In the Shadow of the Crown

The cold night air bit into Eliza’s skin as they rode through the darkened woods. The castle was far behind them now, but the weight of what had happened, what could have happened still coiled around her chest like a tightening noose.

Raen had not spoken since they left.

He rode ahead, his back stiff, his fingers clenched around the reins as if they were the only thing keeping him from turning back and finishing what Edric had started. His golden eyes burned even in the darkness, his magic barely contained beneath the surface.

Eliza’s hands trembled as she gripped the saddle. She exhaled slowly, steadying herself.

[He is furious. Not at Edric. At me.]                                                           

She had stopped him. Held him back.

[And Raen did not forgive weakness. Not in others. Not in himself.]

The thought sent a shiver down her spine, but not entirely from fear.

They rode for what felt like hours before the forest finally thinned, revealing an abandoned hunting lodge nestled against a frozen lake. Tristan dismounted first, his face weary but unreadable. He cast a glance at Raen, as if debating whether to say something, but in the end, he simply walked toward the door and murmured a spell. The wooden entrance creaked open, revealing a darkened interior.

Raen swung off his horse without a word.

Eliza hesitated before following, her heartbeat hammering. As soon as she stepped inside, the warmth of the hearth magic Tristan had awakened seeped into the room, casting long shadows along the stone walls. She barely had time to take it in before Raen turned on her.

The door slammed shut.

Her breath hitched as he stalked toward her, his movements slow, deliberate. The tension in the room thickened, pressing against her like unseen hands.

She lifted her chin. “Say something.”

Raen didn’t answer. Instead, his gloved fingers reached out, brushing along the line of her throat, his touch deceptively soft. But there was nothing gentle in his eyes.

"You stood between me and him," he murmured, his voice like a blade sliding free of its sheath. "Do you know what that cost me?"

Eliza swallowed, refusing to look away. "I know what it would have cost you if I hadn't."

A muscle in his jaw twitched. His hand slid lower, tracing the curve of her collarbone. Possessive. Unyielding.

"You think you've saved me," he said darkly. "But you don’t understand. Edric will never stop. He will take from me until there is nothing left." His fingers curled around her wrist, pulling her closer. "And neither will I."

Her pulse pounded. "Raen..."

His lips crashed against hers.@@novelbin@@

It wasn’t a kiss of affection. It was a war. A clash of fury and need, of punishment and desperation. His hands tightened at her waist, dragging her against him, his breath hot, his magic curling around them both like a living thing.

She should have resisted. Should have shoved him away.

But she didn’t.

Because part of her had known since the moment she met him that this was inevitable.

She gasped as his teeth scraped against her lower lip, her hands pressing against his chest, not to push him away, but to hold herself steady. He growled at the contact, as if the mere act of her touching him ignited something worse.

"This is what you do to me," he whispered against her mouth. "You make me reckless. You make me weak." His fingers dug into her hips, his breath ragged. "And I will never let you go because of it."

Eliza shuddered, her own fury rising to match his. She tore herself away, her hand striking his chest hard enough to make him stumble back a step.

"Then stop treating me like a prisoner," she snapped. "You say you would burn the world for me, Raen? Then let me breathe."

Silence.

Raen’s gaze locked onto hers, his expression unreadable. Then, without a word, he turned and strode toward the fireplace, bracing his hands against the stone.

His magic flared, crackling in the air like embers waiting to catch.

Eliza exhaled, pressing her fingers against her swollen lips.

This was not the end of the war between them.

It was only the beginning.