Chapter 98: Wounded Pride

The silence that followed after Basil finished speaking was instant and suffocating.

Darius’s expression changed so subtly that Basil almost missed it. The anger in Darius’s expression disappeared first, leaving behind something far more unsettling. His eyes lost their usual intensity, becoming strangely blank as he stared at Basil. His jaw tightened, and for several seconds, he said nothing at all. Basil’s heart sank. There was something in Darius’s face that made the words he had just spoken suddenly feel cruel. It wasn’t rage. It wasn’t even disbelief.

It was hurt. A deep, quiet hurt that Darius seemed determined not to let show, even as it settled heavily across his features.

Basil’s stomach twisted as he regretted everything he had just said. He wished he could take the words back, but deep down, he knew they had to be said. It was the only way to make Darius understand that whatever feelings existed between them could not be allowed to continue. It was the only way to get Darius off his back and make him finally stop pushing for something Basil knew they could never have.

"You think what we had is an abomination?" Darius suddenly asked.

"No, Darius, all I am trying to say is—"

"You want to spend the rest of your life making up for what you think your family stole from me, right?" Darius cut in sharply, his voice dropping into a flat, icy register that sent a sudden shiver straight down Basil’s spine.

Basil stared at him, his mouth slightly open, searching Darius’s unreadable face as he tried to grasp where this sudden turn was leading. The hurt that had settled across Darius’s face moments ago had not disappeared. If anything, it had hardened into something colder.

"Fine," Darius said, taking a single, heavy step forward. "You want to make up for it? Then make up for it."

Basil frowned. "Darius—"

"Starting now, you are going to start making up for every single thing you believe the Thorn family took from me. You’re going to answer for every single sin they committed against me. Every grievance you have spent years blaming yourself for, you’re going to repay it."

Basil’s stomach tightened. "Darius—"

"After all," Darius continued, his voice growing colder with every word, "you are a Thorn. You carry their blood in your veins. And because you are a Thorn, I do not want you as my brother. You will never be my brother."

The statement struck harder than Basil expected. A sharp, stinging pain flared in his chest, making his breath catch in his throat as he felt the color drain from his face. For a moment, the room seemed to tilt beneath him. The words had cut deep despite everything he had said moments ago. They hurt far more than they should have.

A painful knot formed in his chest, but Darius either didn’t notice or simply didn’t care. Instead, Darius squared his shoulders and looked at him with the detached authority of a ruler addressing a lowly subject, his gaze cold and imperious, as though Basil stood several ranks beneath him.

"So now, as your Prince, you will do exactly as I ask, without hesitation, without arguing, without questioning my decisions, and without offering a single word of defiance. You will yield your pride, your silence, and your absolute obedience to my word, precisely as a subject owes to his ruler."

Basil closed his eyes briefly as he swallowed the lump of glass in his throat. The hurt remained, but exhaustion was beginning to overwhelm everything else. He drew a shaky breath, forced his chin up, and choked back the stinging heat behind his eyes. "Fine," he whispered, his voice trembling despite his best efforts to hold it steady. "If that is what you want, fine. I will do it. Now can you please go back to your room? I need to rest." Basil lowered his gaze. At this point, he would agree to almost anything, willing to endure whatever punishment Darius saw fit to throw at him, no matter how much it hurt, so long as that absolute boundary was drawn between them and this argument finally came to an end.

He knew Darius was simply speaking out of wounded rage and that, given enough time, the storm would pass and he would understand.

A harsh, bitter, humorless laugh escaped Darius.

"Who the hell are you to tell me what to do? Every room in this palace belongs to me as the true heir to this kingdom."

Basil looked up sharply, caught completely off guard by the venom in his voice.

Darius took another step forward. "This palace belongs to me. Every corridor, every chamber, every stone within these walls." His voice dropped dangerously low. "As the rightful heir to this kingdom, I have every right to be anywhere I choose and do whatever I desire within these walls. You do not have the standing to order me out of any room." Basil’s breath hitched.

This was spiraling completely out of control.

"Darius—"

"It’s Prince Darius, or ’Your Highness’ to you."

The sharp reprimand cracked through the room like a whip. Basil’s eyes widened in shock. It was as if a bucket of ice water had been dumped over his head. Never, not once had Darius ever demanded such formalities from him.

"Like I said, you are going to start making up for your family’s sins right now," Darius growled.

Before Basil could comprehend what was happening, Darius’s hand shot out. His fingers clamped around Basil’s wrist like an iron manacle. He yanked Basil forward, turned on his heel, and dragged him forcefully through the sitting area toward the inner bedchamber.

"Darius... Your Highness, wait! What are you doing?" Ignoring him completely, Darius continued forward. If anything, the grip around Basil’s wrist seemed to tighten further.

"You’re hurting me, Your Highness!" Basil cried out, struggling against the unyielding hold. His feet skidded uselessly against the polished floorboards as he was dragged forward. "What is going on?! What do you think you’re doing?!"

Darius continued forward with determined strides without slowing his pace, nor did he look back. He dragged Basil behind him as though he weighed nothing at all. He hauled him through the archway like a disobedient child, ignoring his desperate protests entirely. The moment they reached the side of the massive bed, Darius released his wrist with a violent shove, sending Basil stumbling onto the mattress.

Basil hit the heavy mattress hard, tumbling across the sheets before his momentum stalled against a pile of pillows. The impact knocked the breath from his lungs. Panic surged through his veins. He scrambled onto his knees immediately, his hands shaking as he pushed himself backward until his shoulders pressed against the headboard.

He stared at Darius with wide, frightened eyes.

"What has gotten into you?" he demanded, his heart hammering violently against his ribs. "What are you doing?!"

Darius stared at him for several long seconds. His jaw was set, and his blue eyes had gone dark with a cold determination that sent unease crawling through Basil’s chest.

"What do you think I am doing?" he asked softly, the quiet danger in his voice far worse than if he had shouted. "You said you should be paying for what your family did, didn’t you? That’s what you’re about to do. You will make it up to me exactly how I see fit, and whenever I demand it."

Basil’s eyes widened as it finally began to dawn on him what Darius meant.

"Please, Darius," he said, his voice cracking with desperation. "It doesn’t have to be like this. We can talk about this. Just calm down and think about what you’re doing."

Darius took a step closer to the bed.

His gaze swept over Basil’s trembling form with unwavering resolve, completely unmoved by the plea. "Undress!"

Basil flinched violently, his entire frame shuddering as if the single word had struck him like a physical blow. He scrambled backward against the headboard, his hands trembling violently as he held them out in a desperate, defensive plea.

"Darius, please, calm down," he begged, his voice cracking, thick with rising terror. "Please, just calm down. I beg you. You are going to regret this. You are going to regret this if you go through with what you are planning to do. Just listen to me, okay? Please, calm down."

Darius’s expression remained unreadable.

Basil’s breathing grew increasingly ragged as panic began to overwhelm him. He could see the blind, suffocating rage driving Darius forward, the sheer fury distorting the man he knew. Basil searched his eyes, trying frantically to reach whatever part of Darius was still listening, trying to pull him back from the edge before he crossed a line that would destroy them both.

"You’re angry right now. I know you’re angry. I know I hurt you with my words." His eyes burned as tears began to gather. "But please, whatever you’re thinking, whatever you’re trying to prove, you’re going to regret it later, just stop and listen."