Chapter 118 118

Chapter 118 118
ZAYNE

Light.

Bright, warm, light.

Nessa stood in the middle of it, smiling at me. Her hand extended, offering salvation.

"Come here, Zayne. I can make the pain stop."

I reached for her. Every instinct screamed to take her hand and let her fix everything like she always did.

"That's it. Just a little closer."

But something was wrong. The light hurt my eyes. Her smile was too wide. Her voice echoed like it was coming from somewhere far away.

"Zayne, please. Come to me."

I stepped forward, the pain in my chest eased slightly.

Then I heard it. Another voice. Distant and broken.

"Fight it. Please fight it."

Arlina.

I turned toward her voice but couldn't see her. Everything behind me was darkness. Cold and suffocating.

"Don't look back," Nessa warned. Her tight now. "She left you, remember? She rejected you. She doesn't want you anymore."

"She—" The words stuck in my throat. "She rejected me."

"That's right. She doesn't love you. But I do. I'm here. I've always been here."

The light grew brighter and warmer. So tempting to just walk into it and forget everything else.

"Zayne!"

Arlina's voice echoed again. Clearer this time.

I looked back. In the darkness, I could see her now. Chained like I'd been in her dream. Bleeding. Reaching for me.

"Don't listen to her," Nessa said. "She's the enemy. She hurt you. Left you. Chose to abandon you when you needed her most."

"She rejected the bond—"

"Exactly. She doesn't want you. But I do. Come to me and I'll make you forget her. Forget the pain. Forget everything."

I took another step toward the light and the pain dulled further.

But something inside me screamed that this was wrong. That Nessa was wrong. That the light wasn't salvation, it was a trap.

My wolf howled at me.

“Fight! Don't give in!”

"Your wolf is confused," Nessa said smoothly. "Ignore him. Listen to me. I'm the one who loves you. I'm the one who stayed."

"You stayed—"

"That's right. When Arlina left, when she rejected you, I was here. I've always been here. Doesn't that mean something?"

It should mean something. Logically, it should.

But my wolf was snarling, fighting against every word coming out of Nessa's mouth.

And Arlina was crying in the darkness behind me.

"Zayne, please. I know you're in there. I know you can hear me. Please don't let her win."

"She's lying to you," Nessa said. "She just wants to use you. Take advantage of you. She doesn't really care—"

"Stop."

The word came out hoarse and weak. But it came out.

Nessa's smile faltered. "What?"

"Stop talking about her…like that—"

"Zayne, you're confused. The spell is making you think—"

"The spell." I looked at her. Really looked at her. "You put a spell on me."

"No, I saved you. From a relationship that was destroying you. From a mate who didn't deserve you—"

"You're lying."

The light flickered and Nessa's perfect face twisted into something ugly.

"You're mine, Zayne. The spell made sure of that. You can't fight it. You can't resist—"

"Watch me."

I turned away from her an the light. From the false promise of peace.

And I walked back into the darkness, toward Arlina.

Every step was agony. The spell fought back, trying to drag me toward Nessa. My body felt like it was tearing apart.

But I kept walking.

"Zayne, what are you doing?" Nessa's voice lost its sweetness. "Come back here. You belong to me!"

"I belong—" I stumbled, fell to my knees. "I belong…to her—"

"She rejected you!"

"Because I hurt her!" I crawled forward, closer to where Arlina was chained in the dark. "Because the spell made me hurt her!"

"The spell made you happy! Made you free! You were miserable with her—"

"I was happy with her! I loved her! I still—" The pain exploded through me. "I still love her—"

The darkness around me shifted. Arlina was right there, just out of reach.

"Zayne—"

"I'm sorry." Blood was running from my nose, my ears. The spell was killing me for fighting it. "I'm so sorry. For everything. For hurting you. For not fighting harder—"

"It's not your fault—"

"It is. I should have known. I coughed and more blood came up. "Should have protected you—"

"Stop talking. Save your strength—"

"No time. The spell is winning. I can feel it pulling me back—" I reached through the darkness, through the broken bond. "Please. Please hear me. Please know that I never stopped loving you. Never wanted Nessa. Never chose her—"

"I know. I know that now—"

"The bond. Can you feel it? Is it still there?"

"It's still there. Damaged but there."

"Then use it. Please. Use it to save me. Because I can't…I can't hold on much longer—"

Nessa's scream echoed through the space. "You're mine! You'll always be mine! The spell won't let you go!"

"Yes it will." I looked back at Arlina. "Because mate bonds are stronger than magic. And I'm her mate. I've always been her mate. Nothing can change that."

The light behind me exploded and the darkness rushed in.

And the last thing I saw before everything went black was Arlina's hand reaching for mine.