Chapter 35

Apleasant smile pulls at my lips as I stretch awake. Nyk is next to me, the heat from his body seeping into my own and warming me to my core.

"Hello there," I murmur as I roll on top of him.

He blinks awake. His hair is mussed, stray locks draping down his forehead. There are still stains of red from last night's activities marring his flawless flesh.

I trace his lips with my finger, leaning down to lay a kiss at the corner of his mouth.

He mumbles something under his breath, his eyes suddenly opening.

"What are you doing?" He asks in a raspy voice.

I smile conspiratorially. "What do you think I am doing?"

I straddle him, my hands finding his hard flesh and stroking him lightly.

His brows go up in surprise.

"I remember saying you could fuck me after the first time," I murmur seductively.

His eyes flash at me.

"Is that so?"

I shrug, slowly raising myself and positioning him at my entrance.

He watches me intently.

Although it's still a tight fit, I take him in far easier than the night before. And as he nestles inside me fully, I release a throaty moan at being filled like this.

"Nyk…" I call his name.

I can feel my energy going wild around us, a pink mist emanating from my body as I start riding him.

"That's it," he encourages me, settling his hands on my hips and guiding me. "Take me. Take all of me, Barbs."

"Yes," I breathe out.

"Fuck yourself on my cock," he rasps. "Just like that."

His groans fill my ears as I close my eyes and throw my head back, focusing on this feeling of completion that is so much greater than I could have ever imagined.

I slide my hands lower down his chest, resting one palm against his mark while placing my other hand on my mark. The symbols heat up at once, the pleasure intensifying with each stroke of his cock inside me.

"I love you," I whisper, grabbing his hand and placing it on top of my mark so he can feel this too. "I love you so damn much, Nyk."

As I'm waiting to hear back the words, however, the pink mist around us intensifies and grows out of control. My eyes snap open, an unimaginable heat claiming my body as I make eye contact with him.

His features drip with indifference.

One split second is all it takes for his mask to drop.

Confusion swirls in my mind. I dig my nails into his mark, drawing blood.

My mouth opens and closes as a different picture forms before my eyes.

I blink and find myself in a dark cave. There is only one stream of light coming from an opening in the right side of the ceiling. Yet as I look down, I realize it's not my body.

It's Nykander's.

My consciousness is here, but I am not in control. I am only a spectator.

"I have done what you asked of me," Nykander's voice calls out. There is a deep revulsion behind those words, but no reply is forthcoming.

Nykander lets his senses drift through every crevice of the cave. She is there. He can sense her.

"Show yourself!" he shouts.

Seconds trickle by and her steps resound in the cave.

She stops right under the beam of light, letting it illuminate her features. Her dark hair flows down her back, her face hidden beneath a thin veil.

"You would go this far for your revenge?" She tilts her head to the side as she assesses him.

"I am not required to give you an explanation," he grinds out. "I did as you asked. I apologized and she believes I want to be with her."

"And you do not regret lying to her? She is your true mate, after all."

His nostrils flare.

"It does not matter."

"See, but it does. I am curious, Nykander v'Kyró. You would forsake your true mate, the only being made just for you in the entire universe, to fulfill a revenge for someone who is long gone?"

"I require you to keep your side of the bargain, Priestess."

"I will call upon you in due time. That which you want will be yours once I am convinced you have fully played your part." She inclines her head.

Nykander nods and turns to leave.

Shock reverberates within me. He… He was pretending? But why? For what?

Realization dawns on me, the treachery of his actions stabbing my very soul.

The artifact.

He was bargaining for the artifact.

"You might fight it, but you are drawn to her. And when you fall for her as I know you will, what will you do if she finds out about your deception?" The High Priestess continues.

"I will not fall for her. There is only one female for me, and she is gone. Anything I do now is to honor her as I have vowed."

"And yet…" She clicks her tongue against her teeth. "You forget that I can see things invisible to the naked eye. You will fall, Nykander. I just pray when you do it will not be too late."

Nykander strides out of the cave, not bothering to look back.

Yet her words affect him, echoing in his ears and blaring louder and louder despite the increasing distance.

A foul taste coats his mouth—my mouth—the result of all the lies he spewed. But he is ready to pay any price for his revenge.

But I don't get to witness more as the scenery changes.

Nyk is in front of me, staring at me with an odd expression in his eyes while I fold our clothes to leave the Sanctuary.

"Stay here. I need to take care of something before we leave," he says, though the words come out of my mouth.

I remember exactly what moment this was—when he'd claimed he went to patch things up with Jeya and Elijah.

My presence remains in his psyche, yet there is still a barrier that does not allow me to read his thoughts in their entirety. I can only see what he sees–a spectator, not an active participant.

He teleports himself out of our cabin and into the woods nearby.

