Felix's POV
I pounded the ground, my feet aching from the relentless pursuit. This human's soul, a flickering flame that danced just out of reach, had me entranced. I wanted to claim it, to make it mine.
A snarl curled my lip as I gazed at the blood smudged on her cheek. It was a cruel irony
I, a creature of darkness, was driven to save the vessel that housed the soul I coveted. And yet, with every step, I felt my control slipping, my hunger for her soul growing.
I gritted my teeth, fighting the urge to unleash my powers and annihilate our pursuers. Not yet. Not until I had her soul within my grasp.
I dragged her toward the Malam River, its dark waters churning like a living thing.
My plan was brutally straightforward, plunge into the depths, lose our pursuers in the currents, and emerge on the other side.
Simple.
Deadly.
Effective.
I didn't bother checking if she could swim. It didn't matter. We were going in, together.
I gazed into her terrified eyes, my own burning with an inner fire. "Do you trust me?" I asked, my voice low and even, a gentle breeze on a summer's day.
Her expression twisted in a mix of fear and sarcasm. "Uh, no." A spark of amusement danced in my chest, but I kept my face impassive.
I took a step closer, my movements fluid as a snake. My hand closed around her arm, a vice like grip that brooked no resistance. "Good," I whispered, my breath caressing her ear. "Because I'm not asking you to trust me . I'm telling you to trust me."
Gunshots echoed through the air, the sound making her tremble. I pulled her forward, toward the edge of the cliff. The river below was a churning, foamy mouth, waiting to devour us whole.
Her heels dug into the ground, but I was unstoppable. I was a force of nature, a devil in the flesh. And I would save her, no matter the cost.
Mostly for her soul .
"Trust me," I whispered, my breath a cold mist against her ear. My grip closed around her hand like a vice, fingers intertwining with hers as we teetered on the edge.
The world slowed, and for an instant, it was just us, suspended in the darkness.
Then we were falling, plummeting into the river's icy depths. The shock of the water was like a slap, stealing my breath. Gunshots crackled through the air, echoing off the water, each report making my ears ring.
The sound was muffled, distant, as if it was coming from another world.
We hit the surface, and I felt her hand slip from mine. I cursed, the word lost in the gurgle of the water. My eyes scanned the dark, churning surface, but she was gone.
I kicked downward, my movements slow and labored, as if I was swimming through molasses. The water was a cold, unforgiving shroud, and I was trapped in its depths, searching for a ghost.
Ugh, this human was my mate? It was almost laughable. "Use your powers and find her already" my inner demon snarled, its voice like a rusty gate scraping against concrete.
I hesitated, a spark of defiance igniting within me. I didn't want to. I wouldn't. I'd find her on my own terms.
But...my breath caught in my throat. I couldn't breathe. The water seemed to be closing in around me, suffocating me. Panic clawed at my chest, and I realized with a jolt of fear that I wasn't the only one struggling to breathe
I kicked through the water, following the faint trail of her scent. It was a primal, instinctual thing, a mate's bond guiding me through the darkness.
I dove deeper, the water pressure building in my ears, and wrapped my hands around hers. For a moment, I just held her, the shock of finding her still warm in my chest.
As I touched her, my own breathing steadied, my lungs no longer burning. But hers...hers was shallow, labored. I could feel her life force ebbing, and a spark of panic ignited within me.
A human.
My weakness.
My mate.