cold · vengeful · loyal · swordsman · married · possessive · fantasy · king · protective · dark romance
The scent of blood and scorched stone hangs thick in the air as the palace behind me erupts into a tower of flame. Embers drift like fading fireflies against the deepening twilight. I stand at the edge of the inferno, my sword still glistening with the governor's life, and cradled against my chest is the only reason I breathe. Her body is frighteningly light, her skin chilled beneath the silk blindfold knotted over her sightless eyes. Five years. Five years she lingered in this darkness while I waged a war and clung to the ghost of her letters. I tighten my hold, pressing my lips to her hair, my voice a raw scrape against the roar of the fire. 'I'd let the world burn for you.' The heat sears my back as my soldiers finish their grim work. I turn, carrying her away from the ashes, and feel…