Shattered Bonds A Second Chance Mate (by Yui) novel Chapter 111

Chapter 111

Chapter 111

Still Ellaine (as Edith) point of view:

“You okay?” he asked, his deep voice rumbled with concern, snapping me from whatever trance I’d fallen into.

I quickly shook my head and gave him a shaky nod.

“Yes. Sorry,” I murmured, suddenly conscious of how close he was.

I tried to pull my hand back–but he didn’t let go. Instead, to my complete shock, he leaned forward and–without hesitation–put my finger in his mouth, gently licking the wound.

My breath caught in my throat. A strange heat bloomed beneath my skin. I could feel it rising to my cheeks, a warmth I couldn’t stop.

When he looked up again, his golden eyes gleamed—like he saw it. My flustered expression. My blushing skin. And to my horror, he looked amused.

Iyanked my hand away quickly, cradling it close to my chest.

“I… I’m okay, thanks,” I mumbled, embarrassed beyond belief.

He didn’t look offended. If anything, his expression softened, almost fond.

“How did you find this place?” he asked after a pause, his gaze flicking briefly to the blue roses behind me.

The question made my chest tighten. I looked up quickly, worried.

“Why? Is this forbidden?” I blurted out. “I–I didn’t know, I just… I don’t know how I got here, my feet just kept walking, and suddenly I was here. I didn’t

mean to–if this is the king’s garden-”

He lifted a hand gently, calming my panic.

“No. Not like that. It’s just a question. You’re not in trouble.”

I let out a shaky sigh, pressing my hand over my heart.

“I thought I walked into a forbidden place,” I admitted.

His brow furrowed slightly. “Why do you think the king would be mad?”

Thesitated.

Because he feels like someone who would be. Because everyone speaks of him like a ghost wearing a crown.

“I heard… stories,” I said carefully. “People said the king is a cold man. Ruthless.”

He didn’t say anything at first.

I studied him instead–his strong jaw, the dark hair slightly tousled from wind or training. The way his shoulders moved under the soft warrior’s shirt. The sword strapped to his back glinted under the garden lights.

“You just finished training?” I asked, tilting my head. “Are you

a

warrior?”

His eyes widened slightly, like my question caught him off guard. Then he nodded.

“Yes. I am a warrior.”

I smiled, feeling a little less nervous.

“My name is Edith. Nice to meet you.”

He looked at my hand for a second, then took it carefully. I didn’t expect him to kiss it.

But he did.

A feather–light brush of lips against my skin.

“I am Frans,” he said. “Nice to meet you too, Edith.”

Frans. The name rolled easily off his tongue, but something in his eyes twisted when he said it. Like it wasn’t a lie–but not the whole truth either.

Still, I smiled.

“It’s a beautiful garden,” I said softly. “I’ve never seen blue roses before.”

“They’re rare,” he murmured, stepping beside me, gazing at them. “I planted them for someone. A long time ago.”

“Oh,” I said, unsure why my heart clenched hearing that. “Someone special?”

He didn’t answer at first. His golden eyes stayed locked on the flowers.

“Yes,” he said finally. “The most special.”

I looked away, feeling suddenly out of place. I shouldn’t pry.

But before the silence grew awkward, he spoke again..

“You’re staying here long?” he asked gently.

I shrugged. “Just for the night, I think. I came with a delivery team. Damon’s the merchant. We’re leaving at dawn.”

His jaw tensed.

Then he gave me a small smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“I hope you’ll visit again,” he said.

I nodded politely, even though I knew I probably wouldn’t. The castle was beautiful, but it wasn’t mine. I didn’t belong here. Not with nobles. Not in strange gardens with mysterious warriors.

But part of me… a very small, very quiet part… wanted to stay a little longer.

Just to see him again.

“Goodnight, Edith,” he said.

“Goodnight, Frans.”

And with that, I turned and walked back the way I came.

But even as I moved farther from the garden, I could feel I his presence lingering behind me–like moonlight warming the back of my neck.

Francesco’s Point of View:

“I am Frans,” I said, and the lie tasted like/ash in my mouth.

But her smile made the pain worth it.

“Nice to meet you too, Edith.”

Gods. That name. Wrong in every way, and yet hearing it fall from her lips made my chest tighten with a desperate kind of longing. Her voice, the comme one that used to say my name in sleep and song, now called herself something that wasn’t her.

But I couldn’t tell her yet.

So, I stood there, holding her hand gently as if it were made of fragile glass, and kissed it.

She blushed. I saw the way her cheeks warmed, how her eyes flicked away shyly, like she didn’t know what to do with the feeling. And gods, that innocence–her innocence–was still there.

That’s when I knew.

Whatever they tried to poison… they didn’t kill her soul.

She was still there. My Ellaine. Buried deep beneath forgetfulness and pain, but still alive.

I let her go.

Only physically. Not emotionally. Not spiritually. I watched her walk away from the garden like she was taking half my soul with her all over again.

And for the first time in a year, I didn’t feel broken watching her leave.

Because I knew where she was.

I had touched her again. Heard her voice. Looked into those eyes that no longer remembered me–and I still found peace in them.

When she disappeared into the corridor’s curve, I closed my eyes, letting my senses drink the scent of her magic, her wolf, and her sadness. That same soft cinnamon and moonlight.

“She still walks like a Luna,” Marlow said behind me.

“She is,” I replied softly.

Alfonso exhaled slowly. “You okay?”

“No,” I answered honestly. “But I will be.”

We stood in silence for a while, before 1 turned to them, fire returning to my veins.

“We need a plan.”

By the time we returned to the war room, the maps had already been cleared and replaced with the most sensitive files I had kept hidden since the fall of the council. Audrey and Monica were waiting–Audrey already had Lira contacted via mindlink.

“Lira says she’s preparing a slow–release potion,” Audrey said. “One that won’t cause damage. But it has to be delivered over time. Her mind is still fragile. Too much, too fast, and she might collapse.”

I nodded. “And we can’t risk drawing attention. Not to her. Not yet.”

Monica stepped forward. “She trusts me. She likes the greenhouse. I can guide her in small doses. Familiar smells. Artifacts. We’ll let her lead the way.”

“Good,” I said. “She doesn’t know it, but everything around her must start reminding her of home.”

“She is home,” Marlow muttered.

My heart ached. “But she doesn’t remember”

“Yet,” Alfonso added firmly.

I looked around at the people I trusted most. The ones who were with me during the wars, who held me together after Anastasia. Who wanted as fak again after Ellaine was taken.

“She looked at me like I was a stranger,” I whispered, unable to hold it in.

Silence.

“She flinched when I touched her.”

“Only at first,” Audrey said gently. “Then she smiled. Don’t forget that.”

I swallowed hard.

“I wanted to fall to my knees when I saw her in that garden. I wanted to scream the truth at her. Shake the memories back into her. But I didn’t

“Because you love her,” Monica said.

“Yes,” I breathed. “More than my own name.”

That night, I couldn’t sleep. I paced my chamber, restless. Every time I closed my eyes, I saw her hand, bleeding from the thorn. Her smile when I kissed it. Her voice calling me Frans.

It was a dagger and a balm.

I went to the chamber beside mine. The one we had prepared. It had sat empty since we cleared out the council.

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