His Silent Luna (Verity and Felicity) novel Chapter 6

CHAPTER SIX: FIRST INTERACTION

Verity’s perspective

The chill seeped in gradually, as it always did.

Beneath me, the cold stone was rough and damp, unforgiving in its hardness. A single breath stirred the dust that hung heavy in the still, stale air. There were no chains binding me this time, yet the silence felt far heavier—more suffocating—than any iron restraint ever could. I made no effort to sit up. Instead, I fixed my gaze on the cracked, blackened ceiling above. The scent of mildew and decay clung to the air like a second skin, thick and inescapable.

I was no stranger to cages. My entire existence had been spent trapped within one form or another.

Three long years in the Dark Lands had taught me to stop hoping for light.

So I remained still. I didn’t speak. I barely even allowed myself to think. What was the use?

Let them toss me into yet another pit. Let them drain me of whatever magic they suspected I possessed. Let them—

The door creaked open.

My body tensed automatically—the only crack in my carefully built emotional armor. Footsteps followed: calm, measured, deliberate. Not the clumsy stomp of a guard, nor the erratic, cruel pacing of the monsters I’d known in the Wastes.

This was different.

He didn’t speak immediately. I kept my eyes fixed on the ceiling, my mind already painting his face with the features of every captor I’d ever endured. But when his footsteps halted just in front of me, I felt it.

The weight of his presence.

“You’re awake,” a voice said.

His tone was slow and smooth, yet sharp enough to cut like a blade if he chose to wield it. There was something unnervingly controlled about the way he spoke, as if he measured every word before releasing it into the air.

Still, I said nothing.

The seconds stretched out. I counted them silently.

One. Two. Three. Four—

“What’s your name?” he asked.

I closed my eyes.

“What were you doing on Shadowfang soil?”

Silence.

“Are you a spy? An assassin?” He paused, then added thoughtfully, “You don’t seem the type, but looks can be deceiving, can’t they?”

I opened my eyes just a fraction, enough to catch a glimpse of him beneath my lashes.

He stood a few feet away, arms folded behind his back, his posture rigid and authoritative like a ruler surveying his domain. His armor was midnight black, gleaming faintly in the dim torchlight, silver patterns etched into the breastplate in strange, unfamiliar designs. His face was half-shadowed, but I caught the sharp angles—a strong jawline, high cheekbones, lips pressed into a thin, unreadable line.

He wasn’t old. Perhaps no more than twenty-nine or thirty. But there was something timeless in his gaze—something that made my skin tighten.

He took a step closer.

“Felicity,” he said suddenly, eyes narrowing. “Is that your name?”

I flinched—barely—but he saw it.

“I thought so,” he murmured, almost to himself. “You look like her. Except… not quite. You’re more radiant somehow, like you’re burning from the inside out. And those eyes…”

“You’re not Felicity,” he muttered. “But you wear her face. Her scent. Maybe even her blood.” His eyes searched mine with an intensity that made my skin prickle. “So who are you?”

Still, I said nothing.

I couldn’t.

There was no explanation that would make sense. Not to him. Not to anyone.

He was so close now that I could feel the warmth of his breath on my lips. The scent of him was intoxicating—cedarwood, smoke, and something darker beneath it all. Despite myself, my heart began to race.

His gaze dropped.

For one fragile, burning moment, his eyes flickered to my lips.

Something shifted in his expression. I couldn’t understand it, but I felt it deep in my bones.

Then, as if flipping a switch, he shoved me back. I hit the wall with a grunt, pain shooting sharply up my spine. Before I could even blink, he turned and strode toward the cell door.

He paused at the threshold.

“I will find out who you are,” he said without looking back. “And when I do, I pray you’ve given me a reason to be merciful.”

The door slammed shut behind him.

And I was alone once more.

Alone… and shaken in a way I hadn’t expected.