Occupied

Occupied
Layla

“I want to speak with him alone.”

Dad didn’t raise his voice, but it wasn’t quiet. It was deep with authority and certainty as his dark eyes focused on Kai. 

“Why?” I asked, my heart hammering in my chest. 

Dad’s dark eyes softened as he turned to me. “I just want to speak to him, my little sun. Alone.”

I turned to Kai immediately, wanting to gauge his reaction. All of me told me not to leave them alone, but Kai looked at me as if he wasn’t surprised. 

He lifted his cuffed hands slowly, taking his time as he traced the line of my jaw. 

My breath stuttered. I couldn’t pull in enough air. Every place he touched felt the heat of our bond, and it flared in my chest. I wanted more. 

More touch, more of his scent. More of him. 

I did not want to leave him even for a second. 

“We’ll be together soon,” he whispered, his voice low as it slid straight into my bones.

I shook my head, the movement small, desperate. “I can stay,” I said quietly. “He can talk to both of us. He should—”

Kai’s thumb brushed under my eye, wiping away a tear I hadn’t realized had spilled over. Then his fingers threaded gently into my hair, holding me there close to him. 

“I have to do this,” he murmured. “It matters. To him. And to us.” 

His forehead brushed mine. I hated how calm he was. Hated how much I trusted him. Hated how right he was. 

I exhaled shakily and nodded, even though every instinct screamed to plant my feet and refuse to move. My hand slid down to his wrist, my thumb tracing slow, soothing circles just above where the cuffs bit into his skin. 

Dad stepped closer, his gaze softened when it landed on me.

“I will speak with you after,” he said gently.

I swallowed, my throat tight, and nodded again. I gave Kai one last look before forcing myself to turn away.

Mom’s hand found my back, ushering me and Draven fell into step beside us without a word.

I didn’t look back as we left the hall.

I couldn’t bear to see him standing there without me.

I didn’t make it far with Mom and Draven before the pressure in my chest became unbearable.

“I need a moment,” I said quietly. “I just need to think about everything.”

Mom studied my face like she wanted to argue, but she nodded instead. Draven hesitated only a second longer before stepping back. 

“We’ll be here when you need to talk, little sun.” He forced a smile on his face as he spoke but I could tell he had questions he wanted to ask. 

He let me walk away, though.

I turned down the east corridor, my steps slow, until the stone walls changed to glass walls. The sunlight spilled across the floors and the gardens were visible to be now. 

The green calmed my heart, the smell of plowers and plants like a balm to my heart. I slipped outside.

The warmth of the sun wrapped me immediately and the sound from the water fountain trickled toward me. I smiled to myself, relief flooding me even through the tension of everything that was revealed. 

Kai and I were destined. 

We were prophesized. 

We couldn’t be kept apart. Not anymore. 

I walked without direction, fingers grazing leaves as I passed, trying to breathe through the ache in my chest. It was the bond, calling me back to Kai’s side. 

I walked in the silence, and when the trees rustled behind me, my spine shivered. 

The hairs at the back of my neck stood up with the unmistakable sensation of being watched.

I slowed, my steps faltering, and an eerie quiet followed me. Not even the sound of a bird chirping reached my ears. Nothing was behind me, I turned sharply with the intention of heading back inside. 

The uneasiness in my stomach was already to much to bear. 

I stepped straight into a solid chest.

The impact knocked the breath from me in a sharp, startled gasp. Before I could stumble back, hands closed around my arms.“Careful.”

A deep, unnatural chill seeped through the fabric of my dress. My heart lurched.

For a split second, my body reacted on instinct alone. Muscles locked. Breath stuttered. A tight, crawling unease slid up my spine as I became painfully aware of how close he was. 

I forced myself to look up.

Crimson eyes met mine.

Recognition hit like ice water.

Lord Varynth.

He smiled down at me. Pale skin, sharp features carved with age and power. Seeing him this close, feeling his hands on me, had me pulling back. 

Fear clenched hard in my chest, sudden and suffocating.

His smile deepened slightly, as if my reaction pleased him.

“My apologies. Lord Varynth. I should get back,” I said, already angling my steps to pass him. “My family—”

“—is occupied,” Varynth finished gently. “Your father is otherwise engaged. Your brother too.”

I stopped, my breath thin as it left my lips. 

He stepped closer, blocking my path. 

“You don’t need to be afraid,” he said, reading something in my face.

“I didn’t say I was afraid,” I replied, trying to keep my composure. 

I looked around the gardens. Where were the guards?

“No,” he agreed, smiling again. “You didn’t.”

I shoved past him, putting a few precious feet of distance between us. He stopped me with his hand around my arm. 

The garden tilted violently. A sharp, burning pressure bloomed at the side of my neck, followed by a wave of dizziness so sudden it stole my breath.

I wanted to scream, but my throat was useless. All it could give me was a gasp as my fingers uselessly clawed at his hold on my arm. 

“What—” My voice came out thin. Wrong.

Varynth caught me easily as my knees buckled, one arm braced around my back, holding me upright as if he were saving me from a fall.

My limbs felt heavy. Unresponsive. 

The bond screamed inside me and I could feel Kai’s immediate response.

Varynth’s grip tightened.

“I’ve wanted a taste of you since your parents announced your birth,” he whispered. 

Darkness crept in at the edges of my vision, swallowing sunlight, swallowing the gardens.

The last thing I felt was the earth beneath my feet disappearing.