"You are late," a voice calls from behind.

Nyk turns.

Shock fills me to the brim when I see who the owner of that voice is.

Damien.

"She is Lispera's daughter. I was correct," he says in a tight voice. "Did you find what I asked you to?"

Damien walks around with his hands in his pockets.

"And if I did? What is in it for me?"

"I have already given you plenty of souls to consume, Damien. Cut the bullshit and tell me what you found."

Damien chuckles.

"Sure, master," he replies in a mocking tone as he half-bows.

Nykander scowls.

"The Seer confirmed that Mo's essence will be able to take over Barbi's body once she enters Lake Velor."

Nykander narrows his eyes.

"And the terms? What are the terms for this exchange to happen?"

Damien tilts his head to the side, silent for a moment.

"Speak or I will take away all those precious souls you store within your essence," Nykander thunders.

Damien grits his teeth, not responding well to the threat.

"You can channel her essence into the body of your female only once she's strong enough to withstand it. She will need to open her fourth gate."

"And?"

Another silence. Nykander grips tightly onto the master-slave bond he has with Damien to pry the words out of his mouth.

"You cannot claim her until she has opened the fourth gate. After she does, you must fulfill the mating bond. She cannot enter the lake while the bond is only half-fulfilled." The words flow out of Damien's mouth but he suddenly halts, his body trembling as he forces himself to clamp his mouth shut.

"Do not think to trick me, demon. What else? Tell. Me," Nykander warns.

"The female will need to wear something Mo prized—something that can call to her essence."

"Is that all?"

"Indeed, master." Damien nods.

Nykander considers his answer.

"Vow it on your existence."

Damien's nostrils flare.

"I vow it on my existence, master," the demon complies.

"I see. Thank you," Nykander mutters, deep in thought. "You may continue with what we have planned."

"As you say, master." Damien smirks, stepping back and retreating into the shadows.

Nykander waits for him to leave before he withdraws the red ruby ring from his pocket—the same one I thought he'd traded in the village. He touches the ring reverently before bringing it to his lips.

"Soon, Mo. You will be mine again."

His words echo in my ear as I am jolted back into the present.

Eyes wide, heart pounding in my chest, I push myself off him, stumbling on the far end of the bed. His absence inside me is marked, but the betrayal that stings at my soul eclipses every positive feeling I might have ever had for him.

"Barbs?" He frowns. "What is wrong?"

"Stay away from me," I say, my voice trembling with pain.

"Barbs–"

"Don't touch me!" I slap his hands aside as he tries to reach for me.

In my struggle to get away from him, I fall off the bed. And as he comes closer, I continue to retreat, my expression one of horror as I look into the face of the man I love–the man I gave myself to–and find a stranger.

"This was all a lie," I whisper. "Everything was a lie." I shake my head in one last attempt at denial. But how can I deny what's in front of me. All at once, his features morph. He no longer sports the sweet, loving look he used to. Now his mouth is set in a grim line, his beautiful eyes hollow and empty. Indifference replaces what I had previously interpreted as love.

"You saw something," he comments in a bored voice. "What did you see, Barbi?"

"Everything," I whisper. "I saw everything… You've been using me all along, pretending to care about me when in fact…" I trail off as a sob racks my body. "My God, but you had me fooled. You had me wholly and utterly fooled. How you must have laughed at me," I add bitterly.

His cheek twitches. He stands up, unabashed about his nudity as he walks casually toward me.

"You were not supposed to find out like this." He sighs.

"No? And how was I supposed to find out? When my soul left my body so that your beloved can replace me? When my entire essence gets destroyed so your darling Mo can claim my body? When, Nykander? When?" I shout, the windows of the lighthouse shattering at my anger.

His lips flatten in annoyance–the only genuine emotion he appears to be capable of when it comes to me.

"Calm down, Barbi and we will discuss it. You likely only saw snippets out of context," he says.

"Oh, what was out of context? The fact that you caused the plague? Or that Damien was your thrall? Tell me, when he attacked the Sanctuary, it wasn't your brother controlling him, was it? It was you."

His silence speaks a thousand words.

I let out a dry laugh. Cracks slowly form around my heart, and with every second, I'm closer than ever to my breaking point.

"You killed millions of people. Millions ."

"I did what I had to do," he grits out. "You have no idea what I have been through or the sacrifices I have had to make."

"Right. Go ahead and justify mass murder," I spit out.

He shrugs. And that tells me everything there is to know about him.

He is a monster.

"At least tell me something. When did you decide to use me in your plan?

His eyes glint dangerously. He takes another step forward.

I move back, stepping on broken glass that cuts into the soles of my feet just as the truth cuts into my heart.

