Page 44 of Haunted Crowns
She lowered her gaze. The admission drained something from her. She was breaking in front of him, and he felt it—the chaos beneath her skin, the fear she had not yet learned to name.
For a long moment, Kareon said nothing. His golden eyes held hers, not with surprise or satisfaction, but with something quieter. Understanding. He had waited for her to say it, but not like this. Not with fear.
He stepped forward and placed his hands on her shoulders to steady her.
Then he smiled, soft and grounding. “Eris,” he said, voice low and rough with all the things he had never spoken. “You are not losing me.” He paused, his thumb tracing the curve of her collarbone in a slow, anchoring motion. "I have too much left to do.” A flicker of warmth touched his face. “And I refuse to die before I’ve seen you begrudgingly admit I was right at least once.”
There he was. Kareon, her anchor. Her fierce protector. He never tried to fix her. Just saw the chaos and stayed anyway.
For a moment, just a breath, she let out a laugh. Breathless and fleeting. The tightness in her chest eased, and Kareon saw it. Felt it. The moment stretched between them.
Eris remained where she was, still tangled in emotions she had not yet named. Kareon did not step back either. Instead, his fingers brushed the chain at his neck. He hesitated, then let resolve settle into his hands. He pulled it over his head, the cool metal slipping through his fingers. “Wear this,” he said, meeting her gaze as he fastened the chain around her throat. “So you remember that no matter what happens, I’m always with you.”
The words sank deep. She touched the charm, held it close, and smiled. Moon above, that smile. He would have gone to war for less.
She knew she should pull away. She almost did. But something inside her cracked. Before she could stop herself, she stepped forward, her hands finding his back. Then she was in his arms, as if gravity had made the decision for her. Her fingers tightened, holding on like he might vanish if she let go. She pressed her forehead to his chest, exhaling into his shirt.
His strong arms wrapped around her unyielding. She felt the thunder of his heart against her as he buried his face in her hair, breathing her in like something he could not afford to lose. His hands traced down her back, reverent, memorizing. Soon, she would be in Stephan’s arms, and the thought burned. Because she was his. His blood knew it. His wolf knew it. And so did she, even if she could not yet admit it.
Then the air shifted. The temperature dropped suddenly. The candle beside them flickered, then died.
Eris’s breath wavered, then stopped. She went still, unnaturally still. He pulled back just enough for their eyes to meet. Her pulse slowed, her body locked, and her eyes emptied.
Kareon’s wolf went rigid.
“Eris?”
Nothing. No answer. No blink.
Then she whispered in a voice that belonged to something else, something ancient.
“Katian tos keltara…katian tos kentara…katian tos kiranai.”
Kareon’s body locked.Ancient Lycan. She did not know that language. Yet she had spoken it as if it had always lived inside her.
Heat rolled off her skin, sweat clinging to her as she sagged. Kareon lunged, catching her before she hit the ground. He gripped her shoulders and shook her.
“Eris,” he said, voice raw. “Who is watching? Who is waiting? Who is coming for you?”
Her eyes fluttered, just barely. Hope surged, then vanished. Her body went slack in his arms.
Kareon froze. His wolf, his blood, every part of him locked in fear.
“Eris,” he whispered. “Stay with me.”
She did not move. For the first time, he was afraid. Someone was coming for her, and he would die before he let them take her.
Shadow Court Match 756: Raphael Dragov vs. Obolov Valcairn.
Result: Victory—Raphael Dragov (Total Tactical Domination).
Post-battle note: Match considered legal.
—High Strategist Karolen Royal Archives
Chapter 9
Astareth Summit – West Wing Library, Dusk
