Chapter Twenty-Seven

C HAPTER T WENTY-SEVEN

It has been hours since they took Gus out of our cell. Darius and I have relentlessly tried to find a way out by breaking through the walls – to find a weakness that perhaps could help us. But the more we kept at it, the more Darius grew weak from his link to Aurum and would collapse onto the ground.

I urged him to take a break, and while my determination was undeterred, the increasing difficulty of getting us out was becoming more exasperating.

Now as I claw at the stones, I push and slam my palm against it.

The dungeons have become darker, and the slit in the ceiling tells me it is night. I take a step back, heaving a breath as I glance to my left, where more large, heavy chains lie. The same ones that once held the Ardenti dragon Sarilyn made me kill.

I find myself clenching my fists, frustration fuelling my inner rebellion to fight. Turning to the wall again, I start to think of my brothers and unleash cries that strain my throat as I strike with full force.

My bones tremble with vibrant pain pulsing through my knuckles. Hoping to have sourced some power into me again – like Gus believed I could – I withdraw my hand, but the wall remains steadfast and my frustration manifests into blinding anger as I raise my other first.

I miss the wall just as Darius wraps his arms around my waist, pulling me back in a protective embrace. I pant, my breaths ragged as he spins me around, redirecting my focus towards him. Concern darkens his golden eyes, and gently, he takes my still-clenched fist in his hand.

I wince and he steadies his touch, quickly looking me in the eye before focusing on the bloodied, macabre mess that is my broken knuckles.

‘It was worth a shot,’ I mumble, wanting to get my point out before being berated.

‘It isn’t if it results in you hurting yourself.’ His voice sounds calm, but I know he is worrying.

I huff, snatching my hand away from him and sitting down instead.

He does the same, both of us now cross-legged.

‘Sometimes I wonder if you like to injure yourself just so that I get to touch you,’ he teases, the familiarity of his smirk comforting me as he grabs my hand again.

I give him a look that has that arrogant smile of his widen. ‘Don’t make me regret having ever fallen for you.’

He chuckles before swiftly ripping part of his shirt. ‘We wouldn’t want that now, would we?’ He cocks an eyebrow and I narrow my eyes as the tear of clothing echoes through the air. I watch his teeth sink into his wrist, producing droplets of blood. He then uses that same piece of fabric and smears his blood on it.

His hands work deftly and his attention is solely focused on the stained shirt as he wraps it around my fist.

‘Dragon blood?’ I angle my head with a smile.

He finishes tying the knot. ‘It’s the only thing that luckily still works.’

A weight of shame settles on my shoulders and I look away, finding that exact spot where I once faced the Ardenti.

‘It was here, wasn’t it?’ Darius’s voice echoes, and I turn my head. He’s staring at me now, fixating on how a sigh departs from my lips. ‘Where Sarilyn ordered you to kill one of us.’

‘Yes,’ I whisper, not seeing the point in lying.

He gives me a subtle shake of his head and averts his gaze. ‘I should never have let you help me.’ His jaw tenses. ‘You’d be safer—’

‘I wouldn’t,’ I reply quickly, hoping he sees how wrong he is to blame himself. ‘I was never going to be safe in this life, Darius. We both weren’t.’

He’s still looking off to the side, his brows furrowed like he believes otherwise. Under other circumstances, I know he would have teased me about anything, but all I can hear is Sarilyn’s voice telling me how Darius would never be the same after he remembered.

‘Do you . . .’ It’s as if someone was crushing my windpipe because my words come out choked. ‘. . . remember your time here with Aurum?’

Darius snaps his gaze back to me and it pierces through mine. The anticipating answer lingers between us as he focuses on me and finally says, ‘No.’

I should feel relieved by that answer, but I don’t. Part of me knows it is a lie because if he remembers everything he said in Aeris, that will include his time here.

My tongue darts out to wet my lips, and I say his name, only to be silenced by the sudden movement of him coming closer. He places his hands at the sides of my waist, gently running the pad of his thumb over my clothes.

I draw in a breath, having missed this, yet the lingering guilt persists. Just knowing how much he has endured gnaws at me, and the thought of him being tortured snakes through my mind, weaving into the crevices of regret and poisoning my chest and heart for not having rescued him sooner.

Dropping my head against his chest, I close my eyes, and all I can mumble right now is, ‘I’m sorry about Gus.’

I can feel the rise and drop of his chest as he sighs. ‘I should have known it was him.’ He forces out a laugh. ‘He always treated me differently. In ways, I thought that was only because he wanted me to join him.’

Pulling back, I search his eyes for something that will tell me that he has room to forgive Gus regardless of it all. ‘His intention was never to leave you; he didn’t—’

‘Goldie—’ he breathes, snapping his eyes shut, but I’m nowhere near finished.

‘No, listen to me. Even before you were born, he wanted to protect you and your mother – and when I found out, I was mad at him myself, but if you think—’ I stop when I see he is now smiling at me. Attractive lines carve indents into his cheeks and I frown. ‘What is it?’

He shakes his head, his smile never faltering. It makes my heart ache. ‘I do not care one bit if Gus is what he is to me. What matters is that I have you . Alive. ’

My chest sinks and my head falls against his chest once again. His fingers run up and down my spine as I whisper, ‘For now.’

He stops, touches the sides of my arms and pushes me back so that I look at him. It isn’t anger in his eyes; it’s fear, and I badly want to kick myself over it. ‘Don’t say that.’

I capture my bottom lip between my teeth, looking down at his lap and apologising. Despite the cold, damp air clinging to the stone walls of this dimly lit dungeon, this is the only place I feel safe with him right now.

But then my gaze fixates on the dark colour of his clothes, and images of Sarilyn in that room and the fractured floor beneath us ignite inside my mind.

‘Something happened.’ I sound distracted. ‘Something with Sarilyn.’

He cocks his head.

‘I knocked her to the ground,’ I say. This time he shoots me one of those cocky smiles I now love more than anything, and the look he is giving me is as if he is proud.

‘I never touched her,’ I clarify, brows all the way up to my hairline.

The glow in his smirk fades upon realisation, only to swiftly return. It transforms into a radiant smile before he seizes the sides of my face and kisses me. First once, then repeatedly. He’s grinning, solidifying my confusion.

‘What—’ I can barely get the word out as he plants another kiss on my lips, and I chuckle. ‘Did I do something?’

He shakes his head slowly as he presses his forehead against mine. ‘I just missed you.’ He kisses me again, whispering, ‘So, so much.’

My smile trembles against his lips as I touch his hand. ‘I wanted to get you out sooner – I did, I really did—’

He shushes me, shaking his head. ‘I hate it when you apologise.’

I laugh, closing my eyes. ‘Why is that?’

‘Because I prefer it when you’re insulting me.’

I grin. ‘If it’s an insult you want, I have many. Ones that start off with how much of a punchable face you have.’ Kissable . Kissable face, but he knows that anyway.

‘Much better,’ he breathes before capturing my lips fervently. A sharp gasp escapes me as he grips my waist, and I press a hand on his chest to steady myself. The kiss isn’t slow; it never is between us. Darius feeds into my hunger for him, his tongue teasing my own as if he wants to savour me, every moment.

My head arches back as he angles his neck, deepening the kiss and consuming me with his all. And as he pulls me onto his lap, we draw back, looking at each other. His eyes reflect a determination that matches my own. Despite the circumstances, a glimmer of hope dances in his gaze as he strokes the side of my face, and I smile like I am in a dream.

Just then, for this moment, I remember what I want, which is to be forever with him.

‘Darius—’ I whisper, my heart unbridled with love. ‘Marry me.’