45. Chapter 45
CHAPTER 45
Cassiel
C assiel sensed her before he opened his eyes. They felt heavy, vision unclear, but as he blinked them open, he winced. His skull ached terribly. Where was he? There were no windows. How long had he been unconscious?
He swallowed and licked his dry lips. The shift of his arm was met with resistance and the clink of metal. He was fastened to the brick wall with much thicker chains.
Dyna’s cool voice drifted from the shadowed corner. “Those are made with Skath metal, so don’t bother trying to break them.”
His pulse immediately leaped at the sound. A single candle rested on top of a set of barrels, casting flickering patterns on the stone wall. His mate sat on a bench with her arms and legs crossed, her face draped in shadows.
She was a hallucination, had to be.
Because he could not fathom what it means for her to be standing in the same room as him. I had time to think about what I would say if I ever saw you again. But now that you are here, I find I have nothing to say except one thing.”
She was in front of him in an instant, and the icy touch of her blade met his throat. “Remove the barrier.”
Weight in Cassiel chest deepened, pulse racing in his veins at the sight of those emerald eyes as sharp as jagged gems. An invisible fist gripped his heart until he couldn’t breathe. “Dyna…” Her name caught in his throat and the back of his eyes stung. “You’re real.”
“As real as this knife. Now remove the barrier, Cassiel!”
He blinked at her shout, taking in the fury in her eyes, burn at against his throat, and her shallow breath on his skin. Her shield on the bond was so solid, he didn’t feel any of her emotions through the fragments of their bond. But he saw them on her face.
It carried the full weight of her rage, and he finally realized … that she knew exactly what he had done.
She remembered.
Everything.
“You’re real,” Cassiel said again with sudden clarity. “When did you regain your memories? I had no sign.”
Dyna sneered. “You think I would give it to you? Only so you would return to do it again?”
It was the hatred burning in her eyes that finally made everything fall clear for him.
Cassiel shook his head, his chest heaving. “Dyna, I … I’m sorry. I—” His throat clamped shut and he had to force himself to simply breathe. She was looking at him with such disgust, he was desperate to say the right words, and terrified to say the wrong ones. “Your magic is a beacon. They would have kept coming after you until you were dead. I had to make them believe you already were. The barrier was for your protection. You were supposed to stay dead to the rest of the world, but you came to Nazar. You exposed yourself to everyone …” His voice caught as he felt a sudden fear for her safety. “Why would you do that?” he exclaimed. Why would you show yourself?”
“Because I had to,” Dyna said tightly. She looked away, as if she couldn’t look at him, as if his presence offended her. “I wanted nothing to do with you anymore, but not even I could escape what you have become.”
His eyes widened as he recalled what she had done to stop him. The things she must have seen him do…
Cassiel’s quiet question fell in the silence, “What happened after you rendered me unconscious? Did they hurt you?”
“No one was intent on challenging me once they witnessed our reunion . I am now the Queen of Fire.”
Dyna retorted as though she found it absurd, but he could not think of a better title. The way she had appeared in the smoke, encompassed in green flame as she walked through his, there existed no other way to describe her.
“Lord Gadriel was merely glad to be rid of you.” Her hard gaze rose to him again. “As will I be once you return to me what you stole.”
The day he constructed the barrier and erased her memories was still clear in his mind, carved into his bones. And Cassiel looked at her, he found she was no longer within his reach.
“I—” He cut off at the ice-cold steel pressed at his jugular.
She lifted his chin with the tip of the blade. “You have three seconds to drop the barrier before I slit your throat.”
Every word dripped with venom. She was a gorgeous fury, and he would have happily died in her arms if she were the last thing he saw. But at the tremble of the blade against his pulse, he knew that was not his fate today.
“You won’t kill your mate,” Cassiel sighed. “You can’t.”
“I am not your mate!”
Every shrieked word punched him in the gut, yet he could only smile miserably. To simply be in the same room as her what sending currents through the bond and the brittle remnants of his soul. It sang weakly in recognition and plea. “This hum in my chest says otherwise.”
Gritting her teeth, Dyna let out a frustrated groan that was part scream.
