Chapter 15

Dax's POV 

Father had barely left the hall before Kai and Riven returned, their footsteps echoing on the polished marble floor. I sat where I was, staring at the trembling tips of my fingers as the ache in my chest pulsed heavier with each second.

“Forgot something?” I asked softly, though my voice came out dry and hollow.

Kai didn’t bother replying. He strode to where Riven stood, grabbing him by the collar and pushing him against the stone pillar with a force that sent a vase crashing to the floor.

“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Kai’s voice was a low snarl, tight with barely controlled rage. “You want to ruin everything for all of us? For yourself? For Dax? For her?”

Riven only chuckled, the sound dark and sharp, but I could see the flicker of something desperate in his jade eyes. “Why are you pretending like you don’t care, big brother? You think your pathetic rejection will make it all go away? You think you can keep pretending you don’t want her, that your heart doesn’t twist every time you see her cry because of you?”

“Shut up, Riven,” Kai growled, his fingers tightening in Riven’s shirt. “Don’t you dare speak like you know me.”

“But I do know you,” Riven spat back, leaning forward despite being pinned. “I know you better than anyone, and I know that deep down, you’re terrified. You’re terrified because she makes you feel something you don’t want to feel.”

I stood up slowly, feeling my throat close up with words I couldn’t say. My brothers were always like this—fire and storm crashing into each other, tearing everything apart while I stayed silent, a quiet earth that held their roots together.

“Kai… Riven…” My voice broke slightly, but I forced myself to keep speaking. “Please, stop fighting. This isn’t her fault. This isn’t even our fault. It’s fate. The curse. We’re all suffering here. Can’t we… can’t we just… I don’t know… share her?”

The moment the words left my mouth, Kai turned his glare to me, his eyes dark with disgust and disbelief. “Share her?” he repeated, his voice shaking with rage. “You think she’s some object we can just pass around to each other, Dax? Is that what you think?”

“No!” I gasped, shaking my head violently as my curls bounced around my face. “That’s not what I meant! I just… I just don’t want to see us destroy each other over this. Over her. She deserves better than to be torn apart by our selfishness.”

Riven snorted, pushing Kai away from him and fixing his collar with a flick of his wrist. “You’re such a soft little thing, Dax. Always so damn kind it makes me sick.” His eyes flicked to mine, and for a second, I saw sorrow there, deep and heavy. 

Then it was gone, replaced with cold arrogance as he turned his gaze back to Kai. “But he’s right, you know. You think rejecting her will fix the curse? It won’t. She’s ours. Mine, especially. And I’m going to make sure she knows it.”

Kai’s jaw clenched so tightly I thought his teeth would break. “If you try anything—”

“What?” Riven cut him off with a sharp smile. “You’ll kill me? Go ahead. Kill me. Kill your brother. That’s the only way you’ll ever stop me.”

Silence fell between them like a thick, suffocating fog. The only sound was my quiet breathing and the distant caw of ravens outside the tall glass windows.

Kai shook his head, letting go of Riven’s shirt and stepping back. “You’re pathetic,” he spat before turning around and storming out of the hall, his boots slamming against the marble with every furious step.

Riven chuckled again, his eyes glinting with dark victory as he watched Kai leave. Then his gaze shifted to me, softening for a brief, fleeting second. “Don’t look so sad, little brother,” he murmured, brushing a stray curl from my eyes. “At least you’ll get to keep your illusions a bit longer.”

He turned on his heel and left, his long coat sweeping behind him like a shadow.

I stood there alone, the echoes of their anger vibrating through my chest. I sank back onto the stone bench, burying my face in my hands as tears pricked at the corners of my eyes.

Why couldn’t they see what I saw?

Why couldn’t they feel what I felt?

All I wanted was peace. All I wanted was for her to be happy. Even if it meant watching her choose someone else. Even if it meant breaking apart the pieces of my heart one by one to build her a future.

Because in the end, that was all I could ever do.

Hold everything together while breaking silently inside.