Chapter 241
The fire crackled faintly in the clearing where Elyra and Dain had made camp for the night. The stars stretched endlessly above them, their silvery glow mirrored in Elyra’s hair. Days of running, hiding, and constant vigilance weighed heavily on them, and the silence between them felt heavier still.
Elyra broke the quiet first, her voice soft and hesitant. “I don’t know how much longer we can keep this up.” She pulled her knees to her chest, her golden eyes flickering with uncertainty. “But I can’t imagine facing it without you.”
Dain, sitting a few feet away, looked up sharply. His fiery orange eyes softened, the harsh lines of his expression easing. “You won’t have to,” he said, his voice low but fierce. “I’d die before I let anything happen to you.”
Elyra’s breath caught, the depth of his words settling over her like a weight. She wanted to look away, to pretend the emotion in his eyes didn’t make her heart race, but she couldn’t. Instead, she reached out hesitantly, brushing her fingers against his.
Dain froze, his entire body taut with tension, but he didn’t pull away. “Elyra,” he began, his voice strained, “I don’t think I can keep pretending.”
She frowned slightly. “Pretending what?”
“That you’re just my sister,” he confessed, the words tumbling out in a rush. “That all I feel for you is something I can push down. I’ve tried, but it’s—it’s impossible.”
Elyra’s heart thudded painfully in her chest. “Dain, we can’t—”
“I know,” he interrupted, his voice raw. “But I can’t lie to you. You’re the only person I’ve ever felt this way about. The only person I want to protect like this.”
Her hand trembled as she withdrew it, her golden eyes searching his face for answers she didn’t know if she wanted. “I feel it too,” she admitted, barely above a whisper. “But this—whatever it is—it’s dangerous. And it’s wrong.”
Dain looked away, his jaw tightening. “I know. That’s why we can’t let it control us. We’ll fight it. We have to.”
Elyra nodded slowly, though her resolve felt brittle. “We’ll protect each other,” she said, her voice steadier than she felt. “But we can’t act on this.”
Dain met her gaze, his expression unreadable. “Then we’ll fight it together,” he said finally, the determination in his voice a small comfort.
They sat in silence for the rest of the night, the unspoken promise hanging b
