Chapter 7 +15 Bonus Chapter 7 Julian gave the signal. Cold metal pierced Isabella's arm. Another needle slid into his vein. Her blood-bright, too red-ran through a weird-looking machine, then slowly dripped into him. Her skin faded to paper white. Lips went gray. Breathing got shaky. But all Julian saw was Sera. Eight years ago, right after the crash, she'd shown up. Pale. Eyes heavy. He figured she hadn't slept. Back then, he'd actually been mad she didn't stay with him like Isabella did. Now? He finally got it. That wasn't exhaustion. She'd torched half her life force dragging him back from the brink. And she never said a word. She'd just looked at him, made sure he was okay, then walked out-quiet, alone, ready to face the fallout of breaking nature's rules. And he? He crushed everything she was... for a damn lie. "Mr. Aster, your body might reject the blood. You'll need sedation-painkillers," Dr. Wells stammered. "No." Julian's voice was raw but steady. Dr. Wells froze. "Sir, that's not possible! A full transfusion without anesthesia-your body'll go into shock. The pain could-" Julian cut him off. Something sparked behind those dead eyes. "I said no drugs. I want to feel everything she felt." He clenched his jaw, riding out the agony as blood drained and pumped back in. Cold sweat drenched the sheets. His body shook, but he didn't make a sound. Did it hurt this bad, Sera? When I pinned you down and stole your blood-was it like this? No. It had to be a thousand times worse. Because her blood carried love. And all he gave back was betrayal. When the transfusion ended, Julian had them drag, Isabella back in. The girl who once lit up every room now looked like she'd aged fifty years. "She suffered. Now it's your turn." His voice was ice. Julian didn't flinch at her screaming. He tossed her into the car like trash and hauled her back to the manor. $15 Bonus He locked her in the basement-cold, damp, no windows. Just a former storage room turned cell. She got barely enough food and water to survive. He fired every servant and stayed behind, alone. Kneeling in front of what was left of the Heartwood, he clawed through the blackened dirt with his bare hands, desperate for even one living root. Day and night, he stayed-watering, fertilizing, dumping top-tier nutrients into ashes like it'd change anything. But the dead don't come back. *** One night, totally wrecked, Julian passed out next to the scorched ground and slipped into a nightmare. He was a kid again, bringing candy and butterflies to the Heartwood for its mysterious guardian. "When I grow up, I'll be your knight. Okay?" Sera showed up-still stunning-but her eyes were pure ice. She took the candy from his hand, then, without flinching, drove a sharp twig straight into his chest. Julian jolted awake, chest burning, tears streaming. "Sera... even in dreams, you won't forgive me?" Desperate, he ran to the family's off-limits archive. It held every dirty secret the Asters had buried. He tore through ancient books like a man possessed-until he found it. A crumbling journal, written in some forgotten language, laid out a ritual. Dark magic. A spirit summoned through a life sacrifice. The warning screamed off the page: the caster would be swallowed by darkness, and the spirit dragged back and be bound. Julian's bloodshot eyes lit up. He didn't care. Eternal damnation? Whatever. If it meant seeing her one last time-even if she hated him, even if she killed him-it beat drowning in regret. He'd build a shrine over the Heartwood's ashes. He'd give up his life. He'd do the ritual. Support Share