Chapter 58 Fifty Eight
DANIKA
By the time Isaiah pulls into Kaziel's driveway, the adrenaline has bled out of my system entirely. Now all I feel is pain. Raw, throbbing, bone-deep pain. Isaiah kills the engine and turns to look at me, his brows creased with worry.
"You should've waited for backup," he mutters.
I barely hear him. I'm holding myself together by threads. Carefully, I ease out of the car, taking shallow breaths. The front door swings open before we even reach it. Kira appears in the doorway, her eyes wide.
"Oh my goodness! Danika!"
She grabs my shoulders gently. "What happened? Are you okay? Isaiah, what the hell—?"
"I'm fine," I whisper.
It's a pathetic lie.
Kira looks at me as if she wants to shake the truth out of me. But she doesn't push. Instead, she steps aside, letting us in. The moment the door shuts behind me, I feel the tension leak out of my spine. This house still smells like Kaziel. The dark chocolate and cedar scent nearly brings me to my knees.
I swallow hard, forcing myself to keep moving forward.
Isaiah hovers near the hallway, alert as ever. "Clean up and get some rest. We'll talk in the morning."
"Okay," I whisper.
Kira touches my arm gently. "Do you need help?"
"No. I've got it."
I climb the stairs slowly, each step sending a dull ache through my ribs. When I reach Kaziel's bathroom, I switch on the lights and immediately wince at my reflection.
Oh....
No wonder Kira looked horrified. There's a deep gash along my cheekbone, scratches down my jaw, and bruises blooming across my throat.
Letting out a shaky breath, I peel off my ruined shirt, each movement pulling painfully at the cuts. There's a dark, ugly band of purple where Vanya had squeezed like she wanted to crush me whole.
Hesitantly, I step into the shower, and the hot water hits me.
"Ah—" I gasp.
It stings like a thousand needles.
I brace both palms against the wall, my head hanging low as water washes the blood down the drain.
"I did it," I whisper to myself. "I really did it."
But the victory doesn't stop the tremors in my hands.
Amber stirs inside me.
'You're safe now. I'm here.'
"I'm hurting," I admit, my chest heaving. "I... I can barely stand."
'Then listen to me.'
Her presence wraps around my frayed nerves like a cocoon.
'You're focusing on the pain. Shift your attention inward instead. To your core.'
I close my eyes, breathing in and out. Amber's voice guides me:
'Find the spark in your chest. The one that feels like heat... but not physical heat. It's your healing trigger. Touch it.'
I search for it, and then warmth washes over my body, fading the pain. I release a shaky breath, relieved.
"Thank you," I whisper.
Amber's voice fades. 'Rest, little fighter.'
I turn off the shower and towel off slowly. Then I go ahead to open Kaziel's closet without thinking. I grab one of his black shirts, slipping it on. Then I climb into his bed, sinking into the sheets. With a groan, I curl into his pillow, burying my face in the fabric and inhaling deeply.
God, I miss him.
A tear slips down my cheek.
"Come home," I whisper into the pillow.
The exhaustion crashes through me all at once. And while I lie there surrounded by his scent, I finally fall asleep.
The moment sleep pulls me under, I feel the shift. I can tell I'm dreaming now. It's strange.
Soft pink petals fall around me, carried by a warm breeze. The sky is dusk-purple. And I'm lying beneath a cherry blossom tree, one that feels impossibly familiar, even though I've never been here before.
My head rests on someone's lap, large warm fingers gently sliding through my hair. My breath catches in my throat.
"...Kaziel?" I whisper.
He looks down at me, and the sight knocks the air out of my lungs. Those beautiful blue eyes. That familiar soft expression with a hint of torment.
"Are you..." My voice trembles. "Are you real?"
He cups my cheek, his thumb brushing lightly over my skin.
"Yes, dove," he murmurs. "It's really me."
"How?" My voice cracks. "How are you in my dream?"
He exhales, looking out at the endless field of blossoms. "This isn't just a dream. I'm projecting my consciousness. It's something my mother taught me... when I was a little boy who was afraid of the dark."
I sit up slowly, turning towards him. He looks exhausted.
"I've been in a bad place," he says softly. "Worse than I thought I'd ever fall again. And I just... needed to be with you. Even if only like this."
My chest clenches painfully. His shoulders sag, his gaze dropping to the drifting petals.
"For a long time," he says, "I believed that anyone who loved me... anyone I loved... would abandon me. Or die. So I became... overly protective and obsessive. I thought the only way to keep people alive was to keep them close."
He swallows hard. "And now..."
He looks up, his blue eyes haunted.
"Now that my mother might be alive... I can't help but think that it's my fault she became the thing she hated most."
