章 35: Chapter 35 - Tangled In You
Eira awoke to the gentle hum of an engine beneath her. The steady vibration thrummed through her body, oddly soothing in its constancy, but her head throbbed, and her side ached faintly. She blinked against the dim lighting, the rich mahogany paneling of the room slowly coming into focus. A soft, silken blanket was draped over her, and she lay on a bed far too luxurious to be part of any ordinary chamber.
Her heart lurched. This wasn't their room in the castle.
The memories came rushing back: the rogues, Caius's fury, the unbearable heat of his touch as he healed her. Her hand flew to her side, fingers grazing the spot where she'd been wounded. The skin was smooth now, the pain dull but present, a phantom reminder of the searing fire she'd endured before blacking out.
She sat up abruptly, the blanket falling away. The room swayed slightly, and the realization hit her like a slap. She was in Caius private jet and they were moving.
A door at the far end of the cabin slid open, and Caius stepped inside. He was already watching her, as if he'd been waiting for this moment. His golden eyes flicked over her, assessing, before narrowing in silent disapproval.
"You should be resting," he said, his voice calm but firm.
Eira ignored the ache in her body as she swung her legs over the side of the bed. "Where are we?" she demanded, her voice sharper than she intended.
He didn't answer immediately, instead moving to the small table at the center of the room. A glass of water sat there, untouched. He picked it up and extended it to her without a word.
"Where. Are. We?" she repeated, not taking the glass.
His lips pressed into a thin line. "On my jet," he said finally, his tone clipped. "We're returning to the island."
"You're running?" she accused, her voice rising. "You're running from the court? From the rogues?"
Caius's jaw tightened, his eyes flashing dangerously. "I'm protecting you."
Eira stepped closer, her body protesting the movement, but her anger pushed her forward. "Protecting me? By leaving the castle undefended? By abandoning the court when they need you the most?"
"I'm not abandoning them," he said, his voice low and controlled, but there was an edge to it now. "They can manage without me for a few days."
"Can they?" Eira shot back, her frustration spilling over. "You told me yourself—they're looking for any excuse to undermine you. Leaving now only makes you look weak."
Caius moved toward her in a single fluid motion, closing the space between them. She flinched at the intensity in his gaze, but she refused to back down.
"I don't care how they perceive me," he said, his voice dropping to a dangerous murmur. "Not when your life is at risk."
"My life has been at risk since the day you brought me into your world," she snapped. "But you don't see me running."
His nostrils flared, his shoulders rigid as he stood over her. "I won't apologize for prioritizing your safety."
Eira's chest heaved, the tension between them thick enough to choke her. She wanted to scream, to push him, to make him see how his decision to flee affected more than just her. But the raw emotion in his eyes gave her pause. He wasn't just angry. He was scared.
"What are you so afraid of, Caius?" she asked, her voice softening despite her anger.
For a moment, he didn't answer. His hands clenched into fists at his sides, and he turned away, pacing toward the small window. The faint glow of city lights below shimmered in the distance, but his reflection in the glass was sharp and unrelenting.
"You don't understand," he said finally, his voice quieter now. "When I saw you lying there, bleeding, I couldn't think. Couldn't breathe. All I could see was you… slipping away."
Eira blinked, her heart twisting at the rawness in his tone. He didn't look at her, his gaze fixed on the window as if it could shield him from the vulnerability of his words.
"I've seen death more times than I can count," he continued, his voice growing steadier, colder. "It doesn't faze me. But you—" His voice caught, and he let out a sharp breath. "You're different."
She took a hesitant step forward, her anger melting into something softer, though the ache in her chest remained. "I'm not invincible, Caius. You can't protect me from everything."
His head turned slightly, but he still didn't meet her gaze. "I can try."
"And in the process, you'll isolate yourself," she said gently. "You'll push everyone else away. Is that what you want?"
Silence stretched between them, heavy with unspoken truths. Finally, Caius turned, his golden eyes meeting hers. There was no anger now, only a quiet desperation that made her chest ache.
"What I want," he said, his voice low, "is to keep you alive. To keep you safe. That's all I can think about."
The weight of his words hung in the air, heavy and unshakable. Eira swallowed hard, trying to process the raw emotion in his tone. His gaze was steady, unrelenting, but she saw the cracks beneath the surface, the strain in his shoulders, the shadows that lingered in his golden eyes.
