Chapter 17

Author's Note – Content Warning

This chapter contains intense graphic violence, blood, and physical assault.

He hit me again. My knees buckled, and I hit the stone hard, the skin on my hands tearing against the grit. I didn't cry out. "You're quieter than usual," the leader said, pacing slowly in front of me. His boots left streaks through the blood on the floor—Tessa's, I thought. Maybe mine. I couldn't tell anymore.

He crouched down, his voice dropping low. "That spirit of yours is getting real tired, isn't it, princess?" I lifted my head despite the pain. My lip was split, and my eye was swelling shut, but I looked him in the face anyway. "If this is your plan to lure Kael," I rasped, "then you've already lost."

He snorted. "Lost? You think this is losing?" His fingers gripped my chin, forcing my face upward. "We're going to bleed him dry the moment he steps through that door. And when he does, you'll watch." I smiled slowly, my expression sharp. "He's not coming." The grip around my jaw stilled. "You lie."

"I don't need to," I said. "It's been four weeks. If he were coming, he'd be here." He stared at me, and I saw a flicker of doubt in his eyes. "You're just here," I continued, "because your plan is failing, and you don't know what to do with the pieces."

His hand twitched, and his knuckles cracked against my cheek. The room spun, but I stayed on my knees, fists pressed into the stone to keep myself upright. He leaned in close, teeth bared. "You think you're brave? You think silence makes you strong?" His voice dropped. "Let's see if you stay strong when I take something from you."

He crouched over me, his breath hot and rancid against my cheek.

And then—

His body jerked. A red line bloomed across his throat, thin and perfect, like a ribbon drawn in the air. For a second, he didn't understand. None of us did. Then his head tipped backward—too far—before falling off completely. It hit the floor, rolling until it stopped beside my knee, eyes still open. Blood erupted in a wide arc, hot and fast, soaking my face, chest, and the floor.

His body toppled sideways, collapsing inward like a puppet with its strings cut. I didn't move. The world tilted, but my body stayed frozen, locked in the moment between breath and terror. Blood clung to my lashes, hot and metallic on my tongue. I could still feel the heat of his breath against my cheek—and now, nothing—just empty air. My heart thundered like a war drum, but I didn't flinch. I wasn't sure I even blinked.

Behind him stood Kael. My breath caught in my throat, unsure whether to sob or collapse. For a heartbeat, I thought I was hallucinating—dreaming again, seeing what I wanted so badly that I could feel it. But no dream ever smelled like blood and steel. No vision had ever left my hands trembling this badly.

He was covered in blood, drenched in it. And none of it was his. I didn't know if I wanted to reach for him or break apart.

Before I could do either, his sword was already turning toward the next man. The second man didn't even have time to scream. Kael's blade split him open from collarbone to waist in one brutal strike. Flesh, bone—gone. Blood gushed so violently that it hit the ceiling. The man crumpled backward, his body folding in half like a broken doll. Another lunged for a weapon. Kael didn't wait. He shoved his sword through the man's throat, up to the hilt, and then kicked him off with a wet crack of ribs against armor. Blood poured from the hole in his neck as he fell, twitching beside his friend.

The fourth tried to run. Kael was faster. He didn't waste steel on that one. I just caught him by the back of the neck and slammed his head into the wall once. Then again. The second time, the skull split open like a fruit. I still hadn't moved. My hands were shaking. My face was soaked. The leader's blood was in my mouth.

Kael turned to the last man—Tessa's. He didn't speak. He didn't shout; he just grabbed him and drove his blade through the man's spine from behind. The man screamed then, but only for a moment. There was nothing left but silence and blood. Kael stood in the center of it, shoulders heaving, chest rising and falling like a beast just off the leash. His sword dripped red.

So did his hands. His face. His boots. Every part of him was painted in vengeance. His eyes locked on mine. Kael didn't move. Neither did I. For a moment, we just stared at each other across a room full of corpses. Then he crossed the space in three strides and dropped to his knees in front of me, the sword clattering to the floor beside him. He reached for me—hesitated—his bloodstained fingers trembling in the air between us.

"Vireya," he breathed, voice raw. "Gods, Vireya."

I flinched. Not from him but from the wave of everything. Of him, here, now. Of the warmth in his voice. Of the fury, I couldn't hold back anymore. "You weren't supposed to come," I whispered, the words breaking against my teeth. He froze. His brows furrowed, mouth parting in confusion. "I—"

"They wanted you to," I snapped. My voice shook, cracked open by grief and rage and relief so sharp it hurt. "That was the whole point. You're walking into this."

"I didn't care," he said instantly. "I couldn't—"

"You could've died, Kael!" My voice rose before I could stop it, echoing against the blood-slicked walls. "You walked into a trap."

"I know," he said, his mouth twitching into a crooked, blood-slicked grin. He shrugged like he'd just stepped into a bar fight. "I'm not even scratched."

We stared at each other. I could taste blood, smell it in the air between us. My knees ached from the stone. His fingers were still hovering inches from my skin, like touching me might undo the last four weeks.

Finally, I leaned forward and pressed my forehead against his.

"You idiot," I whispered. My voice cracked. "You beautiful, reckless idiot."

Kael's breath shuddered. His hand cupped the back of my head, careful and slow. The blood didn't matter. Not anymore.

"I'll always come for you," he said.

He didn't ask if I could walk. He didn't offer me his hand. Kael just swept me up into his arms like I weighed nothing at all and held me as if he'd never let go. "Don't argue," he murmured, his voice a low command.

I didn't. I couldn't, not when the warmth of his hold was the first safe thing I'd felt in weeks. Tessa was still in the corner, curled into herself, blood on her sleeves and face. Kael crossed to her with me in his arms, gentler than I'd ever seen him move, and knelt beside her.

"Tessa," he said softly. "It's safe now. We're leaving." Her eyes fluttered open, dazed but conscious. She nodded numbly, and Kael helped her up one-armed, his grip steady as she leaned into him.

Kael called for one of his men to assist Tessa and then move out of the building. "Commander," a familiar voice rang out. I looked up to see Caspian approaching us slowly, blood splattered across his armor. "What are your orders?" he asked Kael, his voice steady despite the carnage that surrounded them.

"Head to the nearest lake," Kael replied without hesitation.

Both Caspian and I turned to stare at him, surprised. "Why a lake?" I asked.

Kael gave me a crooked grin, the first hint of something lighter flickering in his expression. "You want to bathe, don't you?"

I blinked, then nodded.

"Then those are my orders," he said.

No one argued. The walk to the exit felt endless. The halls were streaked with blood, and the walls were scorched in places where Kael's forces had clashed with their captors. Faint screams echoed in the distance—brief, sharp, and final.

Kael never loosened his hold on me. His arms were warm around my back, with one hand steady beneath my knees, as if letting go would mean losing me all over again. I didn't speak. I didn't need to.

When we reached the front of the compound, the morning light broke through the broken gates like a beacon of salvation. The sun stung my eyes. I turned my face into Kael's shoulder, letting the warmth soak into my skin while the cold air clung to the blood, still drying on both of us.

Behind us, Tessa limped along, supported by two soldiers, standing silently.

Kael paused just outside, surveying the aftermath. His men waited in silence, weapons down but ready. He glanced at Caspian. "Burn it," he said.

Caspian nodded and turned away, barking orders. Kael looked down at me once more. "You're safe now," he said. "I swear I won't let them touch you again." I didn't answer right away; I just curled closer into his chest, but in my mind, I saw snow again. Blood. His body was falling. And I knew this wasn't the end. It was only the beginning.