Cassiel didn’t bother bracing. He was desperate to feel any other sort of pain than the constant agony of the brittle bond in his chest. “Do it,” he whispered.
Backing away from him, Dyna’s mouth trembled with shaky breaths. They stared at each other as she clenched her jaw tightly.
Then she said, “Very well.”
Setting down the knife, Dyna tore off her corset and began to unbutton her tunic and kick off her boots.
His eyes widened. “What are you doing?”
The tunic dropped with a flutter at her feet. Then she pulled at the stays of her leather trousers next.
Dyna smiled shrewdly. “Torturing you.”
His pulse climbed at the sight of her bare legs and the glimpse of soft cleavage from her white camisole and undergarments. Crimson locks fell in soft waves around her shoulders dusted with freckles. Cassiel swallowed, this throat drying.
Picking up the knife, Dyna returned to him and ran fingers up his chest over his racing heart. “Where should I start?”
He inhaled a ragged breath at her familiar honeysuckle sent. The bond burned with want. To have her so close after so long, arousal instantly swam through him.
“Here?” Dyna traced the knife’s cool hilt over his collarbone, making goosebumps sprout on his skin. “Or here?” She tapped the flat side of blade against her thigh.
He blinked, confused until she jabbed the knife into her flesh, stifling a scream.
He cried out in horror, “Dyna!”
She ripped out the knife with an angry whimper. “Where else?”
Cassiel panted in panic as he felt an echo of her pain. “What are you doing? Stop this!”
Holding his gaze, Dyna winced as she lightly drew the knife above her belly button. Bright red dripped down her pale stomach.
“Dyna, stop!” The chains clanked violently as Cassiel jerked wildly against them to get to her. “Please, stop!”
He watched helplessly as the blade sliced down the outside of Dyna’s left shoulder to the top of her wrist. Then from her ankle to her thigh.
His stomach churned when he realized she was cutting herself in every spot he had written a vow.
“No more!” He strained against the chains. “Please…”
She lifted the knife to her neck. “Do it!”
Cassiel winced from her scream and nodded wildly. “All right,” he said shakily. “You win. Come here.”
Dyna hesitated to get any closer. She didn’t trust him. How could she? The question only made him feel hollow inside.
“To remove the barrier I have to touch you…” Cassiel lowered his gaze to the floor. “…in the same manner it was placed.”
With a kiss.
Dyna recoiled. The distress in her body was so great he wanted to die right then.
“Upon my word, you have nothing to fear from me.”
“Your word?” Her eyes became sharp as the jewels they resembled. “I have already seen what your promises are worth.”
He shut his eyes.
“Zev and the others are standing outside.” She nodded to the wooden door beside him. “If I sense even a hint of your compulsion, they will come in here and stop you.”
It was clear from her tone what she meant by that.
He nodded once.
Dyna watched him another second longer, then she took a staggering step towards him, then another until they were inches apart. “I am only doing this to recover what you stole from me. I will despise every second of it.”
His gaze dropped to her lips. “I know.”
Cassiel inwardly quivered at her nearness, taking in the flecks of gold in her irises and the constellation of freckles on her cheeks. She looked different. Her body made strong with lean muscle with an aura of assurance in how she carried herself. The softness that had once been there was gone.
Rising on her toes, Dyna clutched the front of his coat and pressed her mouth to his. He inhaled sharply at the touch even if it was hard and cold. Sighing, his lips moved over hers slowly. She was stiff and unresponsive. And he mourned the possibility she may never allow this again. His wings gently pulled her closer, and she finally leaned against him. Her arms snaked around his neck, melding into his body as if she couldn’t help herself or perhaps for support. She kissed him harder. It was wild and crushing and angry. It startled him because he didn’t know she could kiss like that.
The frayed bond trembled, shaking awake. It rejoiced to be near his mate after so long that he didn’t care. He would take any excuse to touch her ... when it may very well be the last time. The thought made the back of his eyes burn.
