Page 92 of Fated to the Demon Lord

each bond will wither, each heart be lost,

until you walk this world alone and damned.

Yet one shall come, your fated mate⁠—

her blood like roses upon your breath;

through her, your curse shall break or bind,

and set your course for all your days⁠—

to endless life… or final death.”

I sucked in a breath. “So we are mates.”

“Fated before I ever met you. Before I even died.”

That was the reason Vaelor hadn’t killed me after he tasted my blood, why he could possess me without it hurting. It was why he was able to touch me whenever he pleased, and the cause of my persistent urge to stay near him.

“And yet you pushed me away,” I said, a little accusingly.

He stroked my cheek, his other hand at my back, holding me close. “The curse didn’t say whether you’d live or die. For all I knew, you’d set me on the course and then die, or even worse, your death would put me on the path I’d need to take. From the instant we met, death and danger seemed to follow you everywhere. And since it was a curse, I only ever imagined the worst scenario. At first, before I knew you, I couldn’t have cared less should you meet your end. But now, it is the most terrible thing I can imagine. I’d forego everything to keep you alive. I’d remain cursed. I’d push you away and lose the chance to see you again if it meant you lived.”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I asked, softer.

“At first I didn’t want you to know what power you could wield over me. I was only keeping you around for your potential to break the curse. But after I started to care, I—well, I was resolved against giving you a reason to stay.” His powerful jaw clenched. “But I see it is too late. I have feelings for you, so whether or not you are with me, you may still die. The only way I can try to prevent that is by remaining near you.”

“You thought you could play by the rules and you would be safe. But it doesn’t work like that. A curse doesn’t care about rules.”

His hand against my spine curled inward, gripping the fabric possessively. Gods, I loved his touch.

“You play outside the lines, Denara,” he said. “I can’t work within the system and protect you.”

“And yet you are bound to Spiritu Malignos.”

“I am. So you see, I am damned no matter what I do. I can’t make you leave, and I can’t keep you close in the end. What am I to do, Denara? I’ll do whatever you say.” Gods, his gaze was fixed upon me with such hope and expectation.

“I don’t know. I don’t… Wait.” I extricated myself from his grasp and hurried over to my book. Bringing it back, I flipped through the pages—toward the back of the book until I came to the right one. “It won’t help us with Spiritu Malignos, but it might undo the hedge witch’s spell. It’s a ceremony between two mates that can break a curse. It might work. But we have to be sure we are mates or…”

“Or?”

“The couple dies.”

“I suppose for me that would mean turning into nothing. You did notice there was the entire part in the curse about leading me to final death.”

“Or that I might bind the curse on you for good.” I chewed my lip. “If you don’t want to⁠—”

“Our fated bond was so strong it carried over into death. Even Throk had never heard of such a thing.” He urged me closer and grazed his lips against mine. “I’m sure of who you are, now more than ever. If this breaks curses, then I’ll do it.”

Even though I had barely found out about us being mates, it felt more right than anything I had heard. I doubted only my ability. I would have to be positive we followed the process exactly, or the magic might reject us and we could die anyway. “It is… intense.” I turned the book facing him to show him the very intimate images penciled on the page.

A wickedness flashed in those glowing eyes. “I think I can handle it.”

The moon hung in the sky, luminous. It wasn’t a harvest moon, which would be the strongest time to do such a ceremony, but the three-quarters moon was still powerful.

I drew a circle in the dirt, matching the symbols that I saw in my book. A binding circle.

Vaelor waited off to the side, watching with interest.