The Dragon King's Hated Bride
Chapter 15: The Strange Book

Chapter 15: The Strange Book

>>Aelin

When I unlocked the door and pulled it open, the silence outside was almost louder than the banging had been. The hallway was empty, a yawning stretch of cold stone bathed in flickering light from the sconces on the walls.

No one was there.

My gaze fell to the door, now nearly unrecognizable. Deep claw marks gouged the metal, jagged and sharp as though an animal—or something worse—had torn into it with unrestrained force. The edges of the frame were warped, scorched by what must have been a blast of magic. The heat had melted parts of the door, leaving it sagging and brittle, as if just one more hit would have shattered it completely.

I stepped back, my heart pounding against the emptiness I’d felt only moments ago. My mind raced. Why would Draegon cause such destruction just to reach me? What did he want from me?

That’s when I saw it.

Right from the corner of my eyes, on the ground, just at the threshold, something small and familiar gleamed faintly in the dim light. I paused, then turned my head to look at it.

!!!

I knelt down, my hands trembling as I picked it up.

A bracelet. The wooden beaded surface was unmistakable, it was the bracelet I had given Draegon before he left for the war.

I stared at it, the cool wooden beads resting in my palm, my thoughts a whirlwind of confusion. Why? Why would he come here? Why now? After everything, after the distance, after the silence... why would he try to stop me now?

The bracelet felt heavier than it should have, as if it carried every unanswered question. I closed my fingers around it and turned back to the room. My steps were slow as I couldn’t wrap my head around what had just happened.

Right then an image flashed through my mind, like a sharp sting, it made me wince. I saw Draegon through a blurry vision, his voice was muffled as he called for help while I was in his arms.

!?!??!

I froze by the book shelf, one hand on the side of my head, as I tried to make sense of the memory. Or was it just a figment of my imagination?

...

Why do I faintly remember being in Draegon’s arms when I first attempted to take my life?

I stood there quietly. Unsure whether to believe it or not.

The light coming in from the window made something shine on the floor next to me, catching my attention. My gaze fell on the book that had fallen from the topmost shelf. Its cosmic binding was cracked with age but there was no title on it, just a pastel cosmic binding cover that looked more ethereal when the light hit it.

I bent down and picked it up, holding it as carefully as I would something fragile.

But my mind wasn’t on the book. It was on him. On Draegon. On the moments that had led to this. Did he feel anything for me? Did the bracelet mean he’d kept even a sliver of the connection we once shared? Or was this just guilt? A sense of duty?

I looked around the room, and the weight of memories pressed down on me. This was the same place where I had lost my child. The air seemed heavier here, laden with the echoes of what could have been.

I closed my eyes and let myself imagine, just for a moment. What would it have been like to hold her, to see her smile, to hear her laugh? How wonderful would it have been if I’d had the chance to meet my daughter, to watch her grow? She’d be a year old now if she had lived...

She’d be walking around too...

Tears pricked my eyes, but I blinked them away and looked down at the book in my hands. The cover bore no title, and I opened it absent-mindedly while thinking about my baby.

I wish I could meet her, but as I opened the book, something happened.

The words inside seemed to hum, as if alive. Something about the text struck me deeply, resonating in a way that I couldn’t explain.

!?!?

Then it happened.

A sharp pull, like an unseen thread tugging at the core of my being, yanked me into myself. My surroundings blurred, dissolving into nothingness as I was drawn inward, deeper than I’d ever thought possible.

There was a pause

Then I gasped as I opened my eyes, finding myself in a vast and surreal white place. I don’t know how, but as if by instinct, I knew I was drawn into my own mind, my subconscious to be exact, or something along those lines. Because as I shot my head around the vast expanse in which I stood, at its center, I saw it: my soul’s core.

!!!

The moment I saw it, I paused. It was radiant, a sphere of light and energy that pulsed with an intensity I’d never known existed within me. The sight of it was overwhelming, I had no idea why I was there but I watched as it opened and a flood of magic surged forth, engulfing me.

!?!?!

I tried to defend myself but as it consumed me, I relaxed on my own.

I felt something in me. I could feel its power, raw and unrestrained, coursing through every fiber of my being. It was ancient and unyielding. The force of it left me breathless, my body trembling as the energy wrapped around me, through me, consuming me entirely.

But I felt it. Something within me rose, something long buried beneath my pain and despair. It started as a flicker, a warmth I hadn’t felt in so long. My breath caught as the warmth grew stronger, more vivid, pulling me deeper into the glowing plane of my subconscious.

Then it died down and I felt like nothing was wrong with my body, but that there was more energy in me, more power.

I looked down at my palms, feeling like there was something raw inside of me now, but right then, from the corner of my eyes I saw something standing behind me.

!

I shot my body and head around to look at her

"Who is it?!" I looked at the thing- or maybe not a thing.

A small figure stood before me, illuminated by a gentle, golden light. She was no more than a silhouette of radiance, had no defining features of a person, similar to what that witch looked like, except that she was dark and this child was- bright.

"Mommy," her voice rang, soft and sweet, but with a strength that pierced my broken heart.

And I knew—instantly, deeply—that it was her. My daughter. The child I had lost. My knees buckled, and I fell to the ground, my hands shaking as I reached out toward her, my eyes refusing to leave.

"Asha?" I called out to her with a broken squeaky voice.

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