† 𝐅𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐝𝐝𝐞𝐧 † Angels Love

Chapter 24

I ran. The rain pounded down, relentless, drenching me, but I didn't care. All I could think about was getting away. Away from the garden, away from Christopher, away from the hurt that felt like it was suffocating me. My heart was a raw, open wound, each beat a fresh stab of pain that drove me forward, my feet splashing through puddles, slipping on the wet grass.

Tears mixed with the rain on my cheeks, my sobs lost in the sound of the storm. Christopher's words echoed in my head, a cruel litany that wouldn't stop. 

"This was just a bet. A game." 

I had been so stupid to believe him, to think that what we shared could be real. I had let myself fall for him, and now I was paying the price.

I burst through the door of my dorm, not caring that I was tracking mud and water across the floor. I stumbled inside, slamming the door behind me, and collapsed onto my bed, burying my face in the pillows. The sobs came harder now, my body shaking with each one, the pain too much to hold back.

Why did I think I could make him see? Why did I believe that he felt the same way? I had seen it in his eyes, felt it in his kiss. But it had all been a lie, a cruel trick to win a stupid bet. I had lost him, lost everything, and now I was alone.

My door opened suddenly, and I looked up, expecting to see Lily or one of the other girls coming to check on me. But instead, my father stood in the doorway, his expression a mask of cold, stern disapproval. He was tall, imposing, his golden wings folded neatly behind him, his white robes pristine despite the rain. The insignia of the Ministry of Justice was emblazoned on his chest, a symbol of his authority, his power.

"Father?" I whispered, sitting up, wiping at my eyes. "Wha- what a-are you doin-ng her-e?"

He stepped into the room, closing the door behind him with a soft click. His eyes were hard, unyielding, and I felt a chill run down my spine. "I heard about your... encounter with the devil boy," he said, his voice low, controlled. "Is it true, Star? Did you kiss him?"

My jaw dropped. It was only five minutes ago, and he knew. He was alredy here. I swallowed, my throat tight. "Father, I-"

"Did you kiss him?" he demanded, his voice rising, the anger simmering beneath the surface. I flinched, nodding, unable to lie to him. His face twisted with disgust, his wings flaring slightly. "How could you be so foolish? Have you learned nothing from Zade's fate?"

At the mention of my brother's name, my heart clenched, a fresh wave of grief washing over me. "Zade's fate wasn't his fault," I said quietly, my voice shaking. "He loved Rou. He didn't do anything wrong."

My father's eyes flashed with anger, his hand slamming down on the table, making me jump. "He loved a devil," he spat, his voice filled with contempt. "He betrayed his own kind, betrayed our family. And you would do the same?"

I shook my head, tears blurring my vision. "It's not like that. I... I just..."

"Do you know what I had to do?" my father interrupted, his voice cold. "Do you know what it cost me to protect our family's honor, to uphold the laws of the Codex? I had to kill my own son. I had to watch Zade die, knowing it was his own weakness, his own betrayal that forced my hand."

The memory of that day flashed before my eyes, vivid and painful. Zade, kneeling before our father, his head bowed, tears streaming down his face. The gleaming blade in our father's hand, the harsh words of condemnation. And then, the swift, terrible motion, the sickening sound of steel slicing through flesh. Zade's body crumpling to the ground, his blood pooling on the white marble floor.

I had screamed, begged for my brother's life, but my father's face had been a mask of stone. "He chose his fate," he had said. "He loved a devil, and now he pays the price." My mother had stood silent, her face pale, her hands clenched at her sides, as if holding back her own pain.

Rou's cries had echoed through the hall, her wings beating against the guards who restrained her. 

"No! Zade!" she had screamed, her voice filled with a grief that tore through the room. Rou, who had loved my brother, who had fought to protect him. Rou, who was taken away in chains, her fate sealed by the same rules that condemned Zade.

I stared at my father, my heart pounding with a mixture of fear and defiance. "I'm not Zade," I said, my voice barely more than a whisper. "And Christopher is not Rou. We... we haven't done anything wrong."

My father's eyes narrowed, his expression darkening. "You have feelings for him," he said, his voice dripping with contempt. "You kissed him. You broke the rules. Do you understand what that means, Star? Do you understand the consequences of your actions?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but the words wouldn't come. I was too afraid, too overwhelmed by the weight of his disapproval, by the memory of Zade's death, by the love I couldn't deny.

"Father, please," I said, my voice breaking. "I... I just want to be happy."

He stared at me, his eyes cold and unyielding. "Happiness?" he sneered. "You think you can find happiness with a devil? You are a fool, Star. Just like your brother."

He turned away, his wings snapping open, casting a shadow across the room. "End it, Star," he said, his voice final. "End it now, or I will do what is necessary. I will not lose another child to the weakness of love."

He left without another word, the door closing behind him with a soft thud. I sat there, trembling, the weight of his threat pressing down on me, suffocating me. I thought of Zade, of the love he'd found with Rou, of the price he'd paid. I thought of Christopher, and the love I'd found, and the price I was now being asked to pay.

Tears streamed down my face, my body wracked with sobs. My love for Christopher had brought me nothing but pain, had shattered everything I believed in. And now, the threat of losing him, the fear of losing myself, was more than I could bear.