The Prince's Gift

Chapter 28.

Zane's POV

A jolt of pain wracked inside of me as my fingers ran over the puffy pink scars lined across her back. Some were long, some short, and some deeper than others. They were whip marks. He'd whipped her nearly to the bone. At least a dozen of them scattered across her back and a low growl rumbled from deep within my chest as fury began to surge through me.

She instantly turned to face me and I could see the pain lacing her features. "I'm ok now." She whispered.

"The hell you are. I'll kill him Ana. I swear it." I snarled, my hands tightening into balls against my legs.

She inched closer to me, placing her hands gently around my fists and I could already feel myself responding to her. The anger was fading and being replaced with a consuming need to touch her.

Protect her.

Love her.

My arms opened wider and she immediately moved into me, resting her face against my shoulder as her arms wrapped around me. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry Ana."

She hugged me tighter and I could feel her tears falling against my skin. I could smell the salt in the air.

"I felt it. I felt it every time you were hurting, but I couldn't stop it. I tried. I begged them to let me take you away but I couldn't. Not without war." I breathed in her scent as it wrapped around me, instantly filling me with a tinge of anger as I smelled it laced with his. I pulled away, cupping her cheek in my hand as my thumb stroked along her jaw. "I don't give a fuck now what happens. I won't let him hurt you anymore. Not after this. He will kill you if you don't let him have what he wants Ana. You know that."

She sighed and nodded, her hand absently moving to the crook of her neck. Another low growl escaped from the back of my throat and I gently pushed her hand away. The silver mark I'd left on her beautifully creamy skin was now ruined, leaving a jagged white and silver series of bites and healed tears in its place. It was nearly destroyed, along with the flesh surrounding it.

"When was the last time he hurt you?" I asked quietly, trying to control the anger tightening my words.

She inhaled sharply and I sensed her body stiffen, her heart stalling in her chest. "This morning." She whispered finally.

My eyes widened in realization. "He's been giving you just enough blood to keep you alive and close your wounds, but not to fully heal you."

That bastard. He was going to die.

"I'm ok Zane. I can endure it. I won't let him take it I won't let him break me." She said quietly, her eyes trained on my hand in front of her resting on her thigh.

"Look at me Ana."

Her eyes slowly rose to meet mine and I could see the exhaustion hiding within them, lacing pain through each movement as she stared back at me.

"He's going to kill you if you don't. If he can't take the gifts you hold, he won't allow anyone else to either. Mainly me."  My gaze hardened and a slow bubbling anger had begun to build back inside of me. I was not going to let him hurt her again. Never again. "And my parents fear that you won't be able to endure the torture he'll do to you before releasing my mark. If you don't, they'll kill you to protect the kingdom. Maddox can't be trusted with that kind of power."

Her jaw dropped and her eyes widened as her body froze. I instantly pulled her closer, stroking her cheek as my free arm wrapped around her shoulders. "I will not let that happen. I won't let anyone hurt you. Do you understand?" I said firmly.

She slowly nodded, but I could tell she wasn't convinced. Her eyes were frantic and I could hear her heart racing in her chest, pumping furiously as she processed her options.

"So I either run, or you turn me. Those are my only options right?" She said evenly, on a breath.

I gritted my teeth and nodded shortly. "I don't see another way." I finally answered as I took a calming breath. "I would've done it now, but I was afraid you would hate me for it. I didn't know if that was something you even wanted."

She sighed and leaned forward, pressing her hand to my chest and resting her head against mine, breathing me in. She froze and pulled away, her eyes dropping to my chest and then to my head before meeting my eyes. The same thought ran through my mind within an instant.

"What the hell was that that hit me?" I said lowly.

She shook her head and sighed, her eyes clouded in confusion. "I honestly don't know. How did I..." She pulled her hands away, flipping them over and over again inspecting them as if they were on fire.

I reached up to wrap my hands around hers, pulling them up to my lips and placing a kiss on each of them before pulling them into my chest. "Your gift. It was your gift Ana."

Her eyes widened and paused for a moment. "How? How did this happen? Nothing's happened like this yet."

I stopped and eyed her, trying to decode her wording. "Nothing like this? What has happened?"

She took a breath and closed her eyes, seeming to calm herself before she continued. In the glow of the cavern, her skin appeared kissed by the stars themselves. She was stunning. How could anyone ever want to hurt her? My Ana. I wouldn't allow it ever again. She was mine whether the treaty held or not.

"I've dreamt of what's going to...happen. Several times." She gulped and I could tell it was hard for her. But I had to know.

"About what?" I asked softly, pulling her slowly into my hold as she rested the side of her face against my chest. My arms wrapped comfortingly around her and I could feel her breath stagger as she answered.

"About what Maddox was going to do to me." She breathed.

I snarled but felt her hands wrap around my arms, stroking gently against my skin. How was she the one comforting me right now? I focused on stilling my anger, pushing it to the back until the appropriate time. He would pay for what he's done.

"What else?" I asked finally.

"Well, the day of my birthday was the worst. I had visions all morning of what was coming and I was so afraid that when the guard came with Ehren to retrieve me, I bolted out of my cell. I didn't get far, but as soon as the guard wrapped his arms around me, I tried to pull his arms away and commanded he let me go."

"And?" I asked after a moment.

"And he did." She said shakily. "Ehren saw it and asked me to try it on him, but it wouldn't work. It only worked on the guard for some reason."

I scoffed at the mention of his involvement. He would pay too. "Why the hell would he want you to try it on him?"

"Because he wanted to let me go. But he knew he couldn't unless I made him." Her voice was quiet, filled with thought and I could hear the way it softened at the mention of Ehren.

A pang of jealousy stabbed my heart and I wasn't sure how to proceed. I was thankful that he'd been helping her as best he could, but he'd been part of just as much of her pain as Maddox. She seemed to care about him. Appreciated him.

"He's been helping me as much as he could Zane. He brought me extra food and water when the guards were gone. He knew he couldn't heal me because Maddox would know the moment he tasted my blood."

"Shit." I said. "I hadn't thought that far. I won't let him get close enough to find out I've helped you anyway. You have to decide what you want to do."

She sat in thought for a moment before finally turning to face me, placing her hands on my face as her eyes filled with unshed tears. "Drink from me."