Free Web NovelChapter 190: Chapter 190
Riley’s POV
"Something horrible," Carian said, and this time there was a sly smile on her lips, but it didn’t look right. It looked forced, like she was trying to hold it together while something underneath was breaking inside her.
"Can you just talk already?" I asked, my patience running out. My voice came out sharper than I expected, and I didn’t even try to fix it. "I’m already tired of this back and forth."
She went quiet.
Not just quiet like she was thinking, but quiet like she was holding something in.
A full minute passed, and all she did was stare at the ground like she was debating something in her head.
Then she looked back at me.
"Forget it," she said. "You don’t need to know anyway. It doesn’t matter."
I blinked at her slowly, trying to process what she just said.
"Really?" I asked, staring at her like she had completely lost it. "You’ve said all these, and now you want to stop?"
She didn’t answer.
I let out a frustrated breath, shaking my head slightly.
"So all of this," I said, gesturing at her, my voice rising again, "everything you just told me, all the things you did, all the things you planned, you did it for a man who still didn’t choose you."
Her eyes hardened, but I didn’t stop.
"You didn’t take that as a sign?" I continued. "You didn’t take that as a clear sign that maybe the two of you were not meant to be?"
Her jaw tightened.
"Instead, you kept forcing it," I added. "You kept pushing, manipulating, controlling, doing whatever you could to make it work even when it clearly wasn’t working."
Her breathing became heavier, but she stayed silent.
"And even now," I said, stepping closer to her, ignoring the pain still in my body, "you still want him that bad."
That made her eyes flicker.
"Even like this," I continued. "Even after everything. Even after you’re dead."
Her expression twisted slightly, but I pushed forward.
"Was that why you guilt-trapped him?" I asked. "Because you couldn’t stand the idea of him moving on?"
She didn’t respond immediately.
So I kept going.
"Among all his brothers," I said, my voice steady but firm, "Gunnar is the one I feel the most hate from."
Her eyes narrowed at that.
"He’s angry," I continued. "He’s conflicted. Even with himself."
I took another step closer.
"And now I understand why," I added.
There was a pause.
Then suddenly, she smiled.
Not a normal smile.
Something off. Something wrong.
"Yes," she said.
My chest tightened slightly.
"And I loved it that way," she added, her voice almost soft but completely unhinged.
"Stop!" I shouted immediately.
The sound echoed, louder than anything I had said before, and it clearly caught her off guard because she flinched slightly.
"Stop what?" she asked, her brows furrowing.
"Stop it, Carian," I said, my voice still raised, still firm. "Just stop."
Her expression hardened again.
"Let him go," I continued, my tone intense now. "He’s human. He has a heart. He has a fucking blood running through his veins."
She scoffed.
"Why are you holding him down?" I demanded. "Why are you trapping him like this for your own selfish reasons?"
"I’m not trapping him," she snapped immediately.
"You are," I shot back without hesitation. "You’re holding onto him in a way that’s not normal, in a way that’s not right, and you know it."
"You don’t know anything about me Aemoria," she said, her voice rising again.
"I know enough," I replied. " At the very least I know that what you’re doing is wrong."
"You think you’re better than me?" she asked, stepping closer to me now, her eyes burning with anger.
"I don’t think I’m better than you," I said. "I just know I’m not doing what you’re doing."
She let out a sharp laugh.
"You’re judging me like you understand anything," she said.
"I understand that you’re hurting people," I replied immediately. "That’s enough for me."
"I loved him!" she shouted suddenly.
"And that gives you the right to control him?" I shot back. "That gives you the right to decide what he feels and what he does?"
"I didn’t control him!" she insisted.
"You literally said you used a forbidden spell on him," I said, staring at her in disbelief. "You took away his choice."
Her expression faltered for a split second.
"That was just for seven days," she said quickly.
"That’s not the point!" I snapped. "You still did it. You still made that decision for him."
"I had no choice," she said, her voice shaking slightly now.
"You always have a choice," I replied.
"No, I didn’t," she said. "You don’t understand what it’s like to want something so badly and not have it."
I stared at her.
"You think I don’t understand that?" I asked quietly.
She hesitated.
"But the difference is," I continued, my voice firm again, "I wouldn’t destroy someone else just to get what I want."
Her face twisted."You’re acting like I’m the bad person here," she said.
"You are," I replied.
That hit her hard.
"You’re acting like I didn’t suffer," she added.
"I’m not saying you didn’t suffer," I said. "I’m saying you made things worse."
"I tried," she said.
"And when it didn’t work, you forced it," I replied.
"I did what I had to do," she insisted.
"No," I said, shaking my head. "You did what you wanted to do."
She went quiet again, but this time it didn’t feel like hesitation.
It felt like rage building.
"You don’t get to stand there and tell me what I did was wrong," she said slowly.
"I do," I replied. "Because it is."
"You don’t know what I went through," she said.
"And that doesn’t justify what you did," I shot back.
Her hands clenched tightly at her sides.
"You think letting go is easy?" she asked. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
"No," I said honestly. "It’s not."
"Then stop acting like it is," she snapped.
"I’m not acting like it’s easy," I replied. "I’m saying it’s necessary."
She laughed again, but there was no humor in it.
"Necessary?" she repeated. "For who?"
"For you," I said. "For him. For everyone."
"I don’t care about everyone," she said.
"I know," I replied. "That’s the problem."
Her eyes burned into mine.
"I care about him," she said.
"No," I said. "You care about having him."
