Chapter 45 The Bond Fractures
Night fell over the palace like a shroud. Lila sat by her window watching darkness swallow the kingdom, feeling the bond between her and Adrian pulse with shared agony. He'd locked her out of his thoughts but couldn't block the emotions completely. They bled through like poison, showing her every moment of his suffering.
He was in his study. She could feel him there, staring at documents he couldn't focus on. Drinking wine that didn't dull the pain. Fighting his wolf, which demanded he storm her chambers and free his mate regardless of consequences.
But the human part of Adrian was stronger. Or maybe just more broken. Strong enough to resist instinct. Strong enough to let duty win over the bond screaming for completion.
Guards stood outside her door. She heard them changing shifts, heard their whispered conversations about the murderer they guarded. Heard them placing bets on whether she'd hang or face the King's justice directly.
"Ten gold says he executes her himself." One guard's voice carried through the wood. "Has to, doesn't he? Prove he's not compromised by the mate bond."
"I say he can't do it. He'll break before he kills his own mate." Another voice, younger, less certain. "No wolf can harm their true mate. It's against nature."
"Nature didn't stop her from killing the Queen, did it?"
The conversation faded as they moved away from the door. Lila pressed her hands against the wood, feeling the barrier between her and freedom. Between her and Adrian. Between her and any chance of proving innocence.
Maya arrived with dinner Lila couldn't eat. The servant's face was swollen from crying, her hands shaking as she set down the tray.
"The whole kingdom believes you did it." Maya's voice broke. "I went to the market today to gather information. To hear what people were saying. They're calling you a monster, my lady. Saying you seduced the King with dark magic. Saying you murdered the Queen out of jealousy and lust."
"What else are they saying?" Lila forced herself to ask.
"That you should burn. That hanging is too good for someone who kills their own sister." Maya collapsed into a chair. "That the King is weak for not executing you immediately. That the mate bond is a curse, not a blessing."
"Maybe they're right." The words tasted like ash. "Maybe the bond is cursed. Look what it's brought us. Nothing but pain and death and destruction."
"Don't say that." Maya grabbed her hands. "The Moon Goddess doesn't make mistakes. She chose you and Adrian for a reason."
"Then why does it feel like being chosen is the worst thing that ever happened to us?" Lila pulled away, moving to the window. "Celeste would be alive if the bond didn't exist. She and Adrian could have built something real without me in the way. Everyone would be happier."
"You don't know that."
"I do! Margot was right about one thing. The mate bond did drive me to desperation. Did make me want things I shouldn't. Did fill me with thoughts so dark I scared myself." Lila pressed her forehead against cold glass. "Maybe I'm more capable of murder than I thought. Maybe the bond twisted me into something monstrous without me realizing."
"My lady, no. You're not a monster. You're the kindest person I know."
"Kindness doesn't make you innocent." Lila's voice was hollow. "And right now, innocent or guilty doesn't matter. The evidence says guilty. The kingdom says guilty. And Adrian." Her voice broke. "Adrian doesn't know what to believe anymore."
Through the bond, she felt him trying to reach out. Felt his walls cracking slightly as wine and exhaustion wore down his control. Felt his desperate need to connect with her warring against his determination to stay objective.
She tried pushing back. Tried sending reassurance, love, desperate pleas for him to trust what the bond told him instead of what evidence showed. But his walls slammed back into place, blocking her out completely.
The rejection was physical pain. Lila gasped, clutching her chest where the bond seemed to tear. This was worse than the years of distance. Worse than being locked in towers. This was active rejection. Adrian choosing to shut her out. Choosing doubt over faith.
"I need to try reaching him." Lila stood abruptly. "Through the bond. If I push hard enough, maybe I can make him feel my innocence. Make him understand the truth."
"My lady, be careful. Forcing through bond walls can damage the connection." Maya's voice held warning. "If you push too hard, you could break what's already cracking."
"It's already broken." But Lila paused. Because Maya was right. Forcing herself on Adrian when he'd clearly requested distance could make everything worse. Could turn him against her even more completely.
She sank back into her chair, defeated. Trapped in her chambers. Trapped by evidence she couldn't disprove. Trapped by a mate who loved her but couldn't trust her.
Hours passed. Midnight came and went. Lila didn't sleep. Couldn't sleep with the bond thrumming with Adrian's matching insomnia. With the knowledge that her trial would begin soon and she had no defense except truth no one believed.
Footsteps approached her door. Different from the guards' heavy tread. These were familiar. Purposeful. The bond flared with recognition before she even heard the key turn in the lock.
Adrian stepped into her chambers looking like death. His eyes were bloodshot from wine and tears. His hair was disheveled. His formal clothes rumpled. He looked nothing like the controlled king and everything like a man falling apart.
"Tell me the truth." His voice was raw. "Did you kill her? Did you kill Celeste so we could be together?"