Cassiel soul searched and her bright soul did not greet him as it used to. Its green light was dim and faint, nearly swallowed in the darkness. It almost made him stagger to see the damage he had done. Dyna nails dug into him, reminding him of her demand. He searched past her soul, coming upon the door of her shield, bared by steel and fire.
He dared not look at what lay there. Cassiel only searched for what he came to do. And he found it. A colossal wall that contained her magic. The barrier had several cracks across it, as though a giant had beaten against it, eager to break free. There was so much anger in each fracture, she would have gotten through eventually.
Because no matter how scared Dyna was, how helpless, or lost, she had a tenacity that didn’t allow her to give up.
White light flared between their lips as Cassiel tore down the barrier brick by brick. Tendrils of green light danced in the edges of his vision as her Essence broke free like a river tearing through a dam. He felt warmth flood her body, coating her soft skin. He wasn’t sure if it was due to her magic returning or because of him.
How he wished it was because of him.
Once the barrier vanished, Dyna wrenched herself off him, stumbling back. Both panted, her eyes wild as she wiped her moist lips. Her hands shook and her complexion was horribly pale.
Cassiel felt the world tilt. The strength left his legs, and he almost fell back against the wall. But it wasn’t him.
She made a sound before her eyes rolled, and she crumbled to the ground.
“Dyna!” Seraph fire flared at his hands and the chains snapped clean off. He gathered her small body in his arms, brushing away the single tear rolling down her temple. She had lost too much blood. This was how far she would go to get her magic back?
He buried his face in her neck, feeling like an absolute waste. “I’m sorry.”
Standing, Cassiel gently laid her on the wooden bench before quickly fetching the knife. He sliced open his forefinger and spread his blood over her shallow wounds. The surface of his skin tingled with each touch as the slashes seamlessly healed. He waited, watching her face as he checked her pulse. Dyna’s complexion gradually returned to normal, and her breathing evened out. With his awakened power, it didn’t take so long to heal others anymore.
There was a small cut above her eyebrow, but when he reached for it, Dyna’s glowing eyes snapped open.
A blast of Essence hurled him back with a powerful force. He caught himself before he crashed into the wall.
Green light glowed off Dyna’s skin, illuminating her eyes as her magic charged the air. She rose to her feet. “Never again, Cassiel.”
There were so many declarations behind that statement.
Never to heal her.
Never to touch her.
Never to kiss her.
But he knew the main one of all.
Cassiel held up his hands to yield, making the manacles softly clink. “I was not?—”
“If you ever use your power on me again, I will hurt you far worse than you have ever hurt me.” They were biting words behind clenched teeth. Laced with her anger. Beneath it all, he heard the well of hurt and betrayal.
His throat tightened.
“Dyna—” Cassiel took a step, but she jerked back with a hiss.
She didn’t want him anywhere near her.
That fact alone caved in his chest, and he felt like he couldn’t breathe.
His mate … couldn’t stand him anymore.
All his life Cassiel had lived with that kind of rejection. To be despised and loathed. That had been due to what he was and there was nothing he could change about that.
Dyna despised him now for what he did , and that pain was worse knowing he had earned it. Cassiel forced himself to stay put, even if he was desperate to be closer to her.
But if he tried, she may kill him.
Vicious rancor came off her in waves so strong he felt it like a stifling summer heat.
Keeping her harsh gaze on him, Dyna retrieved her clothing. “Turn around.”
He obeyed. Holding still, Cassiel listened to the wet peel of the bloodied fabric before it plopped on the stone floor. Then came the soft whisper of cloth. The sound elicited memories.
White fabric sliding over her naval.
The graze of fingertips on his feathers.
Quiet words breathed against the curve of a neck.
“Where is Lord Jophiel?”
He stiffened at the sudden question. “Why do you ask?”
At the soft scrape boots on the floor, he turned around.
Dyna stood across the cellar from him now dressed, with her arms crossed. “Answer the question.”
Cassiel’s gaze dipped to the dried blood left on her fingers. They drummed against her arms, waiting. “Lord Jophiel sits in a dungeon in Hilos where he awaits inquisition … for conspiring against the crown.”
The words made him sick.
Even his uncle had turned against him.
