Page 47 of The Immortal’s Curse (Bound to the Immortals #2)

DARCIE

The sky is cloudless, the moon a glowing sentinel above, but Bella carries a storm in her eyes.

She stands at the edge of her massive balcony, gazing into the quiet night.

Her posture is graceful, still, but something weighs on her.

She leans forward, resting her arms on the railing, and lets out a long, weary sigh.

I shift to the far corner of the balcony, deciding to give her space. Whatever she’s feeling, it’s not something she’s ready to share. I wrap my arms around myself and glance upward. The moon looms larger than usual, full and pale and watching. Too big for a winter night. Too close.

“Bella?” Thane’s voice floats out from the suite behind us. “You should come to bed.”

“I’m not tired.” Her reply is flat. Empty.

“My love…” Thane steps through the French doors, white curtains billowing behind him like ghosts. He approaches her the way someone might approach a wounded animal—slow, careful. “Please talk to me.”

Bella doesn’t move. Doesn’t speak. Minutes pass in silence, the kind that stretch too long and say too much. Eventually, Thane drops his shoulders, looking… defeated. Without another word, he turns and disappears back into the suite.

Bella doesn’t go after him. She just keeps staring into the dark.

Slow, deliberate claps cut through the night.

My body locks up instantly. That sound.

The mocking rhythm, dripping with malice and smugness… I heard it the night Adir kidnapped me.

It’s him .

Bella doesn’t whirl around. She doesn’t gasp. She just turns, slow and deliberate, to face the shadows.

Adir steps into the moonlight, wearing the same tattered clothes from his dungeon cell. His eyes glint with amusement.

“I didn’t think I’d ever see the day,” he says, smiling coldly. “The legendary love of Thane and Bella is unraveling.”

“We are not unravelling,” Bella answers, calm and composed. Too calm.

“No?” Adir raises a brow and shoots a pointed look at the balcony doors. “Could’ve fooled me.”

Bella holds his stare. Why isn’t she running away? Why isn’t she raising the alarm?

“Bella?” I call out.

Neither Immortal reacts.

I pinch my lips. They can’t hear me. I’m trapped as an observer. I can’t interfere.

“What do you want, Adir?” Bella finally asks.

“To talk.” He gestures to the patio chairs. “Shall we sit?”

“I’d prefer to stand.”

“Suit yourself.” He hops up and sits on the stone railing like he owns the place. “You were expecting me.”

It’s not a question.

“I knew you wouldn’t stay locked away forever,” Bella replies, emotionless. A breeze kicks up her skirts. “It was only a matter of time. ”

Adir’s lips curl. “Good to know you still have faith in me.”

“Why did you try to kill Darcie?” Her voice doesn’t rise, but it slices the night. “She's innocent.”

Adir waves a dismissive hand. “That girl is anything but innocent.”

“You’re wrong.”

“She’s powerful, too powerful for a mortal. She should’ve died. And yet, she didn’t.”

I clench my jaw. Every muscle in my body screams for me to do something, to warn Thane who is out here talking to his wife. But I can’t.

Why won’t Bella call for help?

“She’s mortal,” Bella insists, her voice firm.

Adir shakes his head like she’s a naive child. “Surely you see it now. She’s more than that.”

Then he lifts a hand.

A flash of red light erupts from his finger, too fast to stop. Bella reacts just in time, sweeping her arm across her body. Blue light arcs through the air with a crack, deflecting the bolt.

“What are you doing?” she gasps.

Adir’s expression doesn’t change. “Solving a problem.”

Another blast streaks toward her head. Bella ducks, only for a second bolt to fly straight to her chest. The power slams into her.

“No!” My scream tears out, raw and useless.

Bella stumbles. Her eyes go wide, glowing faintly before the light inside them begins to fade.

“You!” Adir snarls.

My head jerks to the Immortal. Our eyes lock.

He lifts a muscular arm. Before he can attack, the scene snaps away.

I bolt upright, ripped out of the nightmare, my heart pounding and my lungs squeezing. Sweat soaks my body, making the satin pajamas stick to me like a second skin.

Where am I?

The room spins, shadows stretch in unfamiliar shapes, and I blink against the heavy veil of sleep clouding my thoughts.

A light purple curtain flutters at the window, and recognition dawns.

The mansion. Relief crashes into me so fast it’s dizzying.

I fall back against the mattress, trembling, trying to calm my breathing.

But the images don’t leave.

Bella’s wide, dark eyes. Adir’s hateful glare.

I shoot upright again, shoving the covers off. My hands fumble for the robe hanging from one of the bedposts. With shaking fingers, I loop the belt into a knot and unlatch the door before bolting into the hallway.

That wasn’t a nightmare.

It was real. A vision. I know it in my bones.

