Chapter 109
I knew what this would mean, so I nodded. To do this feat, he had to spill my blood and attach himself to it in order to access my life energy. He pulled me in closer, curving his palm around the back of my neck, his claws brushing against my flesh, until my chest rested against the bottom of his seat and I was nestled between his powerful legs. I knew he could hear the rapid beat of my heart.
I didn't have his mark or his favor, but if he had already marked me, digging through my memories may have taken this much bloodshed.
Before he could fulfill his promise, my hand moved to grip his wrist, sending electric shocks skittering across my skin from the touch. As I looked up at him and he looked down at me, my anguish reflected in his gaze.
"Whatever you find, whatever you see—" I hesitated, unsure if what I would say next would enrage him. "The cycle of violence between what I am and the wolves with witch blood that come after me promises me that it will end with me." His grip tightened around my neck, and his pupils darkened with rage, a snarl aimed at me.
"I know that you aren't an unjust king, I know—" My blood was seeping out of the cuts his claws made in me. "I know that you never deserved to have a mate like me."
"Stop talking." He let out a grunt. "I didn't give you permission to speak!" Before his claws mercilessly gripped my skin, those were the only words he would let me say.
I could feel the loss of blood all the way down to the pit of my stomach, and the blood flowed heavily, but it was his power over me that caused me to lose consciousness.
I felt as though I was trapped in a house of mirrors, my whole existence enveloped in darkness, and he was all around me.
Inside my thoughts, his presence felt so natural that I should have been afraid.
"Derrick?" I said it in a whisper, but it reverberated everywhere.
The stillness was nearly overwhelming until I sensed a pull at my body. I moved instinctively, trailing an endless silver thread through the dimly lit room.
"I don't know what to do." Tendrils of light shot upwards, and the thread sprang to life, much like the light recognized my words. My heart raced as I saw images growing in front of me. I felt him close to me, yet it felt like I was in charge most of the time, which couldn't be true, could it?
As I reached for one of the light tendrils, the environment around me changed, and I found myself back in the same cell where I had spent the previous week. It felt like someone had taken the air out of my lungs.
I was sitting in the corner, all curled up, staring blankly at the wall with my head resting on my knees. Then the grief I was experiencing wrapped around me once again, and I took a trembling breath. My own thoughts were out of control, and I wondered if he felt the same intensity as me.
Before me, a dark shape eventually took on the form of my partner. His nose wrinkled as he turned to face me.
"Did you think that by picking this memory, I would feel sorry for you?" He was wrong because I didn't know what I was doing, but I said those words bitterly as I looked at him.
"How are you here?" I asked my own inquiry instead of answering his.
He lowered his head and looked away from me.
"You needed to attach yourself to your life's thread before I could take root in your mind." He gave an explanation. "Since you've already brought me to this memory, I might as well find out if my beta was telling me the truth or if you enchanted him to believe you have more power than you have." Though he talked swiftly, I understood what he was saying. Did he believe that I had also charmed our mate bond?
The memory before us flickered ahead like a television show, until the other me found myself in the cage with Gabriel's mate. Derrick advanced as if he meant to pull me out of the path as the rabid wolf snapped her jaws at my throat.
As I saw his hand come up empty and our tension rise, my heart quickened a bit. He loathed me right then and there, yet he couldn't help but feel compelled to shield me.
He observed me as I untangled the web of knots in the feral wolf's mind as the recollection advanced. He remained motionless, observing the milder application of my powers than he had likely imagined.
I mumbled, "I barely know how to use my powers; I wouldn't know where to start on trying to enchant someone," as my memories came back to me, showing Gabriel embracing the woman who had transformed from a rabid wolf into a woman.
He peered at the sight in silence for a moment, then turned around and gave me a furious look.
"Have you ever used your magic on me?"
I was angry with him for asking such a question, but I could also understand why he thought so.
Shaking my head, I said, "Of course not; I would never do that."
His eyes grew narrow.
"Are you saying that your magical abilities have not influenced my feelings toward you?" He was searching for a precise response, but he was unaware of the extent of my power restoration or how erratic it was.
"What do you mean? Why are you asking me this?"
"Tell me you didn't make me fall in love with you." My breathing stopped. "Tell me that you didn't promise me the life I've always wanted and then stripped it away from me." His comments were rife with agony, and I found it difficult to think clearly.
He was in love with me.
"Derrick, I…"
With a grunt of frustration, he interrupted me.
"Don't worry, I've got the ideal solution to end my affection for you. When the truth reveals that the moon erred, I shall exact my retribution." And suddenly he was gone, and I was alone in the dark once more.