Shadows of Avarice - Book #1 (BxB)

Chapter 29

This chapter contains sexual content. Viewer discretion is advised.

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When Xia came to, he woke up in a dark room. The curtains were closed to keep the morning light from shining through. Xia glanced around, recognizing that this wasn't the room he had grown used to. He had only been in this room once before, but he knew where he was. The strong arm wrapped around his waist was confirmation enough. Xia turned to face Osiris.

The sultan was already awake, and he gave Xia a gentle smile when he looked at him. Osiris kissed Xia on the forehead, then said, "I'm glad you're finally awake. You've been unconscious for three days."

Hearing those words stunned Xia. To him, it only felt like yesterday when he returned to the palace. He couldn't believe he had passed out for three days. But he was feeling better. His fever was gone and he felt well rested. He must have worried everyone in the palace, though. He could see it in Osiris' expression.

Xia snuggled up against Osiris' chest, despite knowing he shouldn't allow himself to get close. It was hard for him to ignore how he felt when he was around this man. He still planned on leaving. No matter how he felt about the sultan, his family came first. He was only indulging in this feeling while he had the chance. He wouldn't have this opportunity for much longer.

"I'm sorry. For everything. For getting mad at you at our celebration, for lying to you, and for stealing from you. Everything I did was for my family, but you already know that. I want to apologize because I . . . like you. The last time we saw each other, when I was drunk, you said you would explain things to me. About why me being a man matters. Well, I get it. You can't marry a man. You need to have a child, and I can't provide that. That nobleman . . . he explained why you need a child," Xia admitted. If he was going to spill his secrets, Xia wanted to do it on his own terms. Osiris shouldn't have to force the truth out of him. Admitting his identity was like a weight off his shoulders, but he didn't know how to move forward after this. He waited for Osiris' response.

The sultan was silent for a moment, before finally answering, "I'm going to assume that man told you that my curse would break if I had a child. That is the theory, but there is no guarantee it would even work. Besides, I wouldn't have a child for such selfish means. If having a child means giving them my curse, then I would rather keep it. No one else should have to suffer this burden."

"But what if that's the only way to break your curse? What is your curse anyway?" Xia asked. He still didn't know the full details, only that Osiris killed people when his curse took over.

Osiris was hesitant to answer this question. He took a deep breath, unsure whether now was the right time to tell Xia the truth. "Since you were truthful with me, I will be as well. Whatever this curse is, it turns me into a bloodthirsty beast. I still look like me, but I'm not me when the curse takes over. I can hang on to my humanity for a little while, usually with enough time to lock myself up. But when it does take over, I have the urge to . . . kill. Don't ask me why I was cursed. I don't know why and I don't remember who cursed me. I was too young to remember. All I remember was when it happened, I lost control of myself and lives were lost."

"Were you the one who killed your parents?" Xia quietly asked. He might have been pushing some boundaries by prying into Osiris' life, but he wanted to know. There were things the nobleman said that didn't make sense.

He nodded. "Yes, but I didn't mean to. When the curse takes over, anyone around suffers. It wasn't something we could prepare for either. It happened so suddenly, but the details are foggy. I really don't remember anything."

The sultan seemed stressed talking about this. He tried to recall the events to no avail. While Osiris couldn't remember, Xia had an idea of who would. If he wanted answers, he knew who he needed to speak to. Perhaps that man knew who cursed Osiris.