energy into her lifeless form. It’s not enough, and I feel the panic rising within me.
“Stay with me, Sienna,” I yell, my voice echoing off the walls of the empty room. There’s no response from her, only silence.
I call out to Javier, his name a desperate plea. “Javier, where is a healer! We can’t lose her,” I demand, my voice cracking with fear.
“Should be here any minute, your father sent for one earlier,” he answers just as my parents rush into the bathhouse, their faces wrought with worry and guilt. I recognize my mother’s expression—she is fully aware of the gravity of her decisions that have led us here, the repercussions of which might cost Sienna her life, and in turn mine. I know if she passes away, a part of me will die too; she dies and so do I, maybe not physically, but I might as well be dead when the craze hits, and my mother knows this. She knows I won’t be recognizable as her son when it does. A growl tears out of me at the sight of her.
I pull Sienna’s limp body into my arms, and with a sense of determination I have never felt before, charge out of the bathhouse with my mother trailing behind me. She trails after me, crying apologies as if they will make up for what she has done. I barely hear her. All I can focus on is finding a healer and saving Sienna’s life before it slips away.
My steps are hurried and purposeful. I try to ignore the fear that keeps slipping into my thoughts, keeping my grip on Sienna unwavering. With each moment that passes, I feel the weight of responsibility pushing down on me. Sienna helpless in my arms, so fragile and vulnerable. It fills me with terror and frustration. The castle seems endless as I desperately search for a healer, each second ticking past like centuries when my father sings out behind me.
“Javier mind-linked, the healer is setting up in her room,” he calls out, and I turn for the stairs, taking them two at a time.
My mother stands nearby, her guilt clearly written in her eyes while I glare at her. The healer stabs the needle in my arm, and attaches the line to Sienna. Mate bond saliva and blood have healing properties for the mate, now I just have to pray our bond isn’t irreparable because if she rejects it, she’ll die. The healer looks upon Sienna with his gentle yet determined hands working with precision. My heart races with fear, an unyielding helplessness falls over me as he works tirelessly to revive her fragile form back to life. Everything depends on my blood healing her since she can’t mark me—for Sienna’s life, our bond, our future together.
Don’t let her die, I plead silently. “Please don’t let her die,” I whisper. My mother’s movement makes me growl as she moves to step closer to me.
I hiss through clenched teeth, “If she dies. You’ll wish that death had taken you as well. Mark my words, Mother, not even Father will stop me from killing you.” My eyes burn with the intensity of my warning, and I can practically see her body shudder in fear.
Yet I mean every word. My mate dies, so will she.
34
My life ebbs away with every labored breath; I am dying. The throbbing beat of my own failing heart resonates in my ears, each pulse a painful reminder of my mortality. Relief washes over me, a strange sense of peace, knowing my suffering will finally come to an end. The agony of the mate bond has been a part of me for so long I welcome death with open arms, comforted by its sweet release. I bask in the bliss of finality, knowing I will no longer be held captive by the chains of his enslavement. I have longed for this release, to escape the torment of the mate bond that has kept me captive. In death, I will be free from the chains that bind me to him. Free of him.
Then, amid my surrender, a flicker of something. Despite my desire to succumb to the pain, something foreign sparks within me. Xandros, I can feel his presence calling out to me through our bond. His scent is strong and unmistakable, and he pleas for me to hang on louder than ever. Why? Why would he want me to stay in this wretched state of agony? How much more suffering could I possibly endure? My thoughts wage an internal war as my body remains immobilized, helplessly fighting its own battle. Our connection trembles like a single thread in the wind, yet it still holds.
A surge of energy courses through my veins like a roaring river, as if his love is an unstoppable force that has broken down the walls I have built up around me. Every ounce of pain returns. Breaking through the bliss that comes with death, forcing me back to him.
My heart races as the bonds of his control wrap around me once more. My chest clenches as I feel a flutter deep in my soul—the stirring of hope that I can break free. It’s too late; the bond is already tightening its grasp around me. Waves of energy course through my veins, and I can almost feel his blood stirring within me like a ruthless master demanding absolute obedience. My entire body strains with the effort to break free, and yet I remain tethered by an iron-clad grip. It is a never-ending battle between my will for freedom and the unyielding force that binds us together.
When I regain consciousness, I find myself sprawled across Xandros’s chest, his alluring aroma filling my lungs. His warm fingers delicately brush through my hair, a gesture that should evoke comfort instead haunts me with distrust. He stares at me with relief in his eyes, thankful for my return, while I am left confused and disappointed.
“Thank the Moon Goddess, I thought I lost you,” Xandros whispers. “You’re safe. I’m here, Anna,” he whispers, fingers gently stroking my face. Anna, since when did we move to nicknames? It took death for endearment; no death taught me clarity. Words are merely what he speaks. How can I believe him? He is a walking contradiction, his actions proving time and time again that he does not truly love me.
Tears stream down my face, and he whispers soothing words, assuring me I am safe and that he will protect me. I shake my head, anger welling up inside me.
