Chapter 24 #5
She spoke as though I’d been nothing more than part of the evening’s entertainment, and though I wanted to reject the thought outright, to cling to some fragment of dignity, I couldn’t ignore the truth settling within me—that in their eyes, and in that moment in reality itself, I had been precisely that.
“Bondward,” Aelia called. “I hope this has taught you a lesson you will never forget. I am certain my husband will lose interest once he learns how eagerly you came apart beneath the Ringbreaker of Caelora. A beast he despises above all others.”
Shame crept beneath my skin. I closed the slit of my dress where it had fallen open. My hands trembled as I smoothed it, my body still shaking, reluctant to obey me.
The women rose and disappeared through the curtains, laughter fading, leaving the space hollow. A slow fury unfurled beneath the shame. It didn’t matter that I had wanted him, that I desired Vayren more than any man I’d ever known. The moment should have been mine to choose. Mine to give.
Instead, they had turned it into spectacle.
Vayren stepped closer. I refused to meet his eyes. When he offered his hand, I hesitated a heartbeat before taking it, allowing him to pull me to my feet. I steadied myself against him, adjusting my dress, pushing damp strands of hair from my face before finally lifting my gaze.
There was no regret there. Only a dark glint of possessiveness remained—and despite everything, it made my pulse quicken.
“Is this what you wanted from me?” I demanded.
“Are you satisfied now?” Anger was easier to hold than the vulnerability beneath it, so I let it rise, let it shield the tremor in my voice.
He didn’t flinch. Instead, he stepped closer, until the space between us disappeared again, his voice low enough that only I could hear it.
“Satisfied? You think I did this for me?” His hands curled. “You think keeping you clothed—refusing to take you roughly in front of them, refusing to spread you out naked for their amusement—was for my benefit?
“You don’t know exactly what I’m capable of yet, but I assure you I did the bare minimum that was demanded of me. I preserved your dignity as best I could.”
His hand rose, hovering at my waist without touching.
“They left me no choice. You are the one who refuses to let me protect you. You reject the idea of being mine. If you had bonded with me before tonight, I would have burned that entire room to the ground before I let them take so much as a breath from you.”
My breath stalled in my chest.
“Even so… what happened tonight was not theirs.”
His thumb finally brushed my hip, tracing my curves.
“It was ours. And if you think I’m satisfied,” he murmured, his voice deepening, “then you haven’t been paying attention, little Bondward. I have only just begun wanting you.”
My pulse skipped as I stared at him, something pulling me toward him—but before I could answer, the curtains were drawn back and the doors to the chamber opened.
Laughter echoed first. The Imperator returned with Tiberion, the others at his side, the scent of stables and night air clinging to them.
He beckoned Severa, who immediately rose from a pile of cushions. As if nothing happened.
“Well, wife,” he said with a stern expression, “did you enjoy yourselves in our absence?”
“Immensely My Lord Imperator. Though we won’t speak of it. Our little secret,” she said, casting me a sidelong glance. The message was clear and the unspoken threat lingered between us like a blade pressed lightly to my throat.
Aelia laughed, lifting her goblet. “We had a most delightful diversion.”
The Imperator’s gaze drifted across the room, satisfied—unaware, or unconcerned.
Vayren had already stepped back to the wall, the mask firmly in place once more.
Untouchable. Controlled. I moved to stand beside him, but unlike him, I couldn’t mask what had happened as easily.
My skin was still flushed, a sheen of sweat cooling along my collarbones.
My breathing had only just steadied. My legs felt weaker than they should.
Marcus noticed. He excused himself and approached us with concern. “Bondward Valentina. You appear unwell. Have your injuries worsened? You look fevered.”
I wanted to tell him it was nothing, that I was only unsettled because of Talia. But the thought faltered as something else took hold. An opening.
I let my shoulders sag, allowing the tremor in my limbs to show, my hand rising to my temple as if the pain had returned. “I believe I may have overexerted myself,” I whispered. “The bandage was removed earlier, and the wound aches. Perhaps I should see Vibius.”
He frowned, studying my flushed skin. “Yes… yes, that would be wise. We cannot risk infection. Go. Take the carriage, I will have a word with the driver. Afterward, you may retire for the night—the hour grows late. We will not be much longer ourselves.”
Vayren’s head snapped toward me. But I didn’t look at him.
“Thank you Marcus.”
I dipped my head. But inside, my resolve hardened. This was it. The opportunity I’d been waiting for—wrapped in concern, cloaked in weakness. Tonight, they had stripped me of my dignity, but they wouldn’t be here to see what came after. I wouldn’t be returning.
As the music swelled once more, I lowered my head in practiced submission. The servants escorted me from the main chamber and I felt the weight of Vayren’s stare against my back. He wasn’t fooled.
My legs carried me shakily toward the exit. Eyes followed me—light, green, hazel, blue—burning into my back for different reasons.
It didn’t matter. I just had to reach the Ludaryn, pray Jorius and Livia had managed to gather the provisions, and leave before dawn broke over Valystria. Then I’d be beyond all their reach.