His Dark Moon, Her Sacrifice

Chapter 3

Ismerie lifted her gaze to meet his. Her eyes brimmed with heartbreak so profound it felt as though her very soul was being torn apart.

Only hours earlier, he had solemnly sworn that once the child was born, he would send Aveline away. Now he intended to bring her into the home they shared.

Her heart felt shredded and bleeding. Unbidden, her thoughts drifted back to the day they had signed their marriage papers.

Before the registrar, Leontis held her hands and vowed from the bottom of his heart, "Leontis Thornecroft swears to this day, my life belongs only to Ismerie. My heart will never hold another woman."

Only five short years had passed. Every promise he had made with such sincerity had burned away like fireworks in the night, leaving nothing behind.

She pressed a hand against her chest. Fine beads of cold sweat formed across her forehead, and all the color drained from her face.

Leontis stepped forward and gently wrapped his arms around her.

"My mother already knows about this," he said softly. "It was all her doing. Once Aveline moves in, she'll stop making things difficult for you."

Once, she would have believed every word without question. Now she could no longer tell where the truth ended and empty reassurance began.

Lady Thornecroft narrowed her eyes, her gaze sharp as a blade.

"You can't give him an heir, and now you begrudge another woman who can? Every great family has long accepted such things. If you can't bear it, sign the divorce papers and return to where you came from!"

"Mother," Leontis said sharply, cutting her off. "I've already done as you asked and agreed to let her stay. What happens between Ismerie and me is no longer your concern."

Lady Thornecroft refused to back down. "I know exactly what you are, a fortune-teller who dares to meddle with fate! If anything happens to my grandson before he's born, none of us will escape the consequences. The Thornecroft family rules are absolute. Break them, and you'll wish you'd been sent to prison instead."

"Mother, enough." Leontis' voice rang with unmistakable authority.

Listening to them argue, Ismerie knew better than anyone how cruel the Thornecroft family's traditions could be.

During the first months of their marriage, Leontis had often been away for days at a time.

Lady Thornecroft had forced her to rise before dawn every morning to memorize endless household rules, then remain by her bedside late into the night, attending to her every whim.

She had endured it all in silence, unwilling to burden Leontis with her suffering. By the time he realized what had happened, she had already grown thin and exhausted.

Now... she no longer had the strength to care.

Without another word, she turned and walked numbly back to the secluded courtyard that had always belonged to her alone.

Knowing how devoted she was to studying the stars and reading destiny, Leontis had built a quiet chamber just for her.

Inside stood shelves filled with ancient texts and, at the center of the room, a small altar adorned with sacred figures he had personally brought back from the cathedral.

Ismerie knelt before the altar and lowered her head in silent prayer.

Every tender memory she shared with Leontis surfaced in her mind, only to be shattered all over again by everything she had witnessed that day.

When she finally opened her eyes, she reached for the old tortoise shell she hadn't used in months.

She wanted to cast one final destiny chart. She wanted to know whether anything still remained between them.

The moment her fingers closed around the shell, a violent surge of heat and cold shot through her arm.

Her hand jerked involuntarily.

The tortoise shell and three bronze astro-coins slipped from her grasp and clattered across the floor.

She lowered her eyes to the pattern they had formed. Every trace of color vanished from her face.

The Water omen.

Water.

Peril.

Ruin.

The worst omen possible.

She stared at it for a long moment.

Then she bit her lip and gathered the shell to cast again. The result was still the water omen. She refused to accept it.

Again.

And again.

And again.

She continued casting until the metallic taste of blood filled her mouth and a thin crimson trail slipped from between her lips.

Finally, all her strength gave out.

She sank back onto the cushion and slowly closed her eyes.

Sixteen times.

She had cast the chart sixteen times.

Every single reading foretold the same overwhelming disaster.

The door opened quietly behind her.

A familiar voice broke the silence. "Ismerie."

Leontis had come looking for her.

Her body stiffened instantly.

She hurriedly wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, afraid he might notice.

Fortunately, he saw nothing. He knelt beside her before the altar and bowed his head.

"Almighty One, I have wronged Ismerie. I know I've sinned... But giving my parents an heir has always been their greatest wish. I can't bring myself to disappoint them."

He lowered his head even further. "I swear before you... if this child is born safely, I'll send Aveline across the sea and never see her again. If I break this vow... may I meet a miserable end."

Ismerie's heart tightened so painfully she could scarcely breathe.

"Leontis... don't make a vow like that."

His shoulders trembled faintly.

Taking both of her hands into his, he looked at her with desperate, pleading eyes. "I would give up everything for you. Can't you forgive me... Just this once?"

'Forgive him?' Ismerie's fingers slowly curled into tight fists.

Her throat felt as though it had been sealed shut. Not a single word would come.

The light in Leontis' eyes gradually faded. After a long silence, he rose to his feet and took up the velvet pouch containing the oracle stones.

Standing before the altar, he whispered, "I ask for only one thing. Please let this child be born safely... And never let Ismerie and me be separated." He closed his eyes, reached into the pouch, and drew a single rune stone.

Ismerie's gaze instinctively followed it. The moment she saw the omen marked beside the slip, her eyes widened in horror.

It felt as though lightning had struck her where she stood. The stars had spoken with absolute certainty.

The child... was destined to die before birth.