In the dead of night, the room was dimly lit with fresh air coming through the open window and rustling the curtains . Islinda lay in bed, the silence heavy around her as she drifted on the cusp of sleep. Suddenly, a chill prickled the air, and a sense of foreboding washed over her like a cold wave crashing against her skin.
Islinda felt it before she saw it—a looming presence, a shadow hovering over her like a dark specter. With a jolt, her eyes snapped open just as hands closed around her throat with a merciless grip, the sudden movement shattering the tranquility of the room.
Instinctively, Islinda gasped for air, her fingers clawing at the hands that threatened to suffocate her. But as the light fell upon the face, Islinda realized with a sickening dread that it was not Elena’s twisted visage looming over her, but Aldric’s. The hell.
"Aldric..." she managed to croak out, her voice choked with disbelief. But there was no flicker of recognition in his eyes, no trace of the Fae she knew. If anything, he continued to tighten his grip, his hands squeezing the life out of her, oblivious to her pleas for mercy.
She knew it. Islinda should not have left Aldric alone and look where that led. Aldric even while under the influence of Elena’s manipulation had promised not to touch a hair on her body. Aldric was good at keeping to his words. Who knows what Elena must have done to him for him to go back on his words like this.
As Islinda’s world descended into chaos, her struggle against Aldric intensified, her survival instincts kicking into overdrive. Every fiber of her being screamed for release, for a chance to break free from the vice-like hold that threatened to consume her. But it was like trying to move a boulder with her bare hands—Aldric remained immovable.
With adrenaline coursing through her veins, Islinda’s fingers clawed desperately at Aldric’s arms, searching for any weakness, any opening that would grant her a fleeting moment of reprieve. There was nothing. If anything, his grip tightened with every passing second, crushing the life from her with merciless intent.
With one hand locked in a desperate struggle against Aldric’s iron grasp, her other hand groped blindly, searching for the weapon she had stashed beneath her pillow. Her fingers brushed against the cold metal of the knife, and with a surge of adrenaline, she grasped it tightly, drawing it forth with trembling hands.
Aldric was more invested in strangling her and didn’t see it coming. With a surge of determination, Islinda drew it forth and plunged it into Aldric’s side with all the force she could muster. She may have been fighting against the Fae she loved, but she refused to let him become her executioner. That was not happening.
Aldric’s flesh tore and blood spilled forth from the wound accompanied by the sound of his pained grunt filling the air as he recoiled, his grip only easing. Islinda was able to breathe a little, coughing from the assault, but even she
Islinda struggled with all her might to free herself, but he remained as unyielding as a force of nature. An animalistic growl reverberated from his chest, sending a shiver down Islinda’s spine as she met the wild, primal intensity in his gaze. He was like a wounded beast, his rage unleashed by her action — she stabbed him.
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