The hallway blurs as I run, feet pounding against the carpeted floor of the third story. I don’t care who I wake. I hope someone hears. Someone has to do something.

I turn the corner, only now registering that I’m racing toward Des’ room just before I crash into a wall of muscle.

I yelp, stumbling back, but strong arms catch me. A hand clamps over my mouth. Panic flares until I register familiar blue eyes. Alex.

My body relaxes. He lowers his hand and lets me go.

“What are you doing out of your room at this hour?” he asks, eyes sharp.

“Nightmare,” I pant. Then shake my head, frantic. “No, vision. It was a vision. Bella…”

That’s all I can get out. I don’t have the words for what I saw. But he understands.

Alex grabs my wrist and we take off down the hall. The dim walls blur as he pulls me forward. He flings open Des’ door and ushers me inside, planting me in a plush green chair.

Des is already awake. He stands behind a cluttered table, papers strewn across the surface. A lantern glows softly, highlighting his bare torso and loose sweatpants. My mouth dries, drinking in the sculpted torso that my mind perfectly replicated in my dreams.

Not the time, Darcie!

Des’s narrowed gaze remains on the browned piece of parchment in his hands as he mutters, “What is it, Alex?”

“We have a problem.”

Des looks up. His eyes lock on me, and every muscle in his body draws tight. “What happened?”

“I-I had a vision,” I choke out. “Adir. He’s with Bella.”

Des crosses the room in a flash, pulls on boots, and grabs a shirt. I release a quiet whimper when the fabric covers his body.

“Stay here,” he orders. “Alexander will protect you.”

“No,” Alex says before I can.

Des stills. “No?”

“If Adir sees me protecting Darcie, everything I’ve done to gain his trust will fall apart.”

Des curses under his breath, dragging a hand through his hair. A tortured glance brushes over me. “We can’t leave her alone.”

Alex nods. “ You stay. I’ll find Thane.” And just like that, he vanishes with a gust of air.

I curl into the chair, pulling my legs up to my chest. My entire body shakes. Eyes closed, I whisper silent prayers that I’m wrong. That Bella is okay. That this vision is one possible future, not one we’re already living.

Des’ voice breaks my silent litany, “Can you tell me more about the vision?”

I open my eyes. My lips quiver as I take a deep breath. Then, I tell him everything .

The balcony. The tension between Thane and Bella. Adir appearing from the shadows.

I tell him what Adir wore, what he said, what he did . I leave nothing out, terrified that the smallest detail might be the key to saving Bella.

Des listens without interrupting. When I finish, he lowers himself into the chair across from me, brows drawn low in thought.

“You’re sure it was the same moon as tonight?” he asks.

Tears sting behind my eyes. “Yes,” I whisper. “I’m sure.”

He exhales slowly. “You did the right thing coming to warn us. That’s all you could have done.”

I shake my head. It doesn’t feel like enough. Not when Bella could be out there, hurt or dying, and I’m sitting here, helpless.

“This is stupid,” I mutter.

He tilts his head to the side.

“You should be out there helping to find her,” I say. “Bella needs you.”

Something shifts in his eyes, but instead of agreeing, he glances at the door. “I can’t leave you alone.”

“But Bella’s in danger,” I argue, moving to the edge of my seat. I lean toward him, locking eyes. “ You have to help her.”

“She would want me to stay and protect you.”

Frustration blazes through me. “I’m not the one in danger right now!”

“If Adir finds you, he may not hurt you, but he’ll take you.”

I throw my hands in the air. “That doesn’t matter right now!”

“It matters to me! ” he shouts, the sudden anger cracking in his voice like a whip.

I freeze. So does he.

Des looks away, jaw clenched.

“I’m sorry,” he mutters. “I care for you, Darcie. That’s why I have to stay. That’s why I can’t risk leaving you.”

“I know you do,” I say carefully, knowing he means it as a protector. “And I care about all of you. But I can’t just sit here and do nothing. Not while Bella?—”

“No,” he interrupts softly, cutting through my protest. “You don’t understand. I care for you, Darcie.”

My mouth opens, but no sound follows.

Confusion claws at me, tangled with hope and frustration. I can’t read him. One moment, he pushes me away so hard it bruises. The next, he reels me back in with a glance, a touch. His actions and his words never align.

But now? Even his words war with themselves.

I can’t take it. I’m losing my mind.

The silence stretches, thick and charged. Des doesn’t look away. His gaze pins me, steady yet patient, his shoulders coiled tight as if bracing for whether I’ll bolt or stay.

And honestly? Running feels safer. At least until I figure out how I’m supposed to respond.

But I don’t get the chance.

The door swings open with a bang, sending a gust of cool air rushing into the room. Des and I jump to our feet.

Alex stands at the threshold, face pale, expression carved from stone.

I already know what he’s going to say before his lips part, and my heart cracks in two.

“Bella’s gone.”