Chapter 118

Emily’s POV

He appeared at the end of the hallway like a storm. His black coat moved sharply behind him as his eyes locked onto Ryan’s hand, which was still gripping my wrist. Pure, lethal rage flashed across his face.

“How dare you touch her.”

Before Ryan could even blink, Declan covered the distance in a blur. He slammed Ryan against the stone wall, catching him by the throat. The sound of the impact was loud and hollow.

Ryan choked, his eyes bulging. Declan’s grip tightened around his neck while his other hand grabbed Ryan’s wrist and twisted. I heard the sickening grind of bone on bone.

“The fact that I spared your life,” Declan growled, his voice a low, terfifying snarl, “and let you stay close to Nathan as my little spy-”

Ryan gasped, his mouth opening as he fought for air.

“-does not mean you matter here.”

Declan squeezed harder. For a second, it looked like he was actually going to rip Ryan’s hand away from his arm. The rogue guards nearby scrambled back, desperate to stay out of his line of sight. No one was going to help him.

Ryan’s face was turning a dark, bruised red.

‘Declan.”

My voice was quiet, but he heard it. I stepped closer, moving carefully, and placed my hand on his shoulder. Every muscle beneath his black coat was hard as stone.

Slowly very slowly–I brushed my thumb against the fabric of his shoulder.

“Leave him,” I whispered. “He doesn’t matter.”

Declan went perfectly still.

His black eyes slowly moved to mine.

The moment he heard my voice, something terrifying softened in his gaze. It was a shift so sudden it made my skin prickle. The power I held over him in that moment scared me almost as much as his rage did.

Declan let go of Ryan’s throat abruptly. Before Ryan could even gasp, Declan drove his fist into the man’s stomach. Ryan hit the stone floor, curling into a ball as he fought to find air.

“That,” Declan said, his voice flat and cold, “was for touching my future Queen.”

Ryan stayed on the ground, choking. I quickly grabbed Declan’s arm before he could do more damage. My fingers

locked around his wrist.

Deelan’s gaze stayed on Ryan for one long, lethal second. Then, finally, he let me lead him away.

I didn’t realize until we were halfway down the hall that I hadn’t let go. My fingers were still wrapped tightly around his wrist as we moved through the corridors. Rogue guards bowed their heads, scurrying out of our path like we were a storm passing through.

And Declan looked pleased. Dangerously pleased. He was enjoying the sight of me leading him, as if I were finally accepting my place by his side.

Only when we reached my bedroom door did I realize what I was doing. I tried to yank my hand back, but Declan was faster. He caught my fingers, his eyes dropping to our joined hands before meeting mine again.

“Careful, little wolf,” he murmured. “People might start thinking you actually belong to me.”

My face flushed with anger and embarrassment. “I was stopping you from killing him. That’s all.”

A slow smile spread across his mouth. “Is that what you’re telling yourself?”

Before I could snap back, I felt a sharp poke against my thigh. The stolen crystal shards were shifting under the

heavy fabric of my dress. My blood turned to ice.

Declan’s eyes narrowed, his focus dropping to where the crystals were hidden.

“What’s that?”

Before I could mave, Declan’s hand slid into the hidden pocket of my dress.

My heart hammered against my ribs. No, no, no. If he found those crystal shards, I was dead. I grabbed his wrist,

trying to yank his hand away.

‘Don’t-”

His eyes locked onto mine, hard and suspicious. He ignored me and slowly pulled something out.

It wasn’t the crystals. It was the sketch–the drawing of Nathan I’d been hiding.

(*

A wave of relief washed over me, so strong I felt lightheaded. But it didn’t last. Declan unfolded the paper, his zaze moving over the charcoal lines. He stared at Nathan’s face, at the home I’d tried so hard to remember.

The warmth that had been there a moment ago vanished. He looked like he wanted to burn the world down.

“What,” he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous whisper, “is this?”

I lunged for it. “Give it back!”

Declan stepped back, well out of my reach. “Declan, give it to me!”

He looked at the drawing again. He saw the detail, the way I’d drawn Nathan with every bit of love I had left. A dark, possessive look took over Declan’s features.

“You drew him,” he said. It wasn’t a question.

“It’s mine!”

I reached for the paper agam, but he caught my wrist in a grip like iron.

“Give it back!” I shouted.

Instead, he gripped the edges and ripped the sketch in half. The sound made my stomach turn.

‘No!”

I fought him, trying to grab the pieces before they hit the floor. Declan shoved me back, the force sending me stumbling onto the bed. The torn paper drifted to the stone floor like dead leaves.

For a heartbeat, we just stared at each other. Then Declan’s gaze swept the room, landing on the charcoal, the

paints, and the piles of paper. His eyes were cold and lethal.

“Get rid of all of it,” he barked.

Rogue guards rushed into the room instantly. I watched in shock as they started grabbing everything–the harcoal, the paper, every single sketch I’d worked on.

“You can’t do that!”

Declan looked at me, his expression flat. “I just did.”

The guards vanished as quickly as they’d arrived, taking my entire world with them. The room felt stripped. Bare. ike he’d reached inside me and torn something out. Tears burned in my eyes, but I refused to let them fall.

“What’s next?” I snapped, my voice shaking with rage. “Are you going to take my thoughts, too?”

Declan’s eyes darkened until they were almost entirely black. A slow, predatory smile spread across his mouth.

“For now?” He moved closer, his voice a low vibration. “Your body is enough.”

I backed away across the mattress, my pulse thrumming in my ears.

Declan ”

He moved toward me, slow and steady.

“You want me to prove it?”

“No,” I whispered, but the word felt weak.

He didn’t listen. He climbed onto the bed, his hand catching my ankle and pulling me back before I could escape. le moved over me, his weight pinning me into the sheets. He was heavy, hot, and smelled like the mountain air and langer.

“Still thinking about him while you’re in my bed?” Declan murmured against the sensitive skin of my throat.