Chapter 18
513 Words
I fell asleep and entered the dream. The cavern stretched wide under red light. Kael stood before me.
His body looked large and strong. Runes marked his chest. His eyes glowed gold when he looked at me.
He stepped forward and pulled me against him. His hand gripped my hair as he kissed me. The kiss felt hard and demanding. Heat rushed through my body. I wrapped my arms around him and kissed him back.
He lifted me. My legs locked around his waist. He pressed me against the wall. His hands moved over my hips, my waist, and my neck. Every touch made me want more.
“You are mine,” he said against my mouth. “All of you belongs to me.”
He carried me to the throne of black stone and sat down. He kept me on his lap. His hands held my hips tight. He kissed my neck then bit the skin. I gasped and pressed closer to him.
The bond between us grew stronger. Golden threads connected our bodies. I felt his power and his hunger.
I pulled back a little. “Tell me the truth,” I said.
Kael looked straight into my eyes. His hands stayed firm on my hips.
He sent his memories through the bond.
I saw the female wolf with silver fur. She was his mate long ago. They ruled together until she betrayed him. She used moonstone to weaken him. Then she stabbed him while he slept. She told everyone he had gone mad. So they sealed him in the Abyss.
“She was my mate,” Kael said. “I trusted her completely. But she chose power over me. She wanted to rule alone.”
His voice carried the pain of that old betrayal.
I touched his face. “She hurt you badly.”
“Yes,” he answered. “For many years I waited in the dark. Then you arrived. You offered yourself to the Abyss. You woke me. You are nothing like her.”
He kissed me again. This time slower. His hands moved up my back and held me tight. The bond pulsed between us. I felt all of it. His old anger and his need for me now.
We stayed like that. Touching and kissing. The dream made the bond feel complete.
When he finally pulled back he rested his forehead on mine.
“In seven days,” he said, “you will shift fully. We will finish the bond in the real world. Nothing will separate us after that.”
I woke up fast. My body felt hot. My heart beat hard. The places he touched still tingled.
Dawn light entered the window.
Seven days remained until the ritual.
I sat up in bed. The dream stayed with me. Kael’s past. His pain. His claim on me.
I touched my chest where the bond lived. It felt stronger now.
I did not know if I was ready for everything that waited in the Abyss.
But I knew one thing. I could not turn back anymore.
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