Chapter 18 It won’t Stop me
DAGNOTH DRACULIS
“Leave,” I said the word came out rougher than I meant.
She didn’t argue. Dahlia lowered her gaze, fingers clutching the hem of her gown as she turned toward the door. The fabric brushed against her hips, whispering against the cold marble. She didn’t even look back, not once. Just walked away in that quiet, careful grace that made something deep inside me twist.
The door closed behind her with a soft thud.
And I was left standing there, pulse unsteady, breath uneven.
The image of that scar, that cursed mark, burned in my mind like a brand.
It couldn’t be her.
And yet… everything inside me screamed that it was.
I was just forcing myself to deny it.
I ran a hand through my hair, pacing the length of the chamber. The night air was thick, heavy with her scent of wild jasmine and something faintly electric, something that always made my wolf restless and calm at the same time.
She’s the one, my wolf murmured suddenly, his voice rising from deep within me. I told you I’ve seen that mark before.
I stopped pacing. You’re sure?
Absolutely. His growl echoed in the back of my mind, more memory than sound.
“Damn it,” I muttered under my breath.
She saved our life, my wolf said quietly. She bore the Raga mark, the ancient crest of the bloodline that once bound the moon to the earth.
I grit my teeth. The same bloodline I’m sworn to destroy.
Yes. And I certainly would.
I slammed my fist against the wall, the sound echoing through the room. “This doesn’t make sense. How can she be both?”
Maybe fate isn’t as clean as you think, my wolf said darkly. Maybe the moon wanted her to save you so that one day you’d be forced to choose what kind of king you truly are.
I didn’t like his tone; it was too calm. He knew too much.
“Don’t start with your riddles,” I growled.
He chuckled, a deep rumble that brushed the edges of my mind. You forget, Dagnoth, I felt her too. Her power, her fear, her touch. She is not fully omega. She never was.
I sank into the nearest chair, pressing my palms to my temples. My thoughts were a storm of fragments of memory colliding with the scent of her, the sight of her lips, and the sound of her voice when she said my name.
She’s Raga, my wolf said again. Her kind was wiped out centuries ago. You’re supposed to finish what your ancestors started.
I closed my eyes. And yet I can’t.
Because you don’t want to.
I didn’t answer.
There was silence for a long time. I could still feel him, the steady heartbeat of my wolf beneath my skin, his energy thrumming through me. But when I reached for him again a few seconds later, he was gone.
Just… gone.
“Drogan?” I called inwardly, but there was nothing. Only emptiness.
The bond had gone quiet.
I stood abruptly, rage boiling in my chest. The moment she left, he’d retreated just like that.
“This can’t be happening,” I muttered.
I needed answers.
I strode out of my chamber and down the hall, ignoring the guards who bowed as I passed. My mind raced with every step. The torches along the walls flickered in the draft, their flames dancing across the dark stone.
When I reached the council wing, I didn’t bother knocking.
“Simone!” I barked.
My Beta appeared within seconds, his expression sharp. “My King.”
“Get in,” I said, motioning toward the room.
He obeyed instantly, closing the door behind him. “What’s wrong?”
I didn’t sit. I paced, running a hand down my jaw. “That woman, Dahlia. What do we know about her?”
Simone hesitated. “Not much. The records say she lived beyond the eastern border for years. She’s not born of our kind, at least not fully. The seers couldn’t read her bloodline.”
I stopped pacing. “Couldn’t read her?”
He nodded. “It’s as if something blocks them. Like her blood isn’t meant to be seen.”
I cursed under my breath.
He watched me carefully. “Why do you ask?”
I turned toward the window, staring out into the black sky. “Because I’ve seen her before.”
Simone frowned. “Is she the stranger from that night?”
“Yes.” My voice came out sharper than I intended. Simone’s face paled. “My King… that would mean—”
“I know what it means,” I snapped. “It means she’s part of the bloodline we were sworn to destroy. The same bloodline my ancestors died fighting.”
Simone was silent for a long time. Then he said carefully, “And yet… she is the one the gods chose to save you.”
The words hung heavy in the room.
I hated how true they sounded.
“She’s meant to be my salvation,” I said slowly, my jaw tightening, “and by doing so, she cursed me. Because now I’m tied to her in ways I can’t explain. My wolf… he felt her. He remembers her. But now... ”
“You can’t reach him,” Simone finished for me.
I met his eyes. “Yes.”
He exhaled, rubbing his neck. “That’s dangerous. If the bond between you and your wolf is fracturing—”
“It’s not fractured,” I said coldly. “It’s distracted. He’s hiding something from me.”
Simone didn’t reply. He knew better than to push when my temper burned like this.
I turned back to the window. The moonlight bled across the glass, painting silver lines across the floor. Below, I could see her, Dahlia walking through the courtyard, her pups clinging to her hands. The sight made my chest tighten painfully.
She didn’t look back.
And that made me want to chase her more than anything.
Simone spoke quietly. “What will you do, my King?”
I didn’t answer immediately. My throat felt tight, my mind a blur of emotion and logic, memory and madness.
Finally, I said, “If she’s what the act says… she shouldn’t exist.”
Simone stiffened. “Are you ordering... ”
“No.” I cut him off, my voice low. “Not yet.”
He frowned. “Then what?”
I let my gaze follow her until she disappeared beneath the archway. “For now, she stays, under my watch. No one touches her or the pups. If anyone learns what she is, it could start another war.”
“And if she learns what she is?”
“She won’t,” I said sharply. “She can’t.”
Simone hesitated. “And your wolf?”
I clenched my fists. “I’ll get him back. I always do.”
But even as I said it, I wasn’t sure.
The silence stretched between us until Simone bowed slightly and left.
I remained by the window long after he was gone, my reflection staring back at me.
Her scent still lingered, faint and maddening; my wolf was silent.
My mind was in chaos.
And my heart… it refused to let go of the woman I was sworn to destroy.
I pressed my hand against the glass, staring at the moon that hung over the kingdom, the same moon that had bound us both in blood and fate five years ago.
“It can’t be her,” I whispered. “She can’t be my savior and the one I’m destined to end.”