"You are hurting yourself," he mentions, his tendrils seeping out of his body and moving wildly around, ready to strike. "Let us talk about this calmly."

"When, Nykander?" I demand again.

He tilts his head to the side.

I can't stop comparing the Nykander in front of me to the one I used to know. They are both equally beautiful, but where one was warm, the other is…horrifyingly cold. There is no empathy in his gaze, no compassion. There is only a cold, calculative look that chills me to my core.

He is…frightening in his indifference.

"When you arrived in Kiya," he answers. "You were supposed to lead me and my army of demons to Anthropa, but as it happened, I got lucky." He lets out a dry laugh.

"W-what?" I blink.

He takes another step forward.

"Why do you think I needed all those souls, Barbi?" He raises a brow. "They were not for me, nor were they to feed my legion of thralls, though they certainly got their due. A soul is the purest energy in the universe. And with enough of them, I would have been able to craft a new body for Mo. But as it happens, you fell into my lap and made my job so much easier," he smirks.

"But how… How could you have known what I was? How could you…"

He throws back his head and laughs.

"You are so awfully ignorant, sweetheart," he drawls.

"Don't call me that," I snap.

He merely chuckles.

"A true mating only happens within the same species. When the mating mark appeared, I knew you could not be just a human. You must have some divine energy within you. Whether that was Tartareian or Aperite…" he shrugs. "It was only a matter of finding what you are and how I could use that best, and…" he trails off with a smile. "You certainly did not disappoint. The daughter of the great Lispera herself."

It dawns on me that this is who he is. Until now, he's just been playing a role. He needed me, so he made himself into my ideal man, saying and doing all the things he knew would make me fall for him.

"You are vile," I whisper. "All those lies…"

"How is it my fault that you are so gullible? You are cute, Barbi and quite endearing. I must say, this was fun while it lasted."

My mouth opens and closes in shock.

Fun? This was…fun?

My energy simmers around me, my heartbreak fueling my anger. I'll show him fun! I'll fucking show him…

His dark tendrils surround me, extinguishing my emerging powers. He has me surrounded as he holds me in a tight grip, yet he's not touching me. I try to summon my shield, but I fail miserably.

"You are powerful, I will give you that. But you are no match to me." He laughs at my struggles.

"Fuck. You!" I grit out and spit in his face.

He wipes the moisture from his cheek before he curls his hand around my throat, lifting me in the air. His fingers dig into my airways, and I flail my limbs around in an attempt to get him off me.

"It really was not supposed to end this way."

He glances at me, his expression inscrutable.

"If only you had remained ignorant until the end… You would have gone into that lake, as I told you to, and all this mess would have been avoided. Now…" His lips pull up in a sad smile.

He carries me over to the broken window, dangling me over the edge.

I glance down, terror engulfing me.

The lake is unsettled, the red of the water rippling all around the lighthouse and forming a whirlpool of misery— my misery.

At once, I know that these are my last moments alive.

"Stop," I cry out. I attempt to hold onto him with all my might as my stomach drops just looking at the steep fall.

"I am sorry, Barbs. I really am." He smiles as he tucks a strand of hair behind my ear. "I do care about you, you know." He leans to whisper in my ear. "But I can never love you. My heart will be forever with her."

"Nyk, please," I stammer as he takes a step over the edge of the window. He floats in the air while I hold onto him for dear life. My powers are useless. No matter how much I summon my energy to the surface, I cannot. The shield he's placed over me inhibits my abilities, rendering me useless.

I can only stare into his hauntingly beautiful face as he sends me to my death.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

My heart beats louder and louder in my chest. The mating mark burns a hole through me, echoing this ineffable anguish that is wrecking my soul.

"Goodbye, Barbi," he murmurs softly as he lays a chaste kiss on my lips and wraps the necklace with his ring around my neck. "I will remember you fondly for your sacrifice."

Sacrifice? What sacrifice? This is murder , plain and simple.

He is…killing me. After all we shared, after all we have been through. He is killing me.

None of it was real.

Even my love that sprung from the deepest corners of my soul was not real.

I loved an illusion.

Once more, I fell in love with a character, not a person.

His cold gaze is the last thing I see as he pushes me off him.

My eyes flare in shock. I am unable to muster any strength to fight for my life. Disappointment and despair are my two companions as gravity pulls me down into the abyss. My mark consumes my flesh as pain consumes my soul.

Still, I watch him, wanting to remember this heartbreak forever. Even if my soul somehow dies, and even if Mo takes over my body, I want this pain to become ingrained in my flesh and every atom of my being.

"I hate you, Nykander v'Kyró," I whisper. And as I get close to the water, I close my eyes, readying myself for my demise.

The red water swallows me.

There is no more consciousness. No more awareness.

Just the emptiness of not being.

TO BE CONTINUED