The weight of my own heartache felt like a crushing boulder as I navigated the twisted paths of the moonlit forest, each step resonating with a tumultuous mix of anger and desperation. With every rustle of the leaves, I was reminded of the betrayal that stung like a fresh wound. I had believed so fervently in the unbreakable bond we shared, in the future I had meticulously envisioned for us. But now, with Seraphina trying to slip through my fingers like sand, I felt a primal urge ignite within me—a need to confront her, to force her to recognize the truth that she was desperately trying to escape.
My heart pounded a chaotic rhythm in my chest, and each breath I took came in ragged, frantic gasps. There was no turning back now. I had to confront Seraphina, to make her understand why she couldn't abandon me, why we were meant to be bound together, even amidst the chaos that threatened to tear us apart.
As I drew closer, the moonlight illuminated her face—a canvas of panic and resolve. Her wide, terrified eyes met mine, and I could see the depth of her fear. "Eleri," she stammered, her voice trembling like a fragile leaf in the wind. "You don't have to do this. I'm trying to find help. I need to get away."
Her words ignited a furious blaze within me. "Escape? So, you're just going to abandon everything we had? From me? Did you ever truly care, Seraphina? Or was this love just a game to you?"
Seraphina's gaze pierced through my anger, searching for a thread of reason, a glimmer of understanding. "It's not like that! I need to understand what's happening. You're not yourself—this isn't the person I knew!"
A sharp pang of betrayal sliced through me, more potent than any blade. How dare she accuse me of losing myself when she was the one attempting to sever our bond? "Not myself? You're the one trying to escape everything we built! I did everything for you! I brought you into my world, cared for you when no one else would. And now you want to throw it all away?"
Frustration laced her voice, her vulnerability exposing itself. "I didn't want to hurt you! I just need to know what's going on. Why are you doing this? Why are you keeping me tied up?"
Her words were daggers, twisting deep in my heart, but I couldn't waver. I had to make her see the truth that pulsated like a heartbeat within me. "You think you can just walk away and everything will be fine? You made your choice when you tried to leave! Now you will stay with me until you understand that we belong together!"
With that, I seized her arm, my grip unyielding as I yanked her toward the clearing. She fought against me, her strength waning beneath the weight of fear and desperation, but I was beyond reason. The love I had for her had morphed into something dark, something terrifying—a force I could no longer control.
When we reached the bed, I thrust her down onto it, my movements a blend of aggression and determination. "I can't let you leave. Not until you realize that this is where you're meant to be. I've sacrificed everything for us. Do you have any idea what it's like to feel so utterly alone, only to find someone who seemed to understand?"
Seraphina's eyes shimmered with unshed tears, a reflection of the turmoil that raged within me. "Eleri, please. This isn't you. You're scaring me. Just let me go."
Her pleas only stoked the fire within me, feeding the delusion that I was doing this for her own good. As I bound her hands with rough rope, I could see her struggles grow weaker, her resolve dimming under the weight of exhaustion.
"You don't understand, Seraphina," I hissed, my voice low and dangerous. "I did everything for you. I brought you into my world, gave you everything. And now you want to leave? You think you can just walk away from me?"
Her voice trembled, barely audible as she fought against the fear constricting her. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I just needed to find out what's going on. I'm scared, Eleri. I don't understand what's happening."
The pain in her eyes should have softened my heart, but it only hardened my resolve further. "You should be scared. You've betrayed me. And if you think you can leave, you're sorely mistaken. I won't let anyone come between us—not Dragonir, not anyone."
Seraphina's face paled as the implications of my words began to settle in, and I relished the terror that flickered in her eyes. "What do you mean? What are you planning to do?"
A cold smile stretched across my face, reflecting the madness that surged through me like a dark tide. "If you don't stay with me, if you don't show me that you truly care, I'll make sure Dragonir suffers. I will make him regret ever crossing me."
The fear that danced in her gaze fueled my twisted satisfaction. I needed to ensure she understood the stakes, the depth of my feelings that had morphed into something perilously obsessive.
"Eleri, please! You don't have to do this!" she begged, desperation saturating her voice. "We can work this out. Just let me go."
I shook my head, my expression set in grim determination. "It's too late for that. You made your choice when you tried to escape. Now you will stay with me until you see that we belong together. I won't let you leave, not until you understand."
Turning away from her, I felt a heavy mix of sorrow and resolve wash over me. The silence of her captivity filled the room, and the weight of my actions pressed down on my shoulders like an anchor dragging me into darkness. This was the only way to keep her close, to ensure she recognized the depth of my love and the lengths I was willing to traverse to keep her in my life.
As I prepared to leave, the reality of what I had done began to loom over me like a storm cloud, darkening my thoughts. I had pushed her to the brink, crossed lines I never imagined I would, but I told myself it was for her own good. She needed to see that we were meant to be together, that my love for her was all-consuming and unyielding.
I left her there, bound and vulnerable, my heart a chaotic storm of conflicting emotions as I tried to calm the tempest inside me. The darkness of my actions was a reflection of the pain I felt, a twisted love that had turned dangerously obsessive. I was willing to go to any lengths to make her see that we belonged together, even if it meant trapping her in this web of shadows I had woven around us.