Pain blooms in my chest on his behalf. So, I take his hand and press a soft kiss to his knuckles.
He exhales shakily.
"Kaziel," I whisper. "You didn't do this. You were a child. I don't know what happened. But I can tell that you loved her. That is never a crime."
His eyes soften at me in a way that makes my heart ache. Then he leans his forehead against mine.
"I mean it," he murmurs. "You're my last breath, Danika. You're the only anchor I have left. The only leash keeping me from slipping into the madness pressing at my mind."
"K-Kaziel—"
He presses a kiss to my forehead, and I close my eyes only for something warm to fall onto my cheek.
"Kaziel?" I lift my gaze slowly.
His nose is bleeding. My eyes widen in horror as the hand holding my face becomes transparent.
"No—no, no, no—Kaziel!"
I grab his shoulders, but my fingers pass halfway through. Then his form dissolves like smoke.
"KAZIEL!" I scream, everything going white.
"Danika. Danika, wake up. WAKE UP!" A familiar voice yells.
I jolt upright in bed with a gasp.
Kira is leaning over me, her face pale, her eyes swollen from crying. Her hands are shaking.
"Get up," she says, gripping my shoulders. "We have to go. Now."
My heart is still racing from the dream.
“Kira...what—"
She swallows hard.
"They're taking Kaziel to court," she says. "Right now."
My heart instantly goes into overdrive, and I scramble to get ready, gathering my things as horror creeps in. Isn't it too soon for him to be taken to court? What in the world is happening?
....
The courthouse is overwhelming. The air is thick with cold and dread. But all of it disappears the moment I see him. My mate
They're pushing him across the courtyard in a wheelchair, two guards gripping the handles as though they expect him to lunge at them.
My heart drops. He looks... sick.
"Kaziel," I breathe, taking a step before Kira snatches my wrist.
"Dani, wait—"
I can't just stand here and watch him fall apart. But the guards shove him towards the entrance, ignoring the way his body jerks with every small bump.
Isaiah appears beside me, startling me. He's wearing a pristine suit, a briefcase in his hand. I realize then that he's a lawyer.
"We don't have much time," he murmurs. "Stay close. And try not to punch anyone unless I say so."
"I'm not making any promises," I whisper, my eyes fixed on Kaziel.
Inside the courtroom, the fluorescent lights hit my mate like a spotlight, and for the first time, I see how sick he truly is. His fingers twitch uncontrollably against the restraints, and his eyes are unfocused, as if he's struggling just to stay awake.
Anger bubbles hot under my skin.
"High crimes hearing for Kaziel Lakewood," the bailiff announces. "For the murder of—"
"Proceed," the judge interrupts, waving a hand. "Let's not waste the court's time."
Isaiah steps forward. "Your Honour, the defence would like to enter into evidence—"
"No."
The judge doesn't even let him finish.
Isaiah stares. "Your Honour, with respect… This evidence is critical. The investigation was incomplete—"
"I said no,” he taps his gavel again. My heart sinks.
He still hasn't looked at Kaziel.
The prosecutor rises. "Your Honour, we believe the defendant is unstable and dangerous. As you can see—"
The judge nods before the man even finishes speaking. "Noted."
It feels like everything was planned.
Isaiah's voice turns deadly calm. "Your Honour, my client can barely sit upright. I'm requesting a medical evaluation and a postponement—"
"Denied."
"On what grounds?" Isaiah presses.
But the judge is already turning a page, uninterested, as if the outcome is prewritten.
I look at Kaziel again, my heart pounding faster. He's barely breathing, and that terrifies me to no end.
Suddenly, his entire body jerks hard.
"Kaziel!" I cry out, terrified. I feel like I'm losing him. How can I let that happen? How can I live without him?
The guards rush towards him.
"Remove the defendant," the judge orders coldly.
"No!" I yell, pushing against the barricade of guards surrounding him. "He needs help!"
This is not normal. Nothing about this trial is.
"Kaziel, stay with me. Stay with me, baby—"
His eyes roll back, his head jerking backwards. His forehead glistens with sweat, veins straining against his neck as he grunts. I'm pushing harder, desperate to reach him. But then, his body slumps sideways like a puppet with cut strings.
"No," I whisper, stepping forward. "Kaziel—"
Two bailiffs block me again.
"Ma'am—"
"MOVE!"
Before anything else can happen, the courtroom doors slam open with a deafening BANG. Every head snaps around. And Bellamy storms in like a freaking hurricane, fury radiating off him. Behind him is Eve.
"LET GO OF ME!" Eve yelps, trying to yank her hand out of his grip.
He practically shoves her towards the centre aisle. Gasps ripple through the courtroom.
"That's...that's—" someone stammers. "Evelyn Hart?"