The Dawn

Chapter Seventeen.

Her.

The carriage rattled over the uneven road, the rhythmic clatter of wheels on stone a constant backdrop to the tension that hung thick in the air. Elara sat across from Kaelith, her gaze fixed out the window as the dark forest sped past. The oppressive silence between them was heavy, filled with unspoken words and simmering emotions she wasn't sure she wanted to acknowledge.

She had noticed it as soon as he'd pulled her from that wretched place, his arms strong around her, holding her as if he'd never let go. There was something different about him, something in the way he looked at her, a possessiveness that went beyond mere protection. But it wasn't just his behavior that had changed, she felt it too. A shift inside her, something she couldn't quite name but couldn't deny either.

She should have hated him. They had always been at odds, their mutual disdain a constant in their strained alliance. But now, after everything that had happened, after the agony and fear she had endured, she found herself feeling... different. She wasn't sure what it was, frustration, confusion, or something deeper, something she wasn't ready to confront.

The silence was unbearable, each passing moment only adding to the tension coiling in her chest. She could feel his eyes on her, the weight of his gaze like a physical touch, and it made her want to scream, to demand answers, to make sense of this twisted connection between them.

But she couldn't. She wouldn't give him the satisfaction of knowing he'd gotten under her skin. She wasn't some damsel in distress, waiting for a knight to save her. She had survived, and she would continue to survive, with or without his help.

"You're quiet," Kaelith's voice cut through the silence, low and edged with something she couldn't place.

Elara finally tore her gaze away from the window to meet his eyes. They were intense, dark, and filled with a fire that made her heart skip a beat despite herself. She narrowed her eyes, determined not to let him see the turmoil he stirred in her. "What's there to say?"

He arched an eyebrow, a smirk playing at the corners of his lips. "I expected more of a fight, considering how eager you usually are to argue."

Her fingers tightened on the fabric of her dress, the mention of their usual spats igniting the anger she had been trying to suppress. "You want a fight? Fine. Let's talk about how I got kidnapped in the first place. Maybe it has something to do with you dragging me into this mess."

Kaelith's smirk faded, replaced by a cold, unreadable expression. "I didn't drag you anywhere. You came to me."

"And look where it got me," she snapped, the heat in her voice betraying the fear and pain she still felt. "Tortured for information I don't even have. You think I asked for this? For any of this?"

His eyes darkened, and for a moment, she thought she saw a flicker of something, regret, maybe, but it was gone as quickly as it came. "I never said you asked for it. But you knew the risks."

"Knew the risks?" Elara's voice rose, anger bubbling up inside her, desperate for an outlet. "You think I knew I'd be taken by those... things? That they'd tear me apart for answers I couldn't give? You think I was prepared for that?"

Kaelith didn't respond immediately, his jaw clenched, eyes locked on hers with a burning intensity that made her skin prickle. "You survived," he finally said, his voice quieter, more controlled. "You're stronger than you think."

It wasn't the response she'd expected, and it left her momentarily at a loss. She had wanted to provoke him, to unleash the rage that had been simmering beneath the surface since he'd found her, but his calm, almost detached tone threw her off balance.

"Strong enough to be dragged back to your castle, right?" she shot back, unable to stop herself from lashing out. "Is that what this is? You saving me so you can feel like the hero?"

Kaelith's eyes flashed, a dangerous glint in their depths. "You really think that little of me?"

Elara crossed her arms over her chest, trying to maintain the walls she had built around herself, but they were starting to crack. "You haven't exactly given me reason to think otherwise."

The air between them grew thick with unspoken tension, each breath a struggle against the emotions threatening to overwhelm her. She hated this, hated the way he could make her feel so vulnerable, so exposed. But more than that, she hated the way her heart ached, the way some part of her wanted to believe there was more to him, that maybe, just maybe, he wasn't the monster she had painted him as.

But how could she trust him? How could she trust anyone after everything she had been through?

Kaelith's gaze softened, his voice dropping to a near whisper. "You're right. I don't care about being a hero. But don't make the mistake of thinking I don't care at all."

The words hung in the air between them, heavy with implications she wasn't ready to face. She wanted to challenge him, to demand he explain himself, but the vulnerability in his eyes stopped her. For the first time since they had met, she saw something other than arrogance, something that made her chest tighten with an emotion she didn't want to name.

"Then what do you care about?" she asked, her voice quieter now, almost hesitant.

Kaelith's eyes didn't leave hers, his expression unreadable. "That's something you'll have to figure out on your own."

She wanted to scream at him, to tell him she was tired of his games, but the carriage lurched as it reached the castle, the abrupt stop jolting her from her thoughts. The door swung open, and Kaelith stepped out first, offering her a hand.

Elara hesitated, staring at his outstretched hand as if it were a snake ready to strike. But as much as she wanted to refuse, pride wouldn't allow her to show weakness. She took his hand, her skin tingling at the contact, and let him help her down.

They walked into the dark castle, the tension still simmering between them, unspoken but palpable. She didn't know what to make of his words, of the strange shift she felt in the air around them. But as much as she tried to deny it, she couldn't ignore the growing realization that something had changed between them, something that scared her more than any torture she had endured.

Because for the first time, Elara wasn't sure if she could hate him anymore.