"You can't do this alone, Caius," she said softly. "You don't have to."
A flicker of something crossed his face—hesitation, uncertainty—but it was gone as quickly as it came. He turned away, his jaw tightening. "I've been doing it alone for centuries."
"Then maybe it's time to stop."
He didn't answer, his silence louder than words. Eira took a tentative step forward, her hand hovering just shy of his arm before she let it fall. "You're not invincible," she said, her voice barely above a whisper. "And neither am I. But running… it won't solve anything."
Caius turned back to her, his expression unreadable. "You still think I'm running?"
"Yes, and I think you're hiding," she admitted. "—from them, from yourself, from what this bond means."
His lips pressed into a thin line, his eyes searching hers as though looking for answers he couldn't find. "You don't understand," he murmured. "What I've built… what I've fought for… none of it matters if I lose you."
Eira's breath hitched. She didn't know how to respond to that, to the raw honesty in his words or the weight of his gaze. She could see the storm raging behind his carefully constructed facade, the tension between the life he'd built and the life he might want.
"Caius," she began, her voice trembling. "I don't—"
He stepped closer, his hand reaching out to brush a strand of hair from her face. The touch was light, hesitant, as if he were afraid she might break. "You don't have to say anything," he murmured. "Just… stay."
Eira's chest tightened, her anger and fear dissolving into something warmer, something she didn't yet have a name for. She nodded, her eyes stinging with unshed tears as she leaned into his touch.
"I'm not going anywhere," she said softly.
For a moment, they simply stood there, the tension between them replaced by a fragile, tentative peace. Caius's hand lingered against her cheek, his gaze searching hers as if committing this moment to memory.
He leaned in, his lips hovering just above hers. Eira's breath caught, her heart pounding as she waited for the inevitable. But at the last second, he pulled back, his jaw tightening as he stepped away. Her chest tightened painfully.
It was the bond, she thought—the constant thread that tied them together, pulling tighter with every moment they shared.
It made her feel closer to him than she'd ever thought possible, but it also left her wondering if that closeness was real—or just something the bond demanded.
"I need to check the cockpit," he said abruptly, his voice back to its usual controlled tone. "Rest. We'll be there soon."
Eira watched him leave, her chest aching with the weight of all that had been left unsaid. As the door slid shut behind him, she sank back onto the bed, her fingers brushing the spot where his hand had rested.
She stared at the ceiling, the faint hum of the jet vibrating beneath her. The bond thrummed beneath her skin like a second heartbeat, ever-present and inescapable. It made her feel like she understood him in ways she couldn't explain, yet it also left her questioning how much of what she felt was truly hers.
She couldn't shake the feeling that something was changing between them, that Caius was fighting a battle she couldn't yet see. The bond only made it harder to separate her feelings from his—it thrummed between them like an unspoken promise, binding them together even as it seemed to pull him further away from the life he'd built.
Her chest tightened as warmth bloomed unbidden in her heart, bittersweet and electric, and she bit her lip against the tears threatening to spill. How much of this was real? How much of it was hers? The bond whispered that it didn't matter, that it was all the same. But she couldn't trust it. Couldn't trust herself.
Her fingers curled into the sheets, the ache rising too fast, too sharp, until it consumed her. Eira pressed her hand to her chest as if she could force it all back down, but the bond thrummed again, insistent and deafening. She felt him there, a flicker of something raw and unguarded. Pain. Desire. Something that made her breath catch.
The connection pulsed again, and she shivered.
She knew in that moment, she would never be free.
クリエイターの想い 
JadedButCute
JadedButCute This chapter really pulled me into Eira and Caius’s world—the tension, the unspoken emotions, and the weight of the bond they can’t escape. Eira’s struggle to understand what she’s feeling—what’s hers, what’s his, and what the bond demands—is something that feels so human, even wrapped in the supernatural. And then there’s Caius, who’s trying so hard to protect her, even if it means running from everything else.
What do you think? Is he doing the right thing, or is Eira right to push back? And that bond—it’s intense, isn’t it? I love hearing your thoughts on their journey, so feel free to share your ideas or favorite moments from this chapter. Thank you so much for reading—I’m so glad to have you on this wild ride with me!
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