The King of Darkness | ✔️

Chapter Seventeen

When I finally regain consciousness, I am greeted with those familiar scarlet eyes. I am startled by my surroundings but soon find my bearings and remind myself of where I am exactly.

I find that I am in bed - meaning Darian must have carried me here. I'd love to look around the place and the island but it doesn't look like I'll have the chance to do that any time soon. I look down to see my side covered with gauze.

"It's going to take a while to heal but I can help speed up the process," he suggests but I shake my head. I don't want any more of his so-called help.

My whole body feels disgusting, all I want is to wash the remnants of the past twenty-four hours off of my skin and out of my memory. If only it were that easy.

"Manora told me what happened," Darian gets up from his position, kneeling beside the bed, and I furrow my brows. The beast has spoken to him. I'm afraid he must have gone mad, this is quite literally impossible.

"How... how?" is all I can say and he rubs the back of his neck.

When I first saw Manora I knew she wasn't your typical creature, that she was something else, something more. I knew for sure when she had shown certain expressions that made me believe she truly understood me.

"I'm not sure. She was gifted to me as a child, I've grown up with her. I have no way to explain it but I've always been able to speak to her and I've always known there was something different about her and I think you do too," he explains and I run my hand over my face.

"I thought creatures like Manora were not allowed inside the border... she's not wild," I say in utter disbelief.

Darian takes a seat at the foot of the bed before burying his face in his hands. I feel the urge to reach out to him, to comfort him but then I remember him forcing me away and the feeling dissipates.

"My mother..." he trails off before tugging at the roots of his hair. "I swear to the deepest depths of hell Nova Amour, if you tell a single soul, I will rip your heart from your chest," I was about to laugh but then his eyes met mine and I know how serious he is.

I nod my head but he moves closer.

"I need words, Nova," his voice is as cold as ever, I've never seen him this way. I gulp before I open my mouth. But, I stop. Do I really want to know this or would I rather live my life in blissful oblivion?

"Will this change the way I think about you?" I'm not sure I even want to know the answer as his eyes drop to the bed.

"Depends on which way you're talking about," he mutters and my heart ceases to beat. This cannot be good. This cannot be good... at all. But, what could be so bad that he would threaten my life if I told anyone?

"I... won't tell a soul," I say and his eyes meet mine again but it looks as though he doesn't believe me. "I promise," I add and he takes a deep breath.

"My mother, she was..." he begins again and I go against my instincts and move closer to him. I ignore the fire that burns in my side and I sit beside him. He takes his hands away from his face and looks at me with a confused expression.

"You can take your time," I say softly and hesitate before I place my hand over his. The feeling is odd but I only do it in means to comfort him. My breath gets caught in my throat when his fingers lace through mine.

I swallow harshly as his eyes bore into my own. It feels as though the world stops around us as my heart races in my chest so rapidly I fear it may explode. When he speaks everything falls into place and I'm snapped out of it.

"She was a... mistress to Klaudas," once again the world stops but for all of the wrong reasons this time. Klaudas... the devil below, the King of Hell. I hate to do it but I remove my hand from his yet he seems unaffected as he continues. "He had other's at the time but then my mother... fell pregnant with me. Klaudas was my father and he treated me as any father would. For my seventh birthday he gifted me Manora but he also... he also killed my mother that day. I arrived home from the village and saw her mangled body on her bedroom floor, there's no way for me to rid myself of that memory. In a way of getting himself into my good graces again, he named me King of the Acheron court but I have never and will never forgive him."