Kael’s POV.
I didn’t move an inch. “Why?” I asked, my voice low and dangerous. “So you can run back to your father and hide behind his rules? So you can continue pretending that none of this is real? Pretending you don’t feel this?” My words were sharp, cutting through the tension between us like a blade. I could see the fire in her eyes, the defiance, but I also saw something else-something she worked hard to bury. My only intention tonight had been to take her, to claim her, to make her mine in every way possible. This wasn’t about love. It wasn’t even about marriage but about taking her virginity and breaking her.
She shoved against my chest with all her strength, but it was like trying to move a mountain. I didn’t budge, didn’t even flinch. Her hands pressed hard against me, but I stood firm, letting her frustration fuel my dominance.
“I don’t feel anything for you,” she spat, her voice rising with anger. Her words were sharp, but I could hear the cracks in them, the slight tremor that betrayed her. She was lying, and we both knew it.
“Liar,” I growled, the word rumbling out of me like thunder. Without thinking, my hands shot forward, grabbing her wrists and pinning them hard against the wall behind her. The sound of her breath hitching sent a thrill through me, and I leaned in closer, the space between us vanishing.
Her defiance only fueled the fire raging inside me. She was mine. She had always been mine, and she *would* be mine, no matter how much she fought against it. Her resistance was intoxicating, and I craved every moment of it, every spark of her rebellion, because I knew I would break through it eventually.
But before I could take things further, her knee shot up, slamming into my stomach with brutal precision. Pain exploded through me like a shockwave, stealing the air from my lungs and forcing me to stumble back. My grip on her loosened, and she slipped free as I doubled over, clutching my stomach.
“Aria!” I hissed through gritted teeth, the pain sharp and unrelenting as I fought to catch my breath.
She didn’t hesitate. She bolted for the door, her heels clicking sharply against the hardwood floor as she moved with the speed of someone desperate to escape.
“Aria!” I shouted, straightening up despite the pain and chasing after her. My heart pounded, adrenaline surging through me as I made my way toward the front door.
The night air was cold and biting as I burst through the front door, the chill cutting through me like a knife. My breath fogged in the air as I scanned the driveway, my eyes locking onto a figure in the distance. She was already halfway down the gravel path, her sapphire gown billowing behind her like a banner in the wind. Her movements were frantic, her desperation clear.
“Aria, stop!” I yelled, my voice booming through the empty forest that surrounded us. The sound echoed against the trees, but she didn’t stop. She didn’t even look back.
I sprinted after her, my legs pushing harder with every step. My heart thundered in my chest, each beat a reminder of how badly I needed to catch her. The gravel crunched loudly beneath my feet as I closed the gap between us, each step bringing me closer to her.
“Aria, don’t-” I started to yell again, but my words were cut off as blinding headlights appeared out of nowhere.
The car came speeding down the winding road toward us, its engine roaring like a beast unleashed. The sudden light illuminated everything, casting long, sharp shadows across the trees and the gravel path.
For a split second, I froze, my mind struggling to process what was happening. Then I saw her stumble, her foot catching on the uneven gravel as she tried to run.
She fell to her knees, the sharp impact of her fall sending a jolt of panic through me. The car was speeding closer, its headlights bearing down on her like a predator closing in on its prey.
Without thinking, I lunged forward, adrenaline surging through my veins as I reached for her. My hand closed around her arm, and I yanked her to the side with all the strength I could muster.
The car swerved violently, its tires screeching against the gravel as it tried to avoid us. The sound was deafening, a high-pitched scream of rubber against stone.
But I wasn’t fast enough.
The impact came hard and fast, the force of it slamming into me like a freight train. Pain exploded through my body, radiating outward from the point of contact, and I felt myself being thrown off my feet.
I hit the ground with a sickening thud, the world spinning wildly around me. Every nerve in my body screamed in agony, and for a moment, I couldn’t tell which way was up or down.
Everything went blurry, the sounds of screeching tires and Aria’s panicked screams fading into the background. The edges of my vision darkened, and the cold gravel beneath me was the only thing grounding me in reality.
—
Aria’s POV.
“Kael!” I screamed, my voice cracking as I stumbled toward him. My heart felt like it was being ripped apart as I watched his body lying crumpled on the side of the road.
Blood was pooling beneath him, dark and sticky against the gravel, and I felt my stomach twist at the sight. The car that had hit him had come to a screeching stop a few yards away, its headlights cutting through the darkness like an accusation.
The driver stumbled out, his face pale and his hands shaking uncontrollably. “Oh my god,” he stammered, his voice trembling. “I didn’t see him-I didn’t see-”
I ignored him entirely, my focus locked on Kael. Nothing else mattered. Nothing else existed.
“Kael,” I whispered, my voice trembling as I knelt beside him. My hands shook as I pressed them against his chest, desperately trying to stop the bleeding. “Stay with me. Please, stay with me.”
His eyes fluttered open slowly, his gaze unfocused and hazy. But when they landed on me, there was a flicker of recognition.
“Aria…” he murmured, his voice barely more than a breath.
“Don’t talk,” I said quickly, tears streaming down my face in rivers. “You’re going to be fine. We’ll get help-just hold on, Kael. Please.”
But he shook his head weakly, a faint, bitter smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “Guess I won’t… be going to London after all,” he whispered, his voice laced with a sadness that broke me.
“Stop it,” I choked out, sobbing as I pressed harder against the wound. “You’re not dying, Kael. Do you hear me? You’re not dying!” My voice cracked, the desperation in it raw and unfiltered.
His hand lifted weakly, his fingers brushing against my cheek in a gesture so soft it nearly undid me. “I’m sorry… Aria…” he said, his voice fading with each word.
And then his hand fell, limp and lifeless, as his body stilled beneath me.
“Kael?” I choked, shaking him gently. “Kael! No, no, no-wake up! Please, wake up!”
But he didn’t respond. His chest didn’t rise, his eyes didn’t flutter open, and his lips didn’t move.
The world around me seemed to collapse, the weight of his lifeless body crushing me from the inside out.
Kael was gone.
And I didn’t know how to feel.