Dyna stared at him incredulously. “Surely, there must be some mistake. Did he plead his case?”
Leaning against the wall, Cassiel crossed his arms. “Of course, but the evidence could not be disputed. He claimed my father had ordered him to place the witch bangles on me, which was a lie. He then insisted Zekiel had given them to him by royal command.”
Her brow furrowed. “You believe he was part of the coup? Lord Jophiel may have been lied to.”
“My uncle is no fool,” Cassiel said tightly. The subject still stung, and he clenched his jaw to keep his ire from surfacing. “I cannot accept he would not have seen through such a ploy. He had to be part of it. For why else would he subdue my power the night before I was challenged? Why bring Zekiel and Gareel to Skelling? Why did you have a matching bangle placed on you at the lake?”
Dyna frowned at the ground, mulling over that. How he wished to have a glimpse of her thoughts. All that remained was empty silence where her presence used to be.
After a moment, she shook her head. “I simply cannot believe it.”
“The evidence is clear,” he murmured. He was part of the coup to see me dead.”
Lord Jophiel had been his surrogate father, the only one who spared him any care. And yet to find none of it had been genuine only made him feel more worthless.
Dyna’s expression flickered with something. “Whatever may have happened, I know one thing for certain. Lord Jophiel loves you like a son, and he told me so with a truth bell in the room. He could not have lied to me if he did not believe what he was saying.”
Cassiel shook his head, immediately dismissing that. Because he couldn’t accept the possibility that he had been wrong. “He put bangles on me with his own hands.”
Dyna looked away from him as she leisurely walked to the other end of the room, passing him with a thoughtful frown on her face. “Could it be his judgment was impaired because he feared you, Cassiel? You were not exactly in control of your power in Hermon. Perhaps he felt as if he had no choice.”
The moon had shone over Lord Jophiel’s face in his room that night, his eyes pained with regret. “I wish I did not have to be the one. But you have left us no choice…”
Had it been done out of fear?
“After what I heard of what became of Skath and what I witnessed in Nazar, he had reason to be afraid.” Dyna turned to face him with narrowed eyes. “Your uncle is not the only one with impaired judgement. A king should know better than to attack his people or contain them without trial.”
Then she lifted her foot and took a deliberate step backward into the wall.
But there was no wall.
The room rippled with the luster of glamour in the sunlit room and the door behind him vanished, revealing a dingy wine cellar.
And him, standing within a cage.
Cassiel inhaled a sharp breath, and he ran for her. “Dyna!”
She yanked the cell door closed with a loud clang . Zev and Lucenna appeared behind her, expressions cold. They stood in a dark hallway leading to a shadowy set of stairs.
“What is this?” Cassiel gripped the bars. “What are you doing?”
“I may have lied about the chains, but this cell truly is constructed with Skath metal,” Dyna said.
He knew it was. He could feel the divine magic within the craftmanship of the steel. With a wave of her hand, green light coated the cell, imbuing it with her magic, all the more assuring he could not break free.
Cassiel’s chest compressed under the weight of shock, his lungs struggling for air as panic bubbled up his throat. “Don’t this.”
“I did you the kindness of providing a window.” She motioned to a small gap in the wall near the ceiling. It was leveled with the ground outside, barely perceived sky past a tuff of grass.
“No.” Out of fury and desperation, Cassiel hit the bars, and they pulse with light, knocking him back. A shaky breath heaved from his lungs, and he got to his feet again. He stared at her, still in disbelief that she would do this to him. “You don’t understand the danger you’re in now that the Realms know you’re alive. I need to be free when they come!”
“I can take care of myself,” Dyna said as Zev and Lucenna headed for the stairs. “If you want out of your cell, you will free Lord Jophiel of his.”
She turned away.
“Dynalya,” Her name left his lips on plea. He gripped the bars with trembling hands. “You … you locked me in a cage .”
She paused with her back to him for a moment. Turning slightly, she looked back at him over her shoulder with pain shining in her wet eyes. “It’s no different than what you have done to me.”
Then she ran.
“Dyna? Dyna!” Cassiel’s voice chased her down the hall until the cellar doors slammed shut in place.