Aria's POV
I paced my cell feeling like a caged animal. I couldn't help but think about the events that had led me here. I had been a princess, born into a life of luxury and privilege, but it had been a gilded cage. My father, had always been cruel and abusive.
But it was when he tried to force me into an arranged marriage with Lord Ambrose, the Lord of Ravenswood that I had realized I had to escape.
I had no false notions that my father cared about me. The fact that he only saw me as a pawn to be used in his game of power and politics was a poorly hidden secret in the castle.
But the thought of being married off to a man like Ambrose, a man who was almost as old as my father and who was more cruel and abusive than my father, was too much to bear. There were rumors of his inclinations. That he gained pleasure from hurting others, he took joy in pain.
I tried dismissing it as hearsay and rumors but one meeting with the Lord changed my mind. He was worse than they said.
I had tried to reason with my father, to plead with him to reconsider, but he refused to listen. He had told me that I had no choice but to do as I was told, marry the lord and produce an heir.
Then he proceeded to beat me within an inch of my life for daring to defy him.
I remembered screaming till my voice turned hoarse, the emotionless faces of my father's guards as I pleaded and begged for mercy, the maids' blank faces as they patched me up and locked me in my room for weeks.
That was when I had realized that I had to leave.
I thought back to my childhood, to the times when my father had hit me and starved me. I had always been a disappointment to him, never good enough, never obedient enough.
And now, as I stood in the cell, came to terms with the fact that I hated my father, it was a realization that came too late. I had always had hope in my mind that one day he'll love me. That if I did everything he asked he would give me the attention I desperately craved. Looking back, my thoughts had been childish, nothing but wishful thinking. I hated him for the pain and the suffering he had inflicted on me. The marriage was my breaking point. It was all it took for me to realize I had to leave or die trying.
I realize that if I hadn't left I wouldn't have crossed path with Kael who wants god's know what with me, I wouldn't be standing in a dingy cell trapped and helpless instead I would've been wed to a man worse than my father. I shuddered at the thought. I don't know which is worse, Kael or Lord Ambrose.
Isat on the cold, stone floor of the cell, my back against the wall as I let out a sob. The tears streamed down my face, hot and uncontrollable, as I felt the weight of my situation crushing me. I was trapped, helpless, something I vowed to never feel again.
I had tried to hold it together, to keep my chin up and my spirit unbroken, but it was no use. The reality of my situation had finally sunk in, and I was overwhelmed by the feeling of hopelessness that had been building inside me.
I thought of the freedom I had never gotten to experience, to make my own choices.
And now, the possibility of all that was gone.
I felt like I was drowning in a sea of despair, with no lifeline in sight. I felt my body shake with sobs, my breath coming in ragged gasps. I was exhausted, physically and emotionally, and I didn't know how much more I could take.
I was a prisoner, a captive, and I didn't know if I would ever be free again.
As the tears finally began to subside, I looked around the dark cell. It was a bleak and unforgiving place, a place where hopes went to die.
Kael's POV
Kael stood in the shadows, watching as she broke down in the cell. He had been observing her for some time, studying her reactions and trying to understand what made her tick. But as he saw her collapse to the floor, overcome with emotion, he felt a wave of guilt wash over him.
He had expected her to be strong, to resist and fight back against her captivity. She had initially but he hadn't expected her to crumble, revealing a vulnerability that he hadn't anticipated.
He felt a darkness stirring within him. It was growing harder to control, Aria entices it. It want to destroy her and he feared that if he didn't find a way to rein it in, it would consume him.
But as he looked at her, helpless and trapped, it enticed the darkness within him. Aria was nothing but prey to it, an innocence to corrupt and devour till nothing was left.
Kael knew he was playing a losing game with the darkness and it was only a matter of time before he lost.