"Tell ," Sha Chen said. "What shall we talk about, my reluctant bride?"
Silence.
The female, Xin Yi, just stared at him from across the cushions. Her eyes were still dead. But there was sothing else now.
Fire, perhaps.
Or rage.
He found it fascinating.
Most females who entered his chambers were either terrified or eager. They trembled. They preened. They tried to seduce him or they cowered in fear.
This one did neither.
She just sat there. Ten feet away. Looking at him like he was a particularly irritating obstacle she needed to navigate around.
It reminded him of—
No.
He pushed the thought away.
"You do not wish to speak?" he tried again.
"No."
"Not even small conversation?"
"No."
"Hmm." He leaned back against his cushion, studying her. "You are very rude for soone in your position."
Her eyes flashed. "My position? You an captive?"
"Guest."
"Prisoner."
"Honored mber of my harem."
"Kidnapped female who made a deal under duress." Her voice was matter-of-fact. "Let us not dress it up with pretty words, Alpha."
Sha Chen felt his lips twitch into almost a smile.
Yes. Definitely like Mama.
Lin Zhiying had been the sa way. Sharp-tongued. Refusing to bow. Calling out his birth father’s cruelty even when it put her in danger.
"You kidnapped us," she would say, her arms crossed. "Don’t pretend this is hospitality, you overgrown dog."
And Papa, Wang Xianmo, would laugh. Always laugh. "She’s got spirit, this one. I like her."
Sha Chen had been five years old when they arrived. He rembered watching this strange, small female stand up to warriors three tis her size. Rembered thinking she was either very brave or very stupid.
Turned out, she was both.
"You are thinking about sothing," Xin Yi said, pulling him back to the present.
He blinked. "What?"
"Your eyes. They went distant. You were rembering sothing." She tilted her head. "Or soone."
Perceptive.
Too perceptive.
"Perhaps I was," he admitted. "Does it matter to you?"
"No."
"Then why ask?"
"Conversation. You wanted conversation." She gestured vaguely. "So. Conversation."
He almost laughed again. "You are very strange."
"So I have been told."
"Most females would be trying to charm by now."
"I am not most females."
"No." His white eyes glowed brighter in the red light. "You are an ’other.’ Like Mama and Papa."
She flinched at that. But he saw it.
"You keep ntioning them," she said quietly. "Lin Zhiying and Wang Xianmo."
"Of course. They raised after my birth parents died."
She was quiet. Listening.
He continued. He did not know why. Perhaps because she was the first ’other’ he had t since Mama died. Perhaps because she reminded him too much of her. Perhaps because he was cruel and wanted her to understand exactly why.
"They were good to . Mama and Papa. They taught everything. How to read. How to build. How to think beyond hunting and survival." His hands clenched. "They loved . More than my birth parents ever did."
"That is......good," Xin Yi said carefully.
"Yes. It was." He looked at her. "You remind of her. Of Mama."
She blinked. "What?"
"Your sharpness. Your refusal to submit. The way you look at like I am beneath you even though I hold all the power." His lip curved. "She was the sa way. Always fighting. Always resisting. Even when it would have been easier to just.....accept."
"Is that why you took ?" Her voice had an edge now. "Because I remind you of your dead mother figure? That is....."
"Cruel?" he supplied. "Yes. I am aware."
Silence fell between them.
"You know you are being cruel," Xin Yi said slowly. "Separating from my mate. Forcing into your harem. Using as so kind of......replacent for soone you lost."
"Yes."
"And you do not care?"
"I care." He leaned forward slightly. "I simply care more about having you here than I care about your suffering."
Her eyes went cold. "You are a bastard."
"I have been called worse."
"I am sure you have."
They stared at each other again, the tension between them slowly thickening.
She hated him. He could see it clearly. The way her jaw clenched. The way her hands fisted in the silk of her dress. The way she looked at him like she wanted to claw his eyes out.
Good.
Hate was better than fear.
Hate ant she would fight. Would resist. Would stay sharp and interesting instead of breaking into a trembling, sobbing ss like so many others had.
"Why are you doing this?" she asked suddenly. "Really. Not the surface reason. The real reason."
He considered lying, considered deflecting.
But what was the point?
"Because I am lonely," he said simply.
She blinked, clearly not expecting that answer.
"Mama and Papa died years ago. Everyone else in this territory—" He gestured vaguely. "—they fear . Respect . Obey . But they do not understand . They cannot. They were not raised by ’others.’ They do not know what it is like to be caught between two worlds."
"So you kidnap soone who does?" Her voice was incredulous. "That is your solution? Force soone to keep you company?"
"It has worked before."
"For how long? Until they break? Until they hate you so much they would rather die than stay?"
"Měi Lán and Zi Jue seem content enough."
"Měi Lán is scared!" Xin Yi’s voice rose. "You killed her mate! Her family! You think she stays because she wants to? She stays because she has no choice!"
"And yet she stays." He kept his voice level. "She has accepted her fate. Found peace in it. You could do the sa."
"I will never accept this." Her eyes blazed now, fury replacing the emptiness. "I will never stop trying to escape. I will never—"
"You will stay," he interrupted. "Because leaving ans your snake dies. And you care about him too much to let that happen."
She flinched like he had struck her.
"That is why I chose this thod," he continued. "Not force. Not threats against you. But threats against those you love. Because you ’others’ are all the sa, you would endure anything to protect the people you care about."
"You are a monster."
"Perhaps." He shrugged. "But I am a monster who has built a civilization. Who has created sothing beautiful from nothing. Who has honored Mama and Papa’s legacy." His white eyes locked onto hers. "Can your snake king say the sa?"
"Do not—"
"He is weak. Emotional. He let you get taken because he could not protect you properly—"
"SHUT UP!" She was standing now. Her fists were clenched and trembling with rage. "You know NOTHING about him! About what he has been through! About—"
"I know he failed you." Sha Chen stood as well. "I know you are here because of his weakness. If he were truly strong, truly worthy of you, you would still be with him."
"That is NOT—"
"It is true and you know it." He stepped closer. Not close enough to touch, but close enough that she had to tilt her head back to look at him. "You can hate . You can resist . You can spend every mont wishing you were elsewhere. But you cannot deny that I am stronger than him. More advanced. More capable of giving you the life you deserve."
She slapped him.
Again.
Harder this ti.
The sound echoed through the chamber.
His head turned from the impact, and his cheek stung.
When he looked back at her, she was breathing hard and her eyes were wild.
"I do not care how strong you are," she hissed. "I do not care about your civilization. I do not care about any of it. He is my mate. Not you. And nothing you say or do will change that."
Beautiful.
Absolutely beautiful.
This fire. This defiance. This was what he wanted. What he needed.
"Good," he said softly.
She blinked. Confused. "What?"
"I said good." He smiled. "Keep that fire, Xin Yi. Keep fighting. That is what makes you interesting."
"You are insane," she whispered.
"Perhaps." He stepped back, giving her space. "You should sleep. It has been a long day."
"I do not want to sleep."
"Nevertheless, you need rest. Your fever may be gone but your body is still recovering."
"I am not sleeping in your bed."
"I did not ask you to." He gestured to the massive bed. "It is yours tonight. I will sleep elsewhere."
She stared at him, eyes filled with suspicion. "Why?"
"Because despite what you think of , I am not a complete monster." He moved toward the door. "I said you would not have to mate with . I ant it. This room is yours. Rest. Recover. We will speak again tomorrow."
"Wait—"
But he was already at the door, his hand on the handle. The door closed softly behind him.
He stood in the hallway. Alone.
His cheek still stinging from her slap.
And he smiled.
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