Kiara’s POV Pain. Red hot pain flared all round my body, and to say I hated the experience had to be the biggest understatement of the year. It was the first thing I felt, thick and overwhelming, pulling me under like waves that wouldn’t stop crashing. My limbs felt like lead, and like that wasn't enough pain for me, it felt like I'd been stitched together by something heavy and raw, something that wasn't even meant to be anywhere near my body at all. My throat ached badly, and my saliva burned as it made its way down my throat and further into my body. My chest felt like it was caving in, and my heart beat like it was this close to combusting all at once. Was I dying? I couldn't help but ask myself. That was the only thing I could come up with at the moment. I'd read papers and research where scholars said death was usually swift and painless. Since I wasn't experiencing any of that, did that mean I wasn't dying? No, no. Dying didn’t feel this loud, so there was no way I coul
Darius' POV The night was too quiet, and it unnerved me to the bones. The quiet came with something so inexplicably haunting that refused to leave no matter how hard I tried to shake it off. It gnawed deep in my sides, like it was feeding on the fact that there wasn't so much as another sound, except the occasional croak from the frogs a long distance away, and the soft rhythm of the wind rustling trees and leaves alike. I stood on the balcony, eyes scanning the dark horizon, but my mind wasn’t out there. It was back in that damn room, with her.Kiara.The air was still, but something inside me churned,like a warning bell I couldn’t silence. I told myself it was just frustration, just guilt laced with anger. I told myself I was furious for what she'd done. She shouldn't have had to lie to me, all for what? Because she thought I couldn't protect her well enough. She shouldn’t have said what she did, but I shouldn’t have let her walk out, either. I could have said something to he
Kiara’s POV The hall stretched before me like an endless tunnel of ghosts, each step echoing louder than it should have. My feet felt like lead, but somehow, I still managed to trudge myself through the barely lit walls of the palace. Lights flickered on and off around me, and while I considered it eerie, there was a small up side to it. No one would be quick to catch on to the million emotions playing out on my face. I wrapped my arms around myself, trying to hold in my shattering heart, but my ribs ached with how tight my chest had clenched. I wasn't sure how I was still standing, because I was sure my heart had stopped pumping blood the moment Darius asked me to leave, after accusing me of the worst thing we both could think of. I tried to push it out, but Darius’ words kept repeating in my head. They were cruel and laced with venom, and the more I thought about them, the harder and longer they bit into my body and soul."Why did you even come looking for me, Kiara?" his que
Kiara’s POV The silence in Darius' chambers had grown teeth, incredibly long and sharp ones too. It chewed at my nerves, gnawed at the edge of my sanity, and threatened to drive me mad all at once. I tried to ignore the effects of the silence on me, but the more I tried, the more pressure I felt against my skin. Sleeping didn't help, neither did staring at the many trophies on Darius' bookshelf. Even the books lined up on his desk and around were strong enough to get my mind off him. In fact, every corner I turned, seemed to remind me, and very vividly too, of the scene that had gone down this morning. Darius had seen the knife, and in return, I'd seen the hurt and disappointment in his eyes. I didn't mean to. The goddess knows that was never my intention, but how else could I have hidden the blade? How else could I have explained to him that I didn't want him to worry! The council was already pressing down on him, Kael especially, and if he caught a whiff of this, then best
kiara's povKiara?” Darius called softly, and I jerked my head in the direction the sound had come from. “Are you okay? You're staring at your plate like you saw something you're allergic to.”“Oh.” I muttered, not knowing what else to say. “I'm fine. I just don't think I'm that hungry, and I also didn't expect breakfast in bed either.” I picked at the plate, before he could say anything else. I even made sure to stuff my face with the nearest pancakes, but ur barely slid down my throat because it tasted like rocks. Darius sat across from me on the bed, shirtless and annoyingly gorgeous, casually biting into a piece of bacon like we hadn’t nearly died yesterday, like he hadn't eaten me out against the wall like some hungry animal, like he hadn't fucked me senseless, kike someone hadn’t just thrown a knife at me last night.Like nothing was wrong.“Kiara.” I wasn't sure how many minutes had passed, but he nudged my foot with his under the blanket. “You’re quiet.”“You don't say?”I ga
139Kiara's POV The corridor was still damp from last night’s rain. Moonlight filtered in through the cracks in the stone wall, glinting off my boots as I moved silently toward the spot I'd seen the guard speaking in hushed tones to the figure in the shadows.I had no idea what I was thinking when I suddenly found the strength and resilience do this, but there was one thing I knew for a fact. Since, I'd already gotten myself to this point, I might as well go through with it. The hallway was pitch black, and with each step I took towards my destination, I couldn't help but feel like I was being watched. It'd started the moment I snuck out of my room. A small part of me had already cooked up the list of excuses I was going to give my new guard if he dared to ask me any questions, but luckily I didn't need them. Why? He was nowhere to be found. It had rubbed off on me the wrong way earlier, but now, all I could think to myself was how much of a blessing his absence had been. If he'