Chapter 30 She might die if I finally claim her
King Deacon POV
The scent of her was still stained into my skin. It was a thick, intoxicating mix of vanilla and something ancient, something that smelled like home and ruin all at once. I sat in the pitch-black darkness of my room. I had pulled the heavy curtains shut to block out the sun. My hands wouldn't stop shaking.
I am the King of Prussia. I am the man who has burned down entire packs without thinking twice. And yet, here I was, trembling like a child.
The car explosion in the human world wasn't just a threat to my life; it was a mirror. When the metal started to groan and the fire bloomed around me, I didn't reach for my power. I didn't call on my Alpha’s shield to protect us. Instead, I reached for a memory. I reached for the thought of red hair and a soft, sweet voice. My wolf was quiet, pushed down by a weight I couldn't understand.
I looked down at the deep gash on my arm. It was red, angry, and wet. By now, it should have been a scar. It should have been nothing but a memory of a scratch. But it wasn't healing.
"Sire?" Calus’s voice came from the shadows by the door. "The healer is outside. She says the infection is getting worse because your body isn't fighting the toxins."
"Send her away," I growled. My voice sounded like a hollow rasp.
"You are dying, Deacon," Calus said, stepping into the light. His face was bruised and his arm was in a sling. "The crash was meant to kill us, but the bond is what’s actually finishing the job. You’re becoming mortal, my friend. If you don't claim her properly in two days—"
"If I claim her, I might kill her!" I roared. I stood up so fast my chair flipped over and hit the floor with a loud thud.
The golden smoke I saw when I first touched her... it wasn't just a sign that we were a match. It was a siphon. Every time I touched her, every time I felt that world-shattering connection between us, I felt my power slipping away. I was becoming a man. And a man could not lead the Prussia pack. A man could not protect her from the vultures waiting outside these walls.
I remembered the look on her face when I got back. She had been standing in the cold, her eyes searching mine for a spark of the man who had held her the night before. I had walked past her like she was a ghost. I had to. If I looked at her, if I let her see the fear in my eyes, I would break apart.
“Aurora, get the fuck away from my door!” The words I had shouted at her felt like poison in my mouth. I wanted to open that door more than anything. I wanted to drag her inside and hold her until the world ended. But I was the Hollow King. I was the hundredth failure.
"She’s a Lieu, Deacon," Calus said quietly. "She’s not like the others. She won't run away just because you're mean to her. She’ll just find a way to break the door down."
"I know," I whispered. That was exactly what terrified me.
Suddenly, I felt a sharp pressure in my chest. It was a phantom pain that didn't belong to me. It was a wave of sadness—cold and heavy. It was Aurora. She was crying. Even through the wall of ice I had built, the bond dragged her grief straight into my lungs.
I walked to the mirror and stared at the man looking back at me. My eyes were dull. The gold was fading away, turning into a human grey. I looked like a ghost of the king I was supposed to be.
Two days.
In two days, the Moon Goddess would either join our souls forever or tear us apart. If she rejected us, I would be left as a mortal man in a den of hungry wolves. And Thorne... Thorne was still out there. He knew exactly where to hit us in the human world. That meant he had a spy in my own house.
I reached for my shirt, wincing as the fabric rubbed against my open wounds. I couldn't hide in the dark forever. If I was going to die, I wouldn't do it cowering like a dog.
I walked to the door and pulled it open. The hallway was empty, but her scent was everywhere. It was like a trail of breadcrumbs leading me straight to my own end.
"Calus," I said, not turning back to look at him. "Get the guards. We’re moving the ceremony up. I want the claiming done in twenty-four hours."
"Sire? That's too soon. Your body isn't ready"
"My body is failing anyway," I snapped. "I want to know my fate. If she is the one to kill me, then I want to die looking into her eyes."
I started walking toward the library, following the scent of vanilla and fire. I didn't know if I was going there to say sorry or to push
her away one last time.