The frozen heart

Chapter 22: Embers of a Dying Flame

Chapter 22: Embers of a Dying Flame

The dim light of the cell flickered, casting long shadows on the cold stone walls. The air was thick with the scent of dampness and despair, and Kaiden could feel the weight of it pressing down on him, suffocating his every breath. He sat beside Anne, his heart breaking as he looked at her frail form, hunched over in pain.

Anne's once vibrant spirit had withered away. Her skin, pale and marred with bruises, seemed almost translucent under the flickering light. Her eyes, once full of life and determination, were now dull and haunted, barely holding on. She had endured so much torment, and the fire that once fueled her hope was now a flickering ember.

Kaiden knelt beside her, his hand brushing a stray lock of hair from her face. "Anne..." he whispered, his voice thick with emotion. He couldn't find the words. He had failed her, again and again, and the guilt gnawed at him like a festering wound.

Anne's lips trembled as she spoke, her voice barely more than a whisper. "Kaiden... please... let me go."

Kaiden froze, his heart shattering at her words. "No," he said, shaking his head. "I won't let you die. I promised I'd protect you."

Anne's eyes glistened with tears, but she wasn't crying for herself. She was crying for him. "You can't protect me anymore, Kaiden," she said, her voice breaking. "Every time you try... they hurt me more. I can't take it anymore. I can't..."

Kaiden clenched his fists, the familiar surge of icy power bubbling beneath his skin. His curse, the very thing that had brought him here, seemed to taunt him now, useless in the face of her suffering. He had killed countless people for the Nightshade Order, obeyed their every command, and still, they hurt her. Still, they took everything from him.

"I won't let them touch you again," Kaiden vowed, his voice rough with determination. "I'll kill them all if I have to. I'll—"

"Kaiden, stop," Anne interrupted, her voice pleading. "You can't fight them. Not like this."

She reached for his hand; her grip weak but steady. Kaiden looked down at her fingers, her touch soft despite the torment she had endured. She was so fragile, and yet her strength was something he had always admired. But now, she was asking for the one thing he could never give her—freedom from this nightmare.

"I'm so tired," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I'm tired of fighting. I'm tired of hurting. And I'm tired of watching you destroy yourself for me. You're not the boy I once knew. They're turning you into something else... someone else. Please, Kaiden... let me go."

His throat tightened, his chest burning with a mix of rage and helplessness. "I can't," he rasped. "I can't lose you, Anne. You're the only reason I've survived this long. If you die..." His voice trailed off, unable to finish the thought.

What would he become without her? The darkness inside him was already festering, growing stronger with each kill, with each day he spent in the Nightshade Order's grasp. Without Anne, he feared he would lose himself entirely, swallowed whole by the curse that had haunted him since birth.

But Anne, even in her broken state, understood. She had always understood.

"You'll be free," she said softly. "Free from all of this. Free from me."

"Don't say that," Kaiden growled, his voice thick with desperation. "You're not a burden. You never were."

Anne smiled weakly, her lips trembling as more tears spilled from her eyes. "Kaiden," she whispered.

Kaiden's breath hitched, the confession piercing through him like a knife. He had known—he had always known—but hearing it now, in this moment of despair, was almost too much to bear. He leaned down, pressing his forehead against hers, his body trembling with the weight of his grief.