Amara's POV – Same Scene
I stood there, in the heart of the lion's den, barefoot and raw, draped in silence and guarded dignity. No crown on my head. No command in my voice. Just me—Amara. And him—Chris.
The man who once held my waist as if it steadied his soul…
Now the same man who pulled the trigger that shattered something in both of us.
He reached for my hand, his tone softer than anything I'd heard from him since his return.
> "I miss you," he had said.
And I believed him.
But that didn't undo the body lying cold in the corridor.
Darius.
His name echoed in my mind louder than Chris's whisper ever could.
Still, I didn't pull my hand away.
Why?
Because I hated him... and I loved him. Because no matter how sharp the crown, no matter how bloodstained the chamber, this was still our story. Flawed, fractured, but not yet finished.
He whispered again, more to himself than to me:
> "Because if I lose you… I lose the last part of me that's human."
Those words tightened something in my throat. I should've turned and walked out. I should've told him he already lost me the moment that gun fired.
But I couldn't.
I was angry.
But I was still his.
I studied his eyes—tired, haunted, worn thin behind the mask of command.
I stepped forward slightly.
"You want me back?" I said softly. "Not just in this room. In your trust. In your decisions. As your equal?"
He didn't speak.
He just nodded.
Then I let the silence hang before responding.
"Then make it right."
Chris blinked. "What do you mean?"
I moved even closer, chest nearly against his. My words came in a whisper but cut like steel.
"Let the empire see you bleed. Own the choice. Say his name. Apologize—not to me. To them."
He stiffened, his instinct screaming never show weakness.
But I held my ground. I needed him to know: love without accountability is a lie.
"You want me at your side again?" I said, voice calm. "Then prove you're worthy of it."
He looked at me, and for the first time in forever—I didn't see Blackwood 1.
I saw Chris.
Just a man, standing in the wreckage of his own control.
And for once…
Maybe that's what the